Why does a single data point in a column of NaN not show up in a MESH plot?

I am creating a MESH plot from a matrix of data values. In this matrix, the entire last column is made up of NaNs except for one point. When I do a MESH plot of this matrix, that point does not show up. An example code would be:

%

%

z = zeros(10);

z(:,10) = NaN;

z(5,10)=5;

mesh(z);

%%%

Answer 1

[MathWorks Support Team]

This is an intended behavior of the MESH function. The MESH function creates four-sided polygons. Thus for a point to be displayed in a MESH plot, it needs to be associated with three other points to form a polygon.

In this case, the point in the last column of the above example cannot be associated with three other defined points to form a four-sided polygon. Hence this point is not displayed in the MESH plot.

In such cases, as a workaround, you can use the TRIMESH function.