Global 3D topography explorer
I made a web app to generate 3D models of real places on earth from land cover and elevation data. Click anywhere on the map to get a polygon, and then click "generate". It should work at most scales, but if your watershed or region selection is too large, the result can be less exciting because it's so flat. As a warning, the 3D models can sometimes be too much for my phone. It's nicer on desktop. I'm still working better on mobile support. The land cover data I'm using gives a cool effect, but at some point I'd like to add in global imagery and clouds. The backend is a Python thread…
In plain words
Global 3D Topography Explorer is a web application that generates interactive 3D models of real-world locations using land cover and elevation data. Users select any area on a map and click to generate a three-dimensional visualization of that region's terrain and landscape features. The tool works across most scales, though very large selections may appear flatter. It performs best on desktop browsers, with mobile support still in development. The application uses real geographical data to create visualizations that highlight landscape variations and topographical features.
written from the facts on this page · September 2026
From the sources
In the maker’s words, at launch
I made a web app to generate 3D models of real places on earth from land cover and elevation data. Click anywhere on the map to get a polygon, and then click "generate". It should work at most scales, but if your watershed or region selection is too large, the result can be less exciting because it's so flat. As a warning, the 3D models can sometimes be too much for my phone. It's nicer on desktop. I'm still working better on mobile support. The land cover data I'm using gives a cool effect, but at some point I'd like to add in global imagery and clouds. The backend is a Python thread running on an old Lenovo Thinkcentre in my closet, so if it goes down, this is why. (I also sometimes need to restart it when the network card stops working... I really should figure out why sometime.) If you find a really cool island or watershed, let me know and I can add it to the "favorites".
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