Northwest Atlantic Vessel Density Maps from 2013 to 2022

2019 AIS data was analyzed to produce vessel density maps for the Northwest Atlantic, portraying pre-pandemic shipping patterns. The process was later applied to create yearly and monthly density maps for all vessel classes combined, as well as yearly maps per class, covering the years 2013 through 2022. These maps are provided in multiple geospatial formats including GEOTIF and ESRI REST services.

Use Cases

• Analyze yearly vessel density maps for all vessel classes to identify major shipping corridors in the Northwest Atlantic.
• Compare monthly vessel density maps from 2019 to study seasonal variations in maritime traffic patterns.
• Use yearly density maps of specific vessel classes for marine spatial planning and environmental impact assessments.
• Integrate GEOTIF format density maps with other geospatial layers for cumulative effects analysis in the region.

Strengths

• Covers a 10-year time series from 2013 to 2022, allowing for longitudinal analysis of shipping trends.
• Provides data in multiple accessible formats including GEOTIF, ESRI REST, PNG, and PDF.
• Focuses on the Northwest Atlantic region, offering detailed spatial coverage for marine planning.
• Based on AIS data, which is a standardized global tracking system for vessels over 300 gross tonnage.

Limitations

• The underlying AIS data is limited to larger vessels (typically 300+ gross tonnage), excluding smaller craft.
• The core description focuses on 2019 as a baseline year; details on processing for other years (2013-2022) are less specific.
• Data is provided as pre-processed density maps (rasters/images), not raw AIS point data, limiting granular analysis.

Provenance

Source

Fisheries and Oceans Canada

Collection Method

Geographic Information System (GIS) analysis of Automatic Identification System (AIS) ship tracking data.

Time Range

2013 to 2022, with detailed focus on 2019.

Freshness

Process updated and data made available through 2022; metadata last updated in March 2026.

Geography

Northwest Atlantic region.