3D surface visualization of planetary data using Indian remote sensing datasets on a specialized multiprojector system

This article describes the software (SW) implementation work to generate and visualize 3D surface models over the Earth, Moon and Mars using high-resolution satellite datasets from Indian remote sensing satellites over a specialized multiprojector system. Varied resolution datasets from Indian satellites like Cartosat series, ResourceSat, Mars Orbiter Mission and Chandrayaan-1, and digital elevation model (DEM) from CartoDEM were used for surface modelling and visualization. The generated high-resolution 3D surface model over the Earth is useful for strategy, urban planning, infrastructural planning, disaster management and educational purposes. It is also important to visualize the 3D surface of planets other than the Earth to visualize potential rover landing sites navigating to prominent features of the planet and validating future imaging sites. An indigenous SW package has been developed to model and visualize the 3D surface over multiprojector system, utilizing image processing techniques of data interpolation, image mosaicking, image registration, triangulation and texture mapping. Geographical information system layers representing places, roads and waterways have been integrated and overlaid on the terrain models for information.