In this challenge, you will apply your understanding of **geospatial data analysis** using Python by working with real-world datasets and visualizing the results. You will use the `geopandas` and `matplotlib` libraries to load, filter, and plot spatial data for a selected continent. This process will reinforce your skills in accessing geographic datasets, manipulating them based on attribute data, and creating clear, informative maps.

Begin by considering how a world map dataset can be used as a base layer for your analysis. **Geospatial datasets** often include global boundaries, which you can filter to focus on specific regions or continents. The Natural Earth dataset is a common source for such information, and it conveniently includes a **continent attribute** for each country.

To illustrate this workflow, you will see how to load the world countries dataset, filter it for a particular continent, and create a visualization that highlights your region of interest. The following code sample demonstrates how to extract and plot the countries of Africa, using methods similar to those described for South America.




import geopandas as gpd
import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

# Load the world countries dataset from Natural Earth (GeoJSON format)
world_url = "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/nvkelso/natural-earth-vector/master/geojson/ne_110m_admin_0_countries.geojson"
world = gpd.read_file(world_url)

# Filter for African countries using the 'CONTINENT' column
africa = world[world['CONTINENT'] == 'Africa']

# Plot all world countries in light gray
ax = world.plot(color='lightgray', edgecolor='white', figsize=(10, 6))

# Overlay African countries in green
africa.plot(ax=ax, color='mediumseagreen', edgecolor='black', label='Africa')

# Add a title and legend
plt.title("Countries of Africa")
plt.legend()
plt.show()


This approach can be adapted to any continent by changing the filter value in the dataset. **Filtering by the `CONTINENT` column** allows you to focus on a specific region, while overlaying the filtered data on top of the base map makes your area of interest stand out. You can further customize your map by adjusting colors, labels, and other plot settings.

You can explore the full list of continent names available in the dataset by checking the unique values in the `CONTINENT` column. Use `print(world['CONTINENT'].unique())` to see all options, such as **"Asia"**, **"Europe"**, **"Oceania"**, and others.

Note


import unittest
import user_code
import ast
import re   
import importlib
import csv
import unittest
import importlib
import sys
import ast
import re

class TestTask(unittest.TestCase):
    def setUp(self):
        self.module_name = "user_code"
        if self.module_name in sys.modules:
            del sys.modules[self.module_name]

    def test_libraries_imported(self):
        with open("user_code.py", "r") as f:
            code = f.read()
        _dynamic_test(
            self,
            "import geopandas" in code and ("import matplotlib.pyplot" in code or "from matplotlib import pyplot" in code),
            "Both geopandas and matplotlib.pyplot are imported.",
            "Missing import for geopandas or matplotlib.pyplot.",
        )

    def test_world_dataset_loaded(self):
        import importlib
        user_code = importlib.import_module("user_code")
        importlib.reload(user_code)
        world = getattr(user_code, 'world', None)
        _dynamic_test(
            self,
            world is not None,
            "World dataset loaded into 'world' variable.",
            "World dataset not loaded into 'world' variable.",
        )
        if world is not None:
            _dynamic_test(
                self,
                hasattr(world, 'columns') and 'CONTINENT' in world.columns,
                "World dataset has CONTINENT column.",
                "World dataset missing CONTINENT column.",
            )

    def test_continent_filtering(self):
        import importlib
        user_code = importlib.import_module("user_code")
        importlib.reload(user_code)
        world = getattr(user_code, 'world', None)
        found = False
        filtered_varname = None
        for var in dir(user_code):
            if var.lower() in ["world", "africa", "south_america"]:
                continue
            val = getattr(user_code, var)
            # Check if it's a GeoDataFrame and not empty
            if hasattr(val, "__class__") and val.__class__.__name__ == "GeoDataFrame":
                if ('CONTINENT' in val.columns and not val.empty 
                    and all(c not in ["South America", "Africa"] for c in val['CONTINENT'].unique())):
                    found = True
                    filtered_varname = var
        _dynamic_test(
            self,
            found,
            "A continent other than South America or Africa was filtered.",
            "No continent other than South America or Africa was filtered.",
        )
        # Store the variable name for use in the next test
        self._filtered_varname = filtered_varname

