Animate a map through time

In this tutorial, you'll use ArcGIS Pro to create a short animation of earthquakes in Japan. You'll learn how to configure time properties for a feature layer, animate 2D data through time, add both static and dynamic text overlays to an animation, and export an animation to a video.

In this scenario, you've been asked to create an animation for use on a TV documentary that illustrates the frequency of earthquakes in Japan. Animated maps are also useful for sharing geographic stories on web sites, social media, and in presentations. Once you've completed the tutorial, you could use the same process to animate other geographic data, for example to show the changing extent of a wildfire, the travel paths of airplanes, and crime patterns over space and time.

This tutorial was last tested on April 9, 2025, using ArcGIS Pro 3.4 and ArcGIS Enterprise 11.4. If you're using a different version of ArcGIS Pro or ArcGIS Enterprise, you may encounter different functionality and results.

View final result

Requirements

• ArcGIS Pro (see options for software access)

Animate a map through time

Make a layer time-aware

For your animation, you chose to focus on one month of earthquake data. You also decided to only show earthquakes of magnitude 4 or higher, which cause noticeable shaking. After sorting through the data, you chose the month of July 2008, since it showed a good example of earthquakes clustering in both space and time, and did not include any events that caused death or destruction, which could be upsetting to viewers.

You'll begin by downloading an ArcGIS Pro project that contains the data for July 2008. The map is already symbolized, and your next step is to configure time properties for the earthquakes layer.

1. Download the JapanEarthquakes project package.
2. Locate the downloaded JapanEarthquakes.ppkx file on your computer. Double-click the file to open it in ArcGIS Pro.

   Note:

   A .ppkx file is an ArcGIS Pro project package and may contain maps, data, and other files that you can open in ArcGIS Pro. Learn more about managing .ppkx files in this guide.

3. If prompted, sign in to your ArcGIS account.

   Note:

   If you don't have access to ArcGIS Pro or an ArcGIS organizational account, see options for software access.

   The map has two basemap layers—Dark Gray Reference and Dark Gray Base—and one thematic layer, Earthquakes.

   

   The Earthquakes layer is a subset of the Global Earthquake Archive layer available from ArcGIS Living Atlas of the World. The original source of this data is the United States Geological Survey (USGS) Earthquake Catalog.

   

4. In the Contents pane, right-click Earthquakes and choose Properties.

   

5. In the Layer Properties window, click the Time tab.

   Before you can animate the Earthquakes layer, you need to make it time-aware. The layer has an attribute field with time data for each earthquake. You'll configure the layer so this field determines when each feature is displayed.

6. Under Filter using time, choose Filter layer content based on attribute values.

   More options appear.

   

7. Ensure that Layer Time is set to Each feature has a single time field.
8. For Time Field, choose Event Time.

   The Time Extent values update when you change the field.

   

   These dates—July 1, 2008, and July 31, 2008—are the earliest and latest values in the Event Time field. The extent spans the month of July 2008.

9. For Time Interval, choose View using unique times within the data.

   

   This setting determines the behavior of the time slider control on the map. The layer has 111 unique time values, and they do not occur at regular intervals. As you step through time, it will be easier to explore the data if you pause at each earthquake, instead of pausing at a regular time interval, such as every day.

   Note:

   You will not change the Time Zone settings for this project, since it will not affect your data or animation. However, it is recommended normally to define the Time Zone for time-enabled layers whenever it is known. This will ensure that layers and maps using different time zones can work together correctly.

10. Click OK.

    A time slider control appears at the top of the map. A Time tab also appears on the ribbon.

    

    Before you explore the data through time, you'll save the project.

11. On the Quick Access Toolbar, click the Save Project button.

    

Explore the content through time

The Earthquakes layer is now time-enabled. You'll be able to visualize the data based on when it happened, as well as where. Next, you'll explore the data using the time slider.

1. On the ribbon, click the Time tab. In the View group, click the Time button.

   

   Time filtering is now enabled for the map. On the map, most of the earthquake symbols disappear. Only one is visible in the northeast.

