OT-NASA World Wind

[AnswerDude]

I just saw this free program today, you guys may be interested. It is pretty amazing.
http://worldwind.arc.nasa.gov/index.html
From it's home page:
"World Wind lets you zoom from satellite altitude into any place on Earth. Leveraging Landsat satellite imagery and Shuttle Radar Topography Mission data, World Wind lets you experience Earth terrain in visually rich 3D, just as if you were really there."

[Bokkie]

AD,

that is :cool:

Thanks for heads-up.

[OWG]

Downloading now, have you tried this AD?

[Bokkie]

I downloaded it (175Mb) and installed it here at work. It works very well but I find when I zoom in to cities, all that happens is I get a green fog. I don't see any city detail not matter where in the world I look at. There might be a configuration issue to look into, but if anyone else can see city detail please let me know where to look at and what to do. I gotta admit, this program is really exceptionally put together and it shows what you can achieve with VS.Net! A brain as well no doubt helps, but wadda I know about that!:D

[AnswerDude]

I installed it at work. It needs lots of computer resources and it definitely need fast internet connection to update maps on the fly. When you zoom in, you do have to wait a little bit especially the 1st time you visit that sector. You will see the updating indication on the lower right hand corner. The resolution is also depended on the satellite you choose.

[0gopogo]

Thanks for the tip, Dude. This program is awesome.

[0gopogo]

Bokkie,

I think I may have seen your "green fog". Try disabling your firewall to see if that helps.

Now how do I have to setup my firewall (Norton) to allow it to remain active and World Wind to work at the same time...

[AnswerDude]

Here's where i am right now.

[Bokkie]

Originally posted by AnswerDude
Here's where i am right now.

Nice shot AD. Where I live in the UK, the detail is not so good. I posted mine on the iQue forum but the screenshot is very pixelised and has very coarse detailing but I believe that goes with the patch on Landsat images?

[AnswerDude]

Yes, the high res maps are only for these citites, all in the US.
http://www.terraserver.com/providers/usgs_urban.asp

[0gopogo]

AnswerDude,

Houston is listed on terraserver.com but I do not get anywhere near the level of detail evident in your screendump above. I must be missing something. But what?

[allgire]

Some areas in the US, especially rural areas are not detailed, and the ariel and/or satellite imagery are lower resolution and black & white only.

For Houston, I think I see the same level of detail that I see for my home area (Chicago NW suburbs)

One major thing to note - if you are looking for a residence, it will still be fairly small, as compared to the High-Rises in the City.

Here's where I am at now; although it looks signifantly different now, with two added wings this last year, and the parking lot expanded both on the north and east sides. . .

[JMckie]

I take images like those from Terraserver and calibrate them for use in Pathaway. Not very useful, but very fun. You can tell people you are tracking yourself from space like in those spy movies. You won't be lying because in fact you actually are.

[AnswerDude]

Originally posted by 0gopogo
AnswerDude,

Houston is listed on terraserver.com but I do not get anywhere near the level of detail evident in your screendump above. I must be missing something. But what?

I think that it just take a while for the map to load, this one of houston from 500m took me several minutes to get to this resolution with fast internet connection. Don't zoom in and out quickly, just go to the desired level and wait a few minutes when you visit the area for the first time.

[0gopogo]

Thanks. I found the 'USGS Digital Ortho' which goes down to the desired detail level. It is out of date, though. My neighborhood must be 10 years or older, and it is not on there. Still, this is good stuff.