GPlates Changelog

What's new in GPlates 2.0.0 Build 18164

• PROJECTS AND RECENT SESSIONS:
• Now saves and restores all layer information:
• Including layer order, visibility and all settings within each layer (such as colour styles and colour palette filenames).
• Open projects using File menu, drag'n'drop, double-clicking or command-line.
• Project name displayed in window title.
• Copy a project to another computer. For example:
• Zip up a folder containing project file and associated data files (including colour palette files).
• Unzip to another computer and open project file.
• Option to locate missing data files (when loading project or recent session):
• Useful when data files moved since project or session was saved.
• Option to resolve ambiguous data filenames (when loading relocated project):
• Useful when data files exist in both original and relocated locations.
• GPlates 2.0 can open projects and recent sessions saved by all prior versions of GPlates:
• However information saved by earlier versions is limited.
• GPlates 1.5 can open projects and recent sessions saved by GPlates 2.0:
• However restored information is limited (to what GPlates 1.5 can understand).
• DEFORMATION:
• Topological networks:
• Boundary is similar to a topological closed plate boundary, but also has:
• A deforming interior region (due to individual deforming points).
• Optional interior rigid blocks.
• Build New Network Topology tool now publicly available (without requiring command-line switch to enable).
• Export topological network boundaries in general Resolved Topologies export.
• Query and visualise velocities and strain rates at arbitrary points in networks.
• Optionally display total (accumulated) strain at arbitrary points:
• Displays principal components and orientation.
• Outward-facing red arrows for extension.
• Inward-facing blue arrows for compression.
• Reconstructing regular features using topologies:
• Use both topological rigid plates and deforming networks to reconstruct regular features.
• Incrementally reconstructs by plate ID in topological rigid plates.
• Incrementally deforms in topological deforming networks.
• Begin incremental reconstruction at a feature's time of appearance, digitisation time or present day.
• Use specific topological layers or default to all loaded topologies.
• Option to detect lifetime of each point in a geometry:
• Oceanic points appear (mid-ocean ridges) and disappear (subduct).
• Based on convergence velocity and distance to plate boundary during a plate/network transition.
• Scalar coverages:
• A new geometry type in a new layer type.
• Each point in a multipoint/polyline/polygon has a scalar value associated with it.
• For example, visualise mid-ocean ridge spreading rates and asymmetry calculated externally using pyGPlates.
• Crustal thinning:
• A specific type of scalar coverage containing crustal thickness values.
• GPlates recognises this coverage type internally:
• Uses deformation strain rates to evolve crustal thickness over time.
• An input dialog generates initial crustal thickness points:
• Uniform distribution of points within a topological rigid plate or deforming network boundary (with optional random offset).
• Specify initial constant/flat crustal thickness at a past geological time.
• Choose from a selection of built-in colour palettes to visualise crustal thickness variations over time.
• Export crustal thickness values to GMT(xy) or GPML format.
• Also added a separate export for deformation (strain rates).
• NEW HELLINGER TOOL:
• GPlates has a new workflow to determine best-fitting poles by the method of Hellinger:
• Import and export data files compatible with the FORTRAN programs of Chang and co-workers.
• Edit and create magnetic pick data points, via the canvas or tabularly via the Hellinger dialog.
• Adjust segmentation of magnetic picks.
• Enable/disable magnetic picks from inclusion in the fitting algorithms.
• Specify pole and angle estimates via the canvas or via the Hellinger dialog.
• Perform fitting using a python implementation the FORTRAN programs.
• Visualise resulting fit and uncertainty on the canvas.
• Export fit and uncertainty data to text file.
• NET ROTATION EXPORT:
• GPlates now calculates and exports net rotation of the lithosphere (based on the method of Torsvik et al., 2010) using global coverages of dynamic plate polygons.
• Net rotations are exported via the standard "Export…" tool, and by selecting the "Net rotation" export type.
• Any dynamic plate-polygon data sets currently active in GPlates will be used as the basis for net rotation calculations.
• OFFICIAL PUBLIC RELEASE OF VOLUME VISUALIZATION:
• No longer require command-line switch to enable importing of 3D scalar fields.
• Latest improvements:
• Reads georeferencing and spatial reference system (SRS) from first depth layer during import.
• Frees disk space after import (removes cached depth layer rasters).
• Fixed flickering cross-sections.
• IMPROVED OGR SPATIAL REFERENCE SYSTEM (SRS) SUPPORT:
• GPlates now has more complete support for OGR-supported files (e.g. ESRI shape file, OGR-GMT and others) which provide spatial reference system / projection information.
• Any SRSs supported by the PROJ4 library should now be accepted by GPlates.
• When saving to a file which had a non-WGS84 SRS associated with it, GPlates will prompt the user to export in either the original SRS, or in WGS84.
• All other forms of file export in GPlates continue to use WGS84.
• DONUT POLYGONS:
• Contain interior holes.
• Supported in file input/output, raster reconstruction, filled polygons, 3D scalar fields, etc.
• COLOUR PALETTE IMPROVEMENTS:
• Available in raster, 3D scalar field and scalar coverage layers.
• Remap the range using mean and standard deviation of the layer data (raster, 3D scalar field or scalar coverage).
• Added a variety of built-in colour palettes based on ColorBrewer sequential and diverging colour scales.
• RASTER RECONSTRUCTION IMPROVEMENTS:
• Improved stability and speed when connecting raster layer to polygons layer.
• Removed raster seams/cracks between adjacent polygons.
• TOGGLE VISIBILITY OF ALL LAYERS:
• Using the new visibility icons in the Layers dialog.
• COMBINE MULTIPLE ROTATION LAYERS INTO ONE LAYER
• ADDED VELOCITY TIME INTERVAL OPTIONS TO VALOCITY LAYERS
• NEW HALF-STAGE RECONSTRUCTION (VERSION 3) FOR MID-OCEAN RIDGES:
• Changes to spreading asymmetry, after digitisation, no longer incorrectly reposition ridge.
• IMPROVED HANDLING OF IMPORT/EXPORT DIRECTORIES:
• GPlates now stores the last used directory for Project files.
• In addition, there is more fine-grained support for both Feature Collection and Project folder preferences.
• These can be adjust through the Preferences (Ctrl+,) dialog.
• ADDED NAMED AGES WITH TIMESCALE INFORMATION AND UNCERTAINTY TRACKING:
• Supported for various feature types in GPlates Geological Information Model (GPGIM).
• Find-as-you-type named ages with timescale colouring.