2. Point to the time slider.

   The control lights up, showing more information and buttons. Each blue line on the time slider represents a feature in your layer that occurred at that time. In this case, they represent earthquakes. You can see that sometimes earthquakes are clustered close together in time, and sometimes there are gaps without any earthquakes.

   

   The time labels at the top of the slider represent the minimum and maximum extent of the time data on the map. These are the same time values you saw earlier in the Layer Properties window.

   The time labels at the bottom of the slider represent the start and end times of the visible time span. The visible time span is currently very short, which is why only one earthquake is visible on the map.

3. On the time slider, click the play button.

   The map updates, showing a few earthquakes at a time. On the time slider, the visible time span becomes visible as a horizontal blue line with a handle at each end. It moves forward through time unevenly, pausing at each earthquake event. This behavior is due to the Time Interval setting you chose earlier in the Layer Properties window (View using unique times within the data).

4. On the time slider, click the pause button.

   You can change the length of the visible time span by dragging its handles, or by defining its length on the ribbon.

5. On the ribbon, on the Time tab, in the Current Time group, change Span to 2 Days.

   On the time slider, the visible time span lengthens.

   

6. On the time slider, click the play button again.

   On the map, more time, and therefore more earthquakes, are now visible at each step. A span of two days appears suitable for your animation, showing enough information at each step to create interest, but not so much that it is difficult to interpret.

7. On the time slider, click the pause button.

   You'll reset the start time to the start of July.

8. On the ribbon, in the Current Time group, for Start, type or copy and paste 7/1/2008 12:00:00 AM. Press Enter.
9. Reset the Span to 2 Days.

   

   On the time slider, the visible time span moves to the start. Its labels indicate that it ranges from midnight on July 1 to midnight on July 3.

   

   There are three earthquakes visible on the map. Your animation would be cleaner if it started with a blank map. You'll change the start time to two days earlier so no earthquakes will be visible at the start of the animation.

10. On the ribbon, for Start, type 6/29/2008 12:00:00 AM. Press Enter.

    

    The time slider updates with the new start time and the earthquakes disappear from the map.

    Next, you'll set the geographic extent of the map to ensure that it shows all of the earthquakes. You'll temporarily disable time filtering so you can see where all of the earthquakes are.

11. On the time slider, click the Time enabled button.

    

    This button has the same effect as the Time button you clicked earlier on the Time ribbon.

    All of the earthquakes reappear on the map.

12. On the ribbon, click the Map tab. In the Navigate group, click the Bookmarks button and choose Earthquakes.

    

    Depending on your map's previous position, the map may zoom in or out. The new extent shows all of the earthquakes with some room to spare.

13. On the time slider, click the Time disabled button to re-enable time filtering for the map.
14. The earthquakes disappear from the map.

    In ArcGIS Pro, bookmarks can store time, in addition to scale and extent. You'll update the existing bookmark so it includes the start time of your animation.

15. On the ribbon, click the Bookmarks button. Right-click Earthquakes and choose Update Bookmark.

    

    A clock icon appears on the bookmark, indicating that it is time-aware. Now this bookmark will return the map to your start position in both space and time.

16. On the time slider, click the step forward button repeatedly.

    

    The earthquakes appear and disappear on the map. Each click moves the map forward in time to the next earthquake. Two days of previous earthquakes are shown. The step forward button allows you to preview your animation with more control than the play button. It is also preferable for large datasets, which might not have a chance to draw completely before the visible time span changes.

17. On the time slider, click and hold the middle of the visible time span. Drag it along the time slider to preview a smoother version of your animation.

    Note:

    You can learn more about the time slider at Visualize temporal data using the time slider.

Create an animation

Now that you've time-enabled the data and explored it through time, you're ready to create an animation so you can show others the spatial and temporal patterns. You'll make an animation with two keyframes—one for the start and one for the end of the layer's time extent.

1. On the ribbon, click the View tab. In the Animation group, click Add.

   

   The Animation Timeline pane appears below the map and a new tab named Animation appears on the ribbon.

