[Minecraft] 3D Geological Models of York, West Thurrock and Ingleborough

[Arthur]

The British Geological Survey are going to release more models in the next few weeks.

 

Link: www.bgs.ac.uk/discoveringGeology/geologyOfBritain/minecraft/3d/home.html

 

Following on from the scale model of Great Britain, BGS has taken another step into the world of Minecraft by creating three-dimensional representations of geology at several locations across the country. These models show how the geology rises and falls, and overlaps and folds, at different depths.

 

These models allow the Minecraft player to explore the geology of:

 

West Thurrock, York, Ingleborough

 

Requirements

• a licensed copy of Minecraft
  
• 50 MB free disk space per model
  
• more than 4 GB of RAM
  

3D models

BGS have developed Minecraft models for three sites across Great Britain, which show a range of environments both above and below the ground.

 

How was it made?

When building the map of Great Britain we used blocks which best resembled the 'real' geology, based on colour, texture and hardness. For the three dimensional models we decided to use glass blocks that were coloured by their traditional geology map colours.

 

Why did we use glass blocks?

When exploring under the ground in Minecraft most blocks are solid and don't allow you to see through them. When experimenting with these 3D Minecraft worlds we discovered that by using glass blocks the player could see the true extent of the geology straight away.

 

What data did we use?

To build each of these models we used a number of different datasets, including:

 

• 3D geology — BGS Groundhog models
  
• elevation — taken from the surface of the 3D geology models
  
• topography — OS VectorMap District
  

What have we done with the topography?

We have developed models that include the key map features above ground, such as roads and buildings, which helps the player to explore the world and orient themselves.

 

We have released two versions of each model: one with a topographic map above ground and the other with no topography attached. This allows the player to explore the true three dimensional models and learn more about the geology beneath their feet.

 

http://i.imgur.com/qpt901H.jpg

 

http://i.imgur.com/WfBbVgB.jpg

 

http://i.imgur.com/N0M7Ju3.jpg