Effective natural disaster preparedness programs can save lives and reduce the level of damage that occurs during catastrophic natural events.  Using CyberCity 3D’s city model content to enhance natural hazard maps can raise public awareness and enhance the way that data is presented and interpreted.

Earthquake Data by USGS

The above image shows a section of West Los Angeles and its corresponding seismic intensity during the 1994 Northridge Earthquake.  USGS ShakeMaps like the one above, along with a 3D building overlay show specific urban areas that will be most effected by seismic activity.  By merging these two data sets, emergency response planners can create appropriate forecasts and evacuation plans for areas of differing density.

Since the tragic loss of life that occurred during the 2004 Boxing Day Tsunami, many cities along the Pacific Rim have started designating Tsunami Hazard Zones with designated evacuation routes.

The City of Los Angeles Emergency Preparedness Department has recently mapped out Tsunami Hazard Zones in the Venice and Marina del Rey neighborhoods.  When driving in the vicinity of these neighborhoods, signage demarcating Tsunami Hazard Zones is clearly visible.

Viewing this data in Google Earth™ with CyberCity 3D’s Venice and Marina del Rey city models provides an informative and visually stimulating overview of the areas threatened by tsunami waves.

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CyberCity 3D’s huge inventory of city models can be used in a wide variety of Planning, Governmental, and GIS applications.   One very important application is the use of 3D city model content to enhance floodplain mapping.  What better way to see the real impact of flooding and water damage on cities, than by seeing flood level data in the context of 3D structures?

Floodplain Data provided by FEMA and OCTO

This is especially pertinent given last year’s Hurricane Ike and the recent floods on the Red River in North Dakota.  More effective floodplain mapping can dramatically increase public awareness of flood zones as well as improve response time and preparedness for such natural disasters.

The example shown above is FEMA floodplain data for Washington D.C., buildings provided by CyberCity 3D.  By viewing the data in this manner, the full effect of 100, 200, and 500-year floodplains can be seen on buildings throughout the city.  If you look closer you can even see some interesting places to take shelter in the event of a flood.

Building Model by AIA

For instance,  using 3D building models I can tell you that if you ever find yourself on the National Mall during a flash flood, the best place to avoid getting swept away would be in the Jefferson Memorial!  You can thank me for that little nugget of advice later…

For more information about floodplain mapping and other GIS applications for CyberCity 3D data, please contact us at info@cybercity3d.com

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Browsing around all of the new CyberCity 3D building content in Google Earth allows you to explore some pretty cool places, some of which cover some pretty swanky real estate.  One of these new city models is Pacific Palisades, an affluent district located in the far western reaches of Los Angeles city limits.

Nestled between the picturesque Santa Monica Mountains and the Pacific Ocean, the hills of Pacific Palisades are rife with multimillion dollar mansions.  Click here to view the model in Google Earth.

Flying through the 3D model of Pacific Palisades, one is afforded breathtaking views of the homes of the rich and the famous that could only otherwise be seen from a low-flying helicopter.  Divert your attention away from the mansion-studded hills, and take in sweeping views of the Pacific Ocean…all from the comfort of your home or office.

How much might one of these homes cost?  Well I’m glad you asked!  Flying into one of the neighborhoods, you can browse through listed homes to find your very own dream mansion.

This 6 bedroom, 7.5 bathroom behemoth with unobscured views of the LA basin and the Pacific Ocean can be yours for the low price of just under 6.3 Million dollars.  Not quite in your price range?  No problem…in the coming weeks, CyberCity 3D will be rolling out tons of new 3D real estate tools to make searching for your next home or apartment easy and fun.  Stay tuned…

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Late last week, the Google Geo Group made some important improvements to the Google Earth Plug-in.  Now, not only can you see photo-textured buildings pop up in the plug-in, but also entire gray city models.  This is part of Google’s continued effort to integrate all the functionality of the Google Earth™ stand-alone browser into the faster, more compact in-browser plug-in.  Soon you will be able to click on individual buildings, as well as search through all the informational KML layers you know and love from the GE browser.

For an example of gray building integration into the Google Earth™ plug-in, check out CyberCity 3D’s City Model Inventory Browser:

Click here to search through a list of CyberCity 3D’s newest city models without ever leaving your web browser.  No software to download…just a quick plug-in install and you’re good to go.  Check out our latest models in Venice, Manhattan, and Hermosa Beach…Pacific Palisades and Brentwood, CA soon to follow.

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In their continuous effort to keep updating and improving the Google Earth™ platform, the Google GeoGroup has recently pushed through a major terrain update.  CyberCity 3D contributed many of the new and improved digital terrain models in Southern California as well as Waikiki Beach in Honolulu, HI.

