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opentopography.org
OpenTopography
@opentopography.org
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Open access to high-resolution, Earth science-oriented topography data, and related tools & resources. US National Science Foundation supported. #lidar https://www.opentopography.org
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opentopography.org
For the last several decades, scientists have been developing a way to make our maps more reliable with point cloud data collected by lidar. Lidar is an accurate method that helps scientists to map cities, landscapes, and places that were previously difficult or dangerous to access.
November 10, 2025 at 5:26 PM
opentopography.org
New for educators! Lab Exercise: Using lidar to track Lake Michigan bluff retreat and inform local communities

Designed for community college and intro-level geomorph, enviro sci, and GIS courses, students use lidar data to learn about dynamic coastal erosion.

opentopography.org/learn/WI_blu...
Side-by-side view of an aerial photo of the Wisconsin coastline along Lake Michigan showing a bluff and change along the Michigan coastline showing topographic hillshades (left) and vertical change (right) from 2010- 2020.
November 3, 2025 at 10:22 PM
opentopography.org
OT will be at GSA Connects 2025 in San Antonio, TX, Oct 19–22. Visit us at booth 809 to talk lidar, topography, and grab an "I ❤️ LIDAR" sticker. OT is honored to receive the 2025 GSA President’s Medal. Join us for the President’s Medal Lecture on Mon Oct. 20.

opentopography.org/news/opentop...
Graphic with a colorful rainbow river relative elevation model at the bottom and text on top reading "OpenTopography. GSA Connects 2025 | Oct. 19-22"
October 15, 2025 at 3:32 PM
opentopography.org
New September 2025 data releases on OpenTopography include Land Information New Zealand (LINZ) lidar over the North Island of New Zealand, SfM topography over the 2019 Ridgecrest rupture, NOAA coastal lidar additions, and additional USGS 3DEP data.

opentopography.org/news/septemb...
3D point cloud of intensity of a glacier near Kachemak Bay, Alaska. Data Source: NOAA: 2024 NOAA Lidar: AK Coastal Communities (Kachemak Bay). Colorized hillshade of Quinhagak, Alaska. Data Source: NOAA: 2024 NOAA Lidar: AK Coastal Communities (Eek, Goodnews Bay, Nelson Lagoon, Quinhagak, Togiak). Colored hillshade covering a portion of the 2019 M7.1 Ridgecrest earthquake surface rupture in California (red is higher elevation, grey is lower elevation). Data Source: CDS: High-Res SfM Topography of a Portion of the 2019 M7.1 Ridgecrest Rupture. Colorized hillshade of the USGS 1m DTM data over Dayton, Ohio. Note this dataset is a hydro-flattened digital terrain model, so it has buildings, bridges, and overpasses removed. Data Source: USGS: USGS 1 meter Digital Elevation Model.
October 2, 2025 at 5:44 PM
opentopography.org
Coastlines in Crisis

Coastal areas like the Outer Banks of North Carolina are shrinking. What can we learn and see from lidar data?
October 1, 2025 at 5:19 PM
opentopography.org
Check out TopoRivBlender, a new tool to create custom 3D images of topography and hydrography. Uses Blender and the OpenTopography API to produce 3D visualizations for data around the world.

More info:
waterdata.usgs.gov/blog/topo-ri...
github.com/DOI-USGS/top...
3D visualization of Kings Peak in Northeast Utah, USA A rendered 3D image of topography and hydrography in Upper Juniata in Central Pennsylvania (HUC: 02050302) using a perspective viewpoint. 3D visualization of the Columbia River in Oregon and Washington, USA. 3D visualization of the Colorado River in Southern Utah, USA
September 29, 2025 at 5:54 PM
opentopography.org
Join OpenTopography's Chelsea Scott and Cassandra Brigham for an AGU EPSP Connects Virtual Science Talk on cloud computing, spatial uncertainty, and impactful applications of topographic change on September 17, 2025 at 11 am ET (8 am PT).

