Standard Climate Colormaps for MATLAB®

MATLAB live script to select, import, preview, and save the standard IPCC colormaps (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) for easier usage within the MATLAB environment.

IPCC Colormaps

• Continuous and Discrete:
• Categorical:

Description

The script allows users to:

• Select the type of colormap from three categories: Continuous, Categorical, and Discrete.
• Choose specific colormaps within each category.
  • for Discrete colormaps: Set the number of intervals.
• Save the selected colormap with its original name.
• Plot an example using the selected colormap.

Workflow

1. Select Colormap Type

   • Choose from a) 'Continuous', b) 'Categorical', or c) 'Discrete' colormaps using a drop-down menu.

     1a. Continuous Colormap - Select and apply a continuous colormap from the IPCC repository.

     1b. Categorical Colormap - Select and apply a categorical colormap from the IPCC repository.

     1c. Discrete Colormap - Select and apply a discrete colormap from the IPCC repository. - Set the number of intervals in the colormap (between 5 and 20).

2. Save Colormap

   • Save the selected colormap with its original name for future use.

3. Plot Example

   • Plot an example figure using the selected colormap to visualize its application.

License

This project is licensed under the BSD License - see the LICENSE file for details.

Acknowledgments

• Crameri, F. (2018). Scientific colour maps. Zenodo, https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.1243862.
• The colormaps are sourced from the IPCC GitHub® repository.
• Copyright 2025, The MathWorks®, Inc.