Scatter plot with 3 variables

**crystalcastle** · 02-09-2016, 01:33 PM

Hi there,

I need some help creating a plot and after playing around with it for hours I still haven't figured out how to do it - so hopefully somebody can enlighten me

I have the the following data: time intervals (eg. 20 mins, 40 mins, 60 mins etc) and depths (eg 0.4m, 0.8m, 1.2m etc). Then I also have values (percentages) which corresponds to a time and depth.
For example: Value 1 is 44.5% at 20mins and a depth of 0.4m.
Basically, I have a value for every single combination of time and depth.

I need to plot the values on a scatter graph (preferably also with interpolated lines) with the depth as the y axis and time on the x axis.

I would appreciate any help so much!

Thank you in advance

**MrShorty** · 02-09-2016, 02:10 PM

Excel does not really support 3D scatter plots. Excel's 3D plots can only use category axes for the x and y axes.

In limited cases (perhaps yours fits into this), where the x and y data are evenly spaced, then the category axis limitation is not a big deal. The basic approach to creating a 3D chart in Excel is:

1) Arrange data in the spreadsheet. I would expect something where x is down the left most column of the table, the y values are across the top, and the z values are in the body of the table.

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Note that if you don't leave the upper left cell blank when you create the chart, Excel will almost certainly not assign the correct range to the horizontal category axis. This can be corrected from the Select Data dialog after the chart is created.
2) Select the table, and insert the desired 3D surface chart (it sounds like you want a wireframe variation).
3) Format chart elements as desired.

If you decide that you need a true 3D scatter plot, you are probably better off seeking out a 3rd party application. True 3D scatter plots can be mocked up in Excel (http://andypope.info/charts/3drotate.htm ), but it is not easy.