   Animations are made up of keyframes. Keyframes define key views of the map in space and time. An animation consists of interpolated transitions from one keyframe to the next. Your first keyframe will define the opening frame of your animation.

2. On the ribbon, click the Map tab. In the Navigate group, click the Bookmarks button and choose the Earthquakes bookmark.

   The map resets to its starting location and time.

3. In the Animation Timeline pane, click Create first keyframe.

   The Animation Timeline pane updates to show the timeline control—a blue horizontal bar—and the Keyframe Gallery. The newly created keyframe is visible in the timeline control as a gray diamond and in the Keyframe Gallery as a thumbnail.

   

   The red vertical line shown on both the timeline control and in the Keyframe Gallery is the current time indicator.

   Note:

   You can learn more about the controls in the Animation Timeline pane at Use the Animation Timeline pane.

   White space may have appeared on either side of the map, or along its top and bottom. This cropped view shows you which parts of the map will be visible in your exported video.

   Next, you'll make a keyframe to represent the end of the animation. You'll move the visible time span to the end of July, making sure to maintain a 2-day duration.

4. On the ribbon, click the Time tab. In the Current Time group, next to the Span setting, click the Span Unlocked button.

   

   The visible time span is now locked to 2 days. This will ensure that when you change the End time, the Start time will update instead of the Span.

5. Change End to 8/1/2008 12:00:00 AM.

   The Start time updates to 7/30/2008 12:00:00 AM.

   

   It's necessary to set the end time to the first day of August instead of the last day of July to ensure that all earthquakes from July 31 are included in the animation.

   On the time slider, the visible time span moves to the end of the slider. The map shows the view that you intend for the last frame in your animation.

   

6. In the Animation Timeline pane, in the Keyframe Gallery, click the Append next keyframe button.

   

   The new thumbnail appears in the Keyframe Gallery and a new gray diamond appears at the end of the timeline control. The timeline control is also labeled with time stamps, showing a total length of three seconds.

   

   This length is probably too short to properly show the data. You'll lengthen it to 20 seconds.

7. On the ribbon, click the Animation tab. In the Playback group, for Duration, type 00:20.000 and press Enter.
8. Below the Duration control, click the Reset button to return to the start of the animation.

   

   In the Animation Timeline pane, the red bar has returned to 0 seconds, and the total length indicated on the timeline control is 20 seconds.

9. On the ribbon, on the Animation tab, in the Playback group, click the Play button.

   The animation plays, but it may appear choppy. This is because with a length of only 20 seconds, the animation plays faster than the data can update on the map. When you export the video, this will not occur and the playback will be smooth. For a clearer preview of the animation, you'll step through it one second at a time.

10. On the ribbon, in the Playback group, click the Pause button and click the Reset button.
11. Click the Current box and place your cursor in the seconds position (anywhere within the second group of zeros).

    

12. On your keyboard, press the up arrow key.

    The Current value updates to 00:01.000. The animation progresses by one second.

13. Continue pressing the up arrow key to step through the animation until you reach the end.

    You could add more keyframes, and many animations have many keyframes. But this animation only requires two—a start and end point.

Add a static text overlay for a title

The temporal part of the animation is complete. Next, you'll add a text overlay for a title. You want the title to display for the full duration of the animation, so you'll select both keyframes before adding the overlay.

1. In the Animation Timeline pane, click the first keyframe thumbnail. Press and hold the Shift key and click the second keyframe thumbnail.

   Both keyframes are now selected.

   

2. On the ribbon, on the Animation tab, in the Overlay group, click Title.

   

3. Type Earthquakes.
4. Click the Close on-screen editing and commit changes button.

   

   The black title is hard to read on the dark basemap, so you'll make it larger and brighter.

5. On the ribbon, on the Animation tab, in the Overlay group, change the Font to Bebas Neue. Change the Font Size to 72.
6. Open the Font Color menu and choose Seville Orange.

   Tip:

   Point to colors to read their names.

   

   Next, you'll change the position of the title on the animation.

