architecture and landscapes

There is a need in the humanities for a 3D WebGIS with analytical tools that allow researchers to analyze 3D models linked to spatially referenced data. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) allow for complex spatial analysis of 2.5D data. For example, they offer bird’s eye views of landscapes with extruded building footprints, but one cannot ‘get on the ground ’ and interact with true 3D models from a pedestrian perspective. Meanwhile, 3D models and virtual envir-onments visualize data in 3D space, but analytical tools are simple rotation or lighting effects. The MayaArch3D Project is developing a 3D WebGIS—called QueryArch3D—to allow these two distinct approaches to ‘talk to each other ’ for studies of architecture and landscapes—in this case, the eighth-century Maya kingdom of Copan, Honduras. With this tool, researchers can search and query, in real time via a virtual reality (VR) environment, segmented 3D models of multiple resolutions (as well as computer-assisted design and reality-based) that are linked to attribute data stored in a spatial database. Beta test