MATLAB: How to set explicit contour plot colors for specific value ranges

Question

Is it possible to set plot colors for specific value ranges?

I have defined the colormap as follows:

map = [0  1  0;
       0  1  1;
       0  0  1;
       0 0.5 1;
       1  1  1;
       1  1 0.5;
       1  1  0;
       1 0.5 0;
       1  0  0];
    
colormap(map);
caxis([-1 1]);

Can the colormap be somehow tied to the value ranges given in the table?

Answer 1

You will need to create a map matrix where the number of rows of a specific color is directly proportional to the length of its interval. Try this

Levels = [-8 -7 -5 -3 -1 1 3 5 7 8]/8;
num_points = diff(Levels)*8; % multiplied by 8 so that after scaling all elements will be integers
colors = [0  1  0;
       0  1  1;
       0  0  1;
       0 0.5 1;
       1  1  1;
       1  1 0.5;
       1  1  0;
       1 0.5 0;
       1  0  0];
map = [];
for i=1:numel(num_points)
    map = [map; repmat(colors(i,:), num_points(i), 1)];
end