7. On the ribbon, in the Edit group, click Properties.

   

   The Animation Properties pane appears.

8. In the Animation Properties pane, click the Overlays tab.
9. Under Position, click the Place overlay top left button.

   

Add a dynamic text overlay to show time

You'll add another text overlay to display the date. Since the date will change throughout the animation, you'll add a dynamic text overlay, which will update as the map changes.

1. In the Animation Properties pane, ensure that both keyframes are still selected.
2. On the ribbon, in the Overlay group, click the More button to expand the overlay gallery.

   

3. Under Dynamic Text, click Map Time.

   Another overlay appears, showing code representing the start and end time values for the animation.

   

4. In the Animation Properties pane, under Position, click the Place overlay bottom right button.
5. Click the Close on-screen editing and commit changes button.

   The overlay has too much information. You don't need to show the time, just the date. You also don't need to show both dates. You'll edit the overlay to be more concise.

6. In the Animation Properties pane, next to <dyn "startTime"/> <dyn "endTime"/>, click the Edit the text for the overlay button.

   

7. Drag the edge of the Animation Properties pane to make it wider, until the dynamic text is visible on only two lines of text.

   

8. Delete the first line of the dynamic text, representing the start time.
9. On the remaining line of text, replace "short|long" with "MMMM dd, yyyy".

   

   MMMM, dd, yyyy, and short|long are all examples of dynamic text tags. You can read more about date formats for dynamic text tags in the documentation.

   The text on the map updates to July 01, 2008. Because this text will update frequently, it should be as short and clear as possible, to ensure that all viewers will be able to read and understand it before it changes. However, it's also important for the text to be complete. You'll add some further explanation to the dynamic text overlay.

10. In the Animation Properties pane, place the cursor at the start of the dynamic text and type 2 day span, ending on .

    

11. Click outside of the editing box to commit your changes.
12. On the ribbon, in the Overlay group, set the Font to Lucida Sans and the Font Size to 26. Leave the color set to white.

    

    Lucida Sans is a monospace font, meaning that each character takes up the same amount of space, so when the date changes during the animation, the width and position of the text will not.

13. On the ribbon, place your cursor in the Current box, in the seconds position, and use the up arrow key to step through the animation and preview the dynamic text changing.

    

    Note:

    While the text overlay jumps forward in time in 2-day increments, the animation will move forward more smoothly. This means that the text overlay represents a rounded value, rather than dates starting and ending at midnight. For example, if you pause the animation at 15 seconds, the map will display any earthquakes that occurred between 6 p.m. July 22 and 6 p.m. on July 24.

14. Save the project.

Export the animation as a video

Your animation is complete and ready to be exported as a video file. You'll choose a preset configuration and confirm that its file type, frame rate, and resolution are suitable for your needs.

1. On the ribbon, on the Animation tab, in the Export group, click Movie.

   

2. In the Export Movie pane, under Movie Export Presets, click some of the different options.

   On the Map view, the animation preview is cropped to a different aspect ratio based on your choice. Since your animation will be viewed on TV, you'll choose HD1080.

3. Click HD1080.

   

4. For File Name, click the Browse button.
5. In the Animation File Location window, choose a location you can easily access. For Name, type JapanEarthquakes1.mp4.
6. Click Save.

   

   Next, you'll review the export settings that came with the HD1080 preset.

7. Expand the File Export Settings section.

   Media Format is set to MPEG4 movie (.mp4). This is a common file type for videos.

   Frames Per Second is set to 30. Frame rate refers to how many frames (still images) are displayed in each second of the video. Frame rates of 24 or 30 are both common for TV.

8. Expand the Advanced Movie Export Settings section.

   The Resolution setting is set to 1080p HD Letterbox (1920 x 1080), meaning that the animation will be 1920 pixels wide and 1080 pixels tall. This is the most common resolution for TV.

   

   These settings are appropriate for your needs, so you'll export the video.

9. Click Export.

   Depending on your machine, the export will take between 2 and 6 minutes to complete. You can track the progress at the bottom of the Export Movie pane, or continue to interact with ArcGIS Pro.

