The Tōhoku earthquake (9.1 magnitude) hit Japan on March 11, 2011 for a duration of 5 minutes, and was followed by a tsunami which claimed the life of close to 16.000 people.  

The seismic events shown took place on that same day, between 01h41 and 23h59 (GMT). At 0.5X animation speed, 1 second of animation = 1 hour in real time.

The main earthquake happened at 05h46 (1:80 mark in the animation), and slowing down the animation speed to 0.1X or keeping manual control around this event should allow you to better understand the aftershocks propagation.

Data:

* Topography and bathymetry: [Etopo1 Global Relief Model](https://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/mgg/global/global.html)
* Earthquakes: [ANSS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog](https://earthquake.usgs.gov/data/comcat/)
* Fault plane: [Slab2:  A Comprehensive Subduction Zone Geometry Model](https://doi.org/10.5066/F7PV6JNV)

Created with python and blender ( and love :) )

*NEXT: add focal mechanisms, better metadata, funkier colormaps and superimpose historical maps?*

Tōhoku earthquake - 2011

My biggest 3D scan to date! Located in downtown Baltimore, this sewage pumping station is perhaps the most beautiful public works building in the city.

"Designed by architect Henry Brauns and completed in 1912, the Eastern Avenue Pumping Station was the architectural crown jewel in the city’s ambitious plan to provide its citizens with modern-day sanitary sewage system. Baltimore’s topography dictated the location, essentially allowing gravity to transport wastewater created in downtown directly to the station...Today’s wastewater is pumped using modern electric pumps to its final destination at the Back River Wastewater Treatment Plan approximately six miles east of the station."

-[Baltimore National Heritage Area](https://www.explorebaltimore.org/places/eastern-avenue-pumping-station) 

Text for the annotated tour is from the building's 2015 Landmark Designation Report.

Created in RealityCapture from 2564 images taken with a Nikon D750 and a drone.

Eastern Avenue Sewage Pumping Station

Bilton 3, rendered in colour.

This is not some fancificul reconstruction of "how the stone may have appeared". Rather, the colours are assigned according to the topography of the stone, primarily, the relative depth of the carving.

As to the subject matter, the Coorpus of Anglo-Saxon Stone Sculpture is a good place to start: 

See: https://chacklepie.com/ascorpus/catvol8.php?pageNum_urls=18&totalRows_urls=249

Bilton 3 (Colour)

* Generator: [DEM Net Elevation API](https://elevationapi.com)
* Mesh reduction: [geometry3Sharp (GradientSpace, Ryan Schmidt) BSL 1.0 License](https://github.com/gradientspace/geometry3Sharp/blob/master/LICENSE)
* Digital Elevation Model: [SRTM_GL3 OpenTopography](https://opentopography.org/)
* Imagery: [MapBox Satellite](https://www.mapbox.com)

GMX 3D SFR

* Generator: [DEM Net Elevation API](https://elevationapi.com)
* Mesh reduction: [geometry3Sharp (GradientSpace, Ryan Schmidt) BSL 1.0 License](https://github.com/gradientspace/geometry3Sharp/blob/master/LICENSE)
* Digital Elevation Model: [SRTM_GL3 OpenTopography](https://opentopography.org/)
* Imagery: [MapBox Satellite Street](https://www.mapbox.com)

Kalimpong

* Generator: [DEM Net Elevation API](https://elevationapi.com)
* Digital Elevation Model: [SRTM_GL3 OpenTopography](https://opentopography.org/)
* Imagery: [MapBox Satellite Street](https://www.mapbox.com)

Beaufort, NC

Puy-de-Dôme

Living Earth V3 is a full closed Earth mesh built from real external datasets, not just a textured globe. 

It combines WGS84 geodetic shape, ETOPO 2022 topography and bathymetry, Blue Marble surface color, the real EGM2008 geoid, and PB2002 tectonic boundary data in a single manifold object. 

The model also integrates gravity-aware logic through Somigliana normal gravity with free-air correction, plus a light PAPP informational encoding layered on top of the physical data. 

What makes it different from most computational Earth representations is that it does not isolate one layer only—texture, terrain, or tectonics—but preserves geometry, relief, geoid structure, and tectonic semantics together inside one exportable globe. 

It is not just a visual Earth model, but a topologically clean and semantically enriched planetary artifact.

Computationally built and generated in seconds as a unified manifold planetary mesh from real geophysical data by PAPP Framework.

Living Earth V3 | PAPP Framework

Monte Brento 3

**Bird’s Foot Delta — Mississippi River**

This model represents the Bird’s Foot Delta of the Mississippi River in southeastern Louisiana, USA. The delta is characterized by long, narrow distributary channels extending into the Gulf of Mexico, forming a shape that resembles a bird’s foot. The landscape forms as river sediments are transported downstream and deposited where the river meets the ocean, gradually building new land over time.