New terrain submitted by CyberCity 3D can be found throughout the Southland and is accurate to within 5 meters!  Just take a look at the improvements in Santa Monica’s famous California Incline, a road that connects Ocean Avenue to the Pacific Coast Highway on the beach below the Santa Monica bluffs.

Before: (click image to enlarge)

Notice that the Pacific Coast Highway just below the bluffs appears as though it was just pulled apart in a massive earthquake.  Not totally implausible given Los Angeles’ seismic history, but in this case it is just a visual distortion caused by an inaccurate terrain model.

After: (click image to enlarge)

Ahh, much better…the updated terrain model makes things look like they should.  The bluffs no longer have a road painted on them, and cars driving along the California incline are no longer being threatened by an earthquake.  Look for more updated terrain throughout much  of Los Angeles County as well as Honolulu, HI.

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Ever wondered about your property’s exact size?  How about your parcel boundaries?  If your neighbor owns bright pink patio furniture with matching flamingo lawn ornaments and you have ever wanted to know whether or not they are encroaching on your property, then check this out:

Layering parcel data on top of CyberCity 3D’s extensive network of 3D building content provides a new way of viewing individual properties.  Now you can end many a suburban squabble over protruding rose bushes and intrusive RVs with Google Earth™ and CyberCity 3D!

See tax parcels in Google Earth™ (make sure to turn on 3D buildings!)

Viewing tax parcels in Google Earth™ can also give added value and spatial perspective to, not only the layout of a city, but also the way property value is assessed.   If you are interested in acquiring tax parcels in KMZ format as well as 3D building content, CyberCity 3D can provide them quickly and at an extremely low cost.  For more information, contact us at info@cybercity3d.com

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Can’t get enough of CyberCity 3D?  Good news!  Now you can follow new developments in our rapidly expanding company on a daily……scratch that……hourly basis.  Get the latest on new Google Earth™ Mashups, Google™ news, and Real Estate marketing trends from your home computer, office, or while you’re out and about on your smart-phone.  Check out our feed on Twitter as well as our business page on Facebook™.  Click the links below to find out more and if you see us out in cyberspace, don’t hesitate to tweet!

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CyberCity 3D, Inc. is spreading the word:  we’re looking for people craving a creative, productive, fun work environment.  Today, we added “Career Opportunities” to our Home Page— so visit it on a regular basis to check out job listings as our state-of-the-art software company grows.  (Feel free to send your resume if you think you’ve got what it takes to be a part of our dynamic team.)  Local candidates are preferred.

Right now, we are searching for a Software Engineer– if that’s you:  contact us with your resume NOW!

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Call us crazy workaholics, but we at CyberCity 3D just can’t stop coming up with new applications for our 3D building content.  Check out the newest feature in our line of innovative Google Earth™ solutions: 3D Marketing for Hotels and Resorts.

Now you can browse through a multitude of resorts on Google Earth™ and even book your room on the spot!  Click through slideshows that show you exactly what the Hotel looks like, inside and out, and check out nearby points of interest.  Never before have so many hotels been accessible all in one place in a robust 3D environment.  Click here to check out a sample KMZ file (must have Google Earth™ 4.3 or newer with Terrain Features switched on).  Hope you enjoy it, and we’ll be sure to keep you updated on future developments on this project.

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“A minor earthquake occurred at 7:42:44 PM (PST) on Friday, January 23, 2009.
The magnitude 3.4 event occurred 2 km (1 miles) WNW of Marina del Rey, CA.
The hypocentral depth is 7 km ( 5 miles).”

-USGS Earthquake Hazards Program

I, along with most residents of West Los Angeles, felt the effects of this quake around 30 minutes ago.   A relatively small tremor, it falls in line with a host of incidents that have seemed to increase in frequency over the last 6 months.  True, it’s nothing remarkable in a region of the world that gets this kind of stuff all the time, but I found something interesting that I thought worth sharing.

If you visit the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program website you can see a map showing recent seismic incidents in Southern California.  In addition, you can download KMZ files of these quakes for viewing in Google Earth™.

Well, faster than you can say mashup I downloaded the location of this mild tremor into Google Earth™ (download the KMZ) and what did I see?  The exact house on top of the epicenter of the Earthquake!

Pretty incredible, huh?  Yet another use of CyberCity 3D content and Google Earth™.  We can only hope the owner of this house wasn’t in the middle of a heated game of Jenga!  Thats it for now,  have a great (and hopefully earthquake-free) weekend!

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