   When the export is finished, a message appears at the top of the screen and a link appears at the bottom of the pane.

10. At the bottom of the Export Movie pane, click Play the video.

    

    A new window appears, playing the exported animation. The video format allows you to show patterns in space and time, for example, the cluster of earthquakes northeast of Tokyo that occurred between July 19 and July 23.

    

    Animation

Edit the video to show cumulative events

You sent the exported video to your boss, who is overseeing the creation of the TV documentary. They were happy with it, but requested that you change the animation so the earthquakes accumulate on the screen over time. They want to show all 111 earthquakes in the final frame.

Instead of starting your animation over, you'll make a copy of the previous animation.

1. On the Quick Access Toolbar, click the Save Project button.
2. On the ribbon, on the Animation tab, in the Manage group, click the Duplicate Animation button.

   

   In the Manage group and in the Animation Timeline pane, the name of the animation updates to Animation_(1), indicating that you are now viewing the copy.

   Animations are stored in the map (rather than the layer or the project). A map can have multiple animations, but only one can be active at a time.

   Next, you'll update the extent for the last keyframe so it includes all the data. As the video progresses, more earthquake features will appear on the map, but none will disappear.

3. In the Animation Timeline pane, double-click the second keyframe thumbnail.

   The red current time indicator moves to the end of the animation.

   

4. On the ribbon, click the Time tab. In the Current Time group, click the Span Locked button to unlock this setting.
5. Change the Start time to 6/29/2008 12:00:00 AM.

   

   The Span setting updates to 33 days and all of the earthquakes reappear on the map. You've changed the time settings for the map. Next, you need to push these changes to the animation.

6. On the ribbon, click the Animation tab. In the Edit group, click the Update button.

   

   The time changes are applied to the selected keyframe. If you don't do this, the change will only affect the map and not the animation.

7. Reopen the Animation Properties pane.

   Tip:

   Look for the Animation Properties tab below the Export Movie pane. Alternatively, on the ribbon, on the Animation tab, in the Edit group, click Properties.

8. On the Overlays tab, edit the dynamic text: delete the text 2 day span, ending on.

   In the Animation Properties pane, the final text should read <dyn type="animation" property="endTime" format="MMMM dd, yyyy"/>.

   

   On the map, the text should read August 01, 2008.

9. Click any blank part of the Animation Properties pane to commit your changes.
10. On the ribbon, on the Animation tab, in the Playback group, click the Reset button to return to the start of the animation.

    

11. Place your cursor in the Current box, in the seconds position, and use the up arrow key to step through the animation.

    The earthquake features accumulate on the map until all of them are shown. The animation transitions from a starting keyframe showing the time period immediately preceding July 1, to an ending keyframe showing all earthquakes between July 1 and August 1.

    Tip:

    Another way to display time data cumulatively is to lock the start time on the Time tab.

12. Save the project.
13. Reopen the Export Movie pane.

    Tip:

    Look for the Export Movie tab below the Animation Properties pane. Alternatively, on the ribbon, on the Animation tab, in the Export group, click Movie.

14. In the Movie Export Presets section, ensure that HD1080 is selected.
15. For File Name, edit the file name to JapanEarthquakes2.mp4.
16. Review the other settings.

    

17. Click Export.
18. When the export is complete, click Play the video.

    A new window appears, playing the exported animation.

    

    Animation

You've now created a short animation showing one month of earthquakes in Japan. You learned how to make a layer time-aware, how to explore temporal data using the time slider, how to create an animation using keyframes, how to add static and dynamic text overlays, how to export animations to videos, and how to make a copy of an animation and change its time settings. Try making another animation with your own time-aware data.

You can find more tutorials in the tutorial gallery.

Acknowledgements

• The Earthquakes layer is derived from Global Earthquake Archive (sources: USGS, Esri), which was in turn derived from the USGS Earthquake Catalog.
• Dark Gray Canvas map sources: Esri, TomTom, Garmin, FAO, NOAA, USGS, OpenStreetMap contributors, and the GIS User Community