    def test_distinct_color(self):
        with open("user_code.py", "r") as f:
            code = f.read().lower()
        forbidden_colors = ["blue", "royalblue", "mediumseagreen", "green"]
        color_lines = [line for line in code.splitlines() if ".plot(" in line and "color=" in line]
        used_ok_color = False
        for line in color_lines:
            if not any(c in line for c in forbidden_colors):
                used_ok_color = True
        _dynamic_test(
            self,
            used_ok_color,
            "A distinct color (not blue or green) is used for the overlay.",
            "Overlay color is not distinct (blue or green found).",
        )

    def test_title_and_legend(self):
        with open("user_code.py", "r") as f:
            code = f.read().lower()
        _dynamic_test(
            self,
            "plt.title" in code and "plt.legend" in code,
            "Title and legend are added to the map.",
            "Missing title or legend in the plot.",
        )

def _dynamic_test(test_case, condition, success_message, failure_message):
    if condition:
        test_case._testMethodName = success_message
        test_case.assertTrue(True, success_message)
    else:
        test_case._testMethodName = failure_message
        test_case.fail(failure_message)

def normalize_text(text):
    text = text.lower()
    text = re.sub(r"\\s{2,}", " ", text)
    text = re.sub(r"\\s*([,:?])\\s*", r"\\1 ", text)
    return text.strip()

def change_var(code: str, var_name: str, value: str):
    tree = ast.parse(code)
    lines = code.splitlines()
    changed = False
    # Collect all assignment nodes to modify
    assign_nodes = [
        (i, node)
        for i, node in enumerate(tree.body)
        if isinstance(node, ast.Assign)
        and any(isinstance(target, ast.Name) and target.id == var_name for target in node.targets)
    ]

    # If nothing to change, return unmodified code
    if not assign_nodes:
        return code

    # Perform replacements for all matching assignments (from last to first to not break line offsets)
    for i, node in reversed(assign_nodes):
        start_line = node.lineno - 1
        line = lines[start_line]
        indent = ' ' * (len(line) - len(line.lstrip()))
        lines[start_line] = f"{indent}{var_name} = {value}"
        next_line = len(lines)
        for next_node in tree.body[i+1:]:
            if hasattr(next_node, 'lineno'):
                next_line = next_node.lineno - 1
                break
        if next_line > start_line + 1:
            lines[start_line+1:next_line] = []
        changed = True

    return '\\n'.join(lines) if changed else code

if __name__ == "__main__":
    unittest.main()


test_main.py

Dive into the fundamentals of geospatial data analysis using Python. This intermediate course introduces you to the core concepts and practical applications of geospatial analysis, focusing on real-world datasets and hands-on projects. You'll learn to manipulate, visualize, and analyze spatial data using Python and popular libraries, with a special emphasis on geopandas. The course is designed to be engaging, featuring interactive grids, videos, and quizzes to reinforce your learning.

Explore the essentials of geospatial data, coordinate systems, and the essential tools for spatial analysis in Python. This section sets the foundation for working with spatial datasets and introduces geopandas in detail, including its core data structures, reading/writing capabilities, and integration with pandas and matplotlib.

Delve into core spatial analysis techniques, including spatial joins, overlays, and aggregations, using geopandas and visualization libraries. This section covers advanced geopandas methods for combining, comparing, and summarizing spatial datasets, as well as best practices for spatial data visualization.

Gain a solid understanding of real-world geospatial datasets and scenarios, focusing on practical analysis and visualization challenges. This section emphasizes project-based learning and synthesis of geospatial analysis techniques.

Challenge: Analyzing the Geospatial Data

Solution