The terrain model was generated from a 1-meter resolution Digital Elevation Model (DEM) obtained from the United States Geological Survey (USGS) 3D Elevation Program (3DEP) and distributed by OpenTopography.

**Data Source:**
United States Geological Survey (2021). United States Geological Survey 3D Elevation Program 1 meter Digital Elevation Model. Distributed by OpenTopography. https://doi.org/10.5069/G9NP22NT
. Accessed 2026-03-04.

Bird Foot Delta

kalimpong

This 3D model represents the mountain Åreskutan in Åre, Sweden. The terrain has been generated from a digital elevation model and converted into a printable/visual 3D mesh that highlights the natural topography of the mountain, including its ridges, slopes, and valleys.

The model was created using elevation data from Markhöjdmodell Nedladdning, Grid 50+ provided by Lantmäteriet (the Swedish Mapping, Cadastral and Land Registration Authority). The dataset is available under the Creative Commons license, which allows reuse with attribution.

The purpose of this model is to visualize the terrain of Åreskutan in a simplified physical form, suitable for 3D printing, visualization, or educational use.

Data source:
Markhöjdmodell Nedladdning, Grid 50+ — Lantmäteriet
License: Creative Commons (with attribution)

Location: Åre, Jämtland County, Sweden
Type: Terrain / Digital Elevation Model (DEM) converted to 3D mesh

Åreskutan

Monte Brento 5

A low ploy reconstruction of Mars' global topography, built from orbital elevation data collected by the HRSC-MOLA Blended Digital Elevation Model, a dataset produced by the U.S. Geological Survey's Astrogeology Science Center.

Mars Terrain Map

dasdfgh

* Generator: [DEM Net Elevation API](https://elevationapi.com)
* Mesh reduction: [geometry3Sharp (GradientSpace, Ryan Schmidt) BSL 1.0 License](https://github.com/gradientspace/geometry3Sharp/blob/master/LICENSE)
* Digital Elevation Model: [SRTM_GL3 OpenTopography](https://opentopography.org/)
* Imagery: [MapBox Satellite Street](https://www.mapbox.com)

elevation

A small luxury hotel building designed with a simple topography

Small luxury hotel building

Monte Brento 2

ocean surface topography mission ostm jason 2

A highly detailed and realistic 3D rendering of Earth’s Moon, showcasing its rugged surface, craters, and natural textures with precision. This model captures the celestial body’s iconic appearance, making it ideal for educational projects, space-themed visualizations, or creative artworks. Designed for clarity and accuracy, it highlights the Moon’s unique topography while remaining versatile for both scientific and artistic use

Moon 3D Model

* Generator: [DEM Net Elevation API](https://elevationapi.com)
* Mesh reduction: [geometry3Sharp (GradientSpace, Ryan Schmidt) BSL 1.0 License](https://github.com/gradientspace/geometry3Sharp/blob/master/LICENSE)
* Digital Elevation Model: [SRTM_GL3 OpenTopography](https://opentopography.org/)
* Imagery: [MapTiler Cloud Satellite](https://www.maptiler.com)

Naples

In the context of the [recent eruption](https://www.thelocal.it/20190721/sicilys-airports-reopen-after-latest-volcanic-eruption-of-mount-etna) of Mt. Etna (Sicily - Italy), here is a little 3D geological map.

Do not hesitate to follow the annotations for a 2 minutes tour of the volcano !

* [Geological map](http://www.isprambiente.gov.it/it/pubblicazioni/periodici-tecnici/memorie-descrittive-della-carta-geologica-ditalia/memoriexcviii/memdes_98_carta_geologica.jpg) from [ISPRA](http://www.isprambiente.gov.it/).
* Mesh reconstructed in CloudCompare from a [2005 Lidar Survey](https://figshare.com/articles/Mt_Etna_volcano_high-resolution_topography_airborne_LiDAR_modelling_validated_by_GPS_data/4818394) by Bisson et al. (Point Cloud visible [here](https://skfb.ly/6M6oI)).
* UV mapped and Post-Processed in Blender.

Mt. Etna - Geological Map

* Generator: [DEM Net Elevation API](https://elevationapi.com)
* Digital Elevation Model: [SRTM_GL3 OpenTopography](https://opentopography.org/)
* Imagery: [MapBox Satellite Street](https://www.mapbox.com)
* Data: [OpenStreetMap and Contributors](http://www.openstreetmap.org)

paracale

Generator: DEM Net Elevation API - https://elevationapi.com
Digital Elevation Model: SRTM_GL3 OpenTopography - https://opentopography.org/
Imagery: MapTiler Cloud Satellite - https://www.maptiler.com

* Generator: [DEM Net Elevation API](https://elevationapi.com)
* Digital Elevation Model: [SRTM_GL3 OpenTopography](https://opentopography.org/)
* Imagery: [MapTiler Cloud Satellite](https://www.maptiler.com)

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