Register to attend: tinyurl.com/sep17epsptalk
Graphic advertising talk "Topographic change with OpenTopography: Adventures in cloud computing, spatial uncertainty, and impactful applications" by Prof. Chelsea Scott and Dr. Cassandra Brigham
September 15, 2025 at 6:00 PM
opentopography.org
The stunning sandstone peaks of the Zhangjiajie National Forest Park in China inspired the floating mountains in the movie Avatar, but how did the real-life versions form?
September 11, 2025 at 6:27 PM
opentopography.org
OpenTopography datasets have been chosen for the NSF's National Artificial Intelligence Research Resource (NAIRR) Pilot Program, aiming to provide access to high-quality datasets that support the advancement of AI literacy, education, and innovation.

Read more ⬇️
opentopography.org/news/nsf-nairr
Credit: U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF). Graphic showcasing researchers in hardhats, with binary code and other computing elements in the background.
September 10, 2025 at 4:04 PM
opentopography.org
August's new data releases on OpenTopography include additional USGS 3DEP 1m raster updates (available to academics and OT+ subscribers), and UAV data from landslide reconnaissance monitoring in Utah.

Access the data: opentopography.org/news/august-...
Hillshade of the ZigZag Landslide near Snow Basin Road (UT-226), Morgan County, Utah. Colored hillshade of Mt Jefferson, Oregon. Data Hillshade of a section of the Carizzo Plain in California with the San Andreas fault zones plotted in red.
September 9, 2025 at 6:42 PM
opentopography.org
The Martian Mega-Volcano

The tallest volcano on Earth, Hawaii's Mauna Kea, pales in comparison to Olympus Mons on Mars, the largest volcano in the solar system. See what we can learn by studying the topography of planetary bodies.
August 18, 2025 at 6:57 PM
opentopography.org
A number of new topographic datasets are now available on OpenTopography. July dataset additions include the High Resolution Digital Elevation Model of Canada, NOAA coastal lidar of the Indiana coastline, and new LINZ lidar over New Zealand.

opentopography.org/news/july-20...
Digital Terrain Model centered on Mount Royal Park in Montreal, Quebec. Imagery draped on hillshade of topography of Fox Glacier in the Southern alps. 3D point cloud colored by elevation of the Ogden Sand Dunes on the southern shore of Lake Michigan. Digital Terrain Model (DTM) of a volcanic cone in Rangitoto Island Scenic Reserve, New Zealand.
August 13, 2025 at 3:09 PM
opentopography.org
How do you end up with desert dunes next to a wetland? The Potholes Reservoir explained.
August 6, 2025 at 4:04 PM
opentopography.org
The Mystery of the Missoula Megafloods

What can we learn from the topography of the Pacific Northwest?
August 4, 2025 at 6:11 PM
opentopography.org
6th largest #earthquake recorded by modern instruments. USGS epicentral location plotted on GEBCO Global Bathymetry & Topography dataset freely available from OpenTopography: doi.org/10.5069/G9D2.... Red line is the coastline of the Kamchatka Peninsula. Follow @earthscope.org for more on this event.
Topographic / bathymetric dataset with the location of the M8.8 Kamchatka Peninsula EQ plotted. Red line shows coastline.
July 30, 2025 at 4:19 AM
opentopography.org
How did Devils Tower form?
July 28, 2025 at 5:58 PM
opentopography.org
OpenTopography is excited to announce a major expansion to its international data catalog with the addition of the High Resolution Digital Elevation Model from Natural Resources Canada. This 1-meter resolution dataset is ideal for a wide range of applications.

opentopography.org/news/opentop...
Map showing extent of data coverage, primarily over southern Canada A hillshade colored by elevation of downtown Toronto draped on Google Earth imagery. A three panel figure of a section of the Athabasca River in Alberta. Figure A is the Digital Surface Model which includes buildings, trees and other structures. Figure B is the Digital Terrain Model and is a bare-earth representation of the topography. Figure C is the Canopy Height Model (CHM) which is the difference between the DSM and the DTM.
July 23, 2025 at 2:35 PM
opentopography.org
New topographic datasets are now available on OpenTopography! June additions include lidar over Mount Ruapehu (New Zealand), Point Beach State Forest (WI), and new NOAA coastal data from Florida and the Southeast U.S.

