OpenTopography Portal | Google Earth


A Portal to High-Resolution Topography Data and Tools


(login)myOpenTopo

Google Earth Topography

LiDAR Hillshades

LiDAR Hillshades In many cases users want a simple way to view the high-resolution topography provided by LiDAR without dealing with GIS-compatible DEMS or point clouds. In these situations, Google Earth (or similar virtual globes) provide an excellent way to view hillshades of LiDAR-derived topography. The Google Earth files (KMZ) below access LiDAR-derived images via the internet and will allow you to seamlessly browse massive amounts of data in Google Earth. Simply download one of the files and load it into Google Earth to get started.

  Yakima EarthScope LiDAR Hillshades

This Google Earth file (KMZ) provides access to 1 meter resolution bare earth (filtered) and unfiltered hillshades from the Yakima EarthScope LiDAR topography data set. Download this file and open it in Google Earth to browse hillshades with two illumination angles (315 and 45 degrees) and slopeshade images. The extent of the LiDAR data is shown by the cyan colored outlines.

  Alaska Denali-Totschunda EarthScope LiDAR Hillshades

This Google Earth file (KMZ) provides access to 1 meter resolution bare earth (filtered) and unfiltered hillshades from the Alaska Denali-Totschunda EarthScope LiDAR topography data set. Download this file and open it in Google Earth to browse hillshades with two illumination angles (315 and 45 degrees) and slopeshade images. The extent of the LiDAR data is shown by the cyan colored outlines.

  Intermountain Seismic Belt EarthScope LiDAR Hillshades

This Google Earth file (KMZ) provides access to 1 meter resolution bare earth (filtered) and unfiltered hillshades from the Intermountain Seismic Belt (including portions of Yellowstone and Teton National Parks) EarthScope LiDAR topography dataset. Download this file and open it in Google Earth to browse hillshades with two illumination angles (315 and 45 degrees). The extent of the LiDAR data is shown by the cyan colored outlines.

  Southern & Eastern California EarthScope LiDAR Hillshades

This Google Earth file (KMZ) provides access to 1 meter resolution bare earth hillshades from the Southern & Eastern California EarthScope LiDAR topography dataset. Download this file and open it in Google Earth to browse hillshades with two illumination angles (315 and 45 degrees) for faults in the northern San Andreas fault system. The extent of the LiDAR data is shown by the cyan colored outlines.

  Northern California EarthScope LiDAR Hillshades

This Google Earth file (KMZ) provides access to 1 meter resolution bare earth hillshades from the Northern California EarthScope LiDAR topography dataset. Download this file and open it in Google Earth to browse hillshades with two illumination angles (315 and 45 degrees) for faults in the northern San Andreas fault system. The extent of the LiDAR data is shown by the cyan colored outlines.

  B4 Project (San Andreas & San Jacinto Fault) LiDAR Hillshades

The Scripps Institution of Oceanography Satellite Geodesy group and the SIO Visualization Center have created visualizations of the B4 project data that can be viewed in Google Earth or with the iView3D freeware software packages. For more information and to access these files, click the button below.

Download KML
(SIO Visualization Center website)


LiDAR DEM Downloads

NoCAL GeoEarthScope LiDAR tiles In addition to providing a way to easily visualize LiDAR data, Google Earth also provides a way for users to browse and download LiDAR data in Digital Elevation Model (DEM) format. The Google Earth files (KMZ) below show the extent of LiDAR data available for a given dataset and also allow users to download LiDAR data as DEM tiles.

  Southern & Eastern California EarthScope LiDAR DEM tiles

This Google Earth file (KMZ), allows users to download 1 square kilometer filtered ("bare earth," fg*) and unfiltered (ug*) 0.5 m resolution digital elevation models in Arc Binary grid format. The DEMs are delivered in zipped archives for download. The dataset extent is shown on the map as yellow polygons. There is a download "button" for each tile in the dataset. You will need to zoom to an area of interest to see the download buttons. To download a DEM click the button and then select the link that appears in the pop-up window. These DEMs can also be accessed via the EarthScope Southern & Eastern California Standard DEM page. Currently this file provides access to the first batch of Southern & Eastern California EarthScope LiDAR data which covers the Garlock Fault. Additional data will be added in the coming months as it is processed and delivered to OpenTopography.

  Northern California EarthScope LiDAR DEM tiles

This Google Earth file (KMZ), allows users to download 1 square kilometer filtered ("bare earth," fg*) and unfiltered (ug*) 0.5 m resolution digital elevation models in Arc Binary grid format. The DEMs are delivered in zipped archives for download. The dataset extent is shown on the map as yellow polygons. There is a download "button" for each tile in the dataset. You will need to zoom to an area of interest to see the download buttons. To download a DEM click the button and then select the link that appears in the pop-up window. These DEMs can also be accessed via the EarthScope Northern California Standard DEM page