A Realtime 3D representation
of the Big Island of Hawai`i

realtime view over hamakuaIn 1995, i set out to be able to fly freely over the big island, taking people on a "virtual tour" of the island i know and love.  I figured this would include elevation data, aerial/satellite image maps, and culture including roads and towns.  There would be as much vegetation as possible.  There could even be active elements like volcanoes, weather, people, animals, rivers and waterfalls, etc.

Not only is this an interesting island to model, but the core technology of virtual terrain turned out to have a lot of other uses.

Today, the Virtual Hawai`i Project is part of the larger Virtual Terrain Project.