World Wind Users Document

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The World Wind Users Document provides an overview of World Wind and points to additional wiki pages when more indepth information is available.

Contents

Introduction

Blue Marble: View of the eastern hemisphere
Blue Marble: View of the eastern hemisphere
SRTM + LandSat 7: Mt. St. Helens, Washington
SRTM + LandSat 7: Mt. St. Helens, Washington
USGS Urban Area Ortho Imagery (MS Research Terra Server USA): Washington D.C.
USGS Urban Area Ortho Imagery (MS Research Terra Server USA): Washington D.C.
MODIS: 10-4-2003, Hurricane Kate, Atlantic Ocean
MODIS: 10-4-2003, Hurricane Kate, Atlantic Ocean
SVS: GLOBE, 08-11-2004, Maximum temperature
SVS: GLOBE, 08-11-2004, Maximum temperature

World Wind allows any user to zoom from outer space into any place on Earth. World Wind leverages satellite imagery and elevation data to allow users to experience Earth terrain in visually rich 3D, just as if they were really there. Virtually visit anyplace in the world. Look across the Andes, into the Grand Canyon, over the Alps or along the African Sahara.

For a more verbose explaination of World Wind and it's features please see World Wind.

Installation

Download Location

You can find information on where to download World Wind at NASA World Wind Download.

Installing World Wind

<< Needs to be filled in >>

The Configuration Files

In the NASA folder there is a folder called "Config" where you will find all the settings for World Wind. These files have a XML extension but are plain text files that can be edited by any text editor such as notepad. The configuration files are as follows: wms_server_list.xml, WorldWind.exe.config, WorldLayers.xml. Each configuration file controls a different aspect of World Wind.

wms_server_list.xml

Defines the servers that you download the Animated Earth Visualization data and the GLOBE Visualization data.

See WMS Sources for more information.

WorldWind.exe.config

Located in the main World Wind directory, this file lets you set cache size and directory using:

<add key="CacheDirectory" value="D:\NASA\CACHE"></add>
<add key="CacheSizeMegabytes" value="2000"></add>
WorldLayers.xml

The meat of the configurations. Controls the settings of World Wind that are not in the other two configuration files.

Startup / Using

Starting World Wind and General Controls

To start World Wind, click on the desktop icon that looks like this: Image:Wwshortcut.gif

This will launch the application and you will see a start screen. Note: some users have reported it locking up at this point. And some have got past this lockup by pressing Alt+F4. It stops the boot screen but not World Wind itself. Once World Wind is loaded, you will see the default Blue Marble view of the Earth. Now for the commands to use World Wind. You can use your mouse or keyboard to control World Wind's views.

Mouse Commands
Left Mouse Button = Hold this button down and move the mouse to rotate the earth to the right or left, top or bottom.
Right Mouse Button = Hold and drag your mouse to tilt the earth to see the