Series
Maps in Motion
A marsh becoming a megacity. Airports spreading across Japan. A lake disappearing. We fast-forward decades and centuries on a map to see how towns and nature changed.
3 episodes YouTube playlist
Episodes
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How did Tokyo grow from swampland to 37 million?
In 1590, Edo was inlets and wetlands with a small town around its castle and port; by the 18th century it held about 1 million people.
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When and Where Did Japan's 97 Airports Appear?
Japan's first airfield opened at Tokorozawa in 1911; today the country has 97 airports (as of September 1, 2026).
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Why Did the Aral Sea Shrink? Satellite Map Timelapse 2000→2026
From the 1950s, water from the two rivers was diverted to irrigation; with no outlet to the ocean, evaporation kept pulling the level down.
Also searched asanimated maphistory maphow cities grew