➡️ opentopography.org/news/june-20...
3D point cloud colored by RGB over a section of the Lake Michigan coastline. 3D point cloud colored by elevation showing a draw bridge opening over the Miami River. Colorized hillshade of homes along the canals in Cape Coral, Florida. Hillshade of Mount Ruapehu crater lake draped on Google Earth imagery.
July 10, 2025 at 5:52 PM
opentopography.org
OpenTopography is excited to introduce enhanced classification filtering options for lidar point cloud processing. Users can now selectively include or exclude specific point classes directly through the job submission interface, helping to streamline workflows.

opentopography.org/news/new-cla...
3D point cloud colored by intensity of a suburban housing area filtered to return only points with a building classification (class 6). The dataset, "Auckland Part 1, New Zealand 2024" has a "Bridge Deck" classification. Using the advanced classification filters, the bridge deck class was selected and only those points with a classification value of 17 were returned. This image shows the job selection area over the Tamaki River in New Zealand, and a 3D point cloud representation of just the points classified as "Bridge Deck". Points are colored by elevation value.
May 27, 2025 at 4:11 PM
opentopography.org
Nice example of the importance of illumination angle when making hillshade / shaded relief maps. The OT raster visualization tool allows users to make custom hillshades with control over the orientation of the light source (direction & altitude). Mulitdirectional shading is also worth exploring.
Screen capture of the OpenTopography Raster Visualization tool with parameters for control over hillshading highlighted.
May 16, 2025 at 5:15 PM
opentopography.org
OpenTopography's April 2025 data releases include Land Information New Zealand (LINZ) coverage of Auckland, New Zealand, UAV lidar surveys in California, and SfM high resolution topography of Stromboli Volcano, Italy.

Discover the data here: opentopography.org/news/april-2...
3D point cloud colored by intensity of downtown Auckland, New Zealand and the Auckland SkyTower. Hillshade draped on colorized DEM of Stromboli Volcano in Southern Italy. 3D point cloud colored by RGB over the Dawson Los Monos Canyon Reserve in California.
May 6, 2025 at 5:24 PM
opentopography.org
Lidar is reshaping how utilities plan, build, and protect infrastructure. From optimizing wind and solar farms to assessing wildfire risks, high resolution topography is critical for developing more resilient infrastructure.

Read more about lidar and utilities: opentopography.org/blog/utility...
Digital surface models of the mountainous topography surrounding a suburban development Phoenix, Arizona. A lidar point cloud of a wind farm in Minnesota colored by intensity. Topographic differencing map of Central Altadena, Los Angeles County, after the January 2025 fires.
April 28, 2025 at 8:13 PM
opentopography.org
The Medium Resolution Digital Elevation Model (MRDEM) of Canada is now available on OpenTopography. This 30 m resolution dataset provides full national coverage, including both DTM and DSM products, and extends into the U.S. to support cross-border hydrologic studies.
Colored Hillshade of Ellesmere Island Colored Hillshade of the Saguenay River/St Lawrence confluence draped on Google Earth Imagery Colorized DTM of Toronto area draped on Google Earth Imagery. The spatial coverage extends into the USA, where needed, to provide coverage for cross-border watersheds in support of hydrological studies and applications.
April 10, 2025 at 5:00 PM
opentopography.org
Check out the latest updates to RiverREM, a Python package that automatically generates river REM visualizations. Recent improvements include new colormap options (including custom and cmocean palettes), more efficient CPU and RAM usage, and expanded documentation.

buff.ly/bwtP8Vs
Relative elevation model of the Neches River, Texas, showing complex river channel patterns and surrounding floodplain topography in varying shades of green and blue.
April 9, 2025 at 4:30 PM
opentopography.org
How can topographic data help students explore everything from river systems to wildfire damage?

This month’s @earthscope.org educator newsletter spotlights OpenTopography—complete with classroom-ready resources and striking examples.

➡️ buff.ly/IKJdtTH
Preview of newsletter set against a background of a river relative elevation model.
April 8, 2025 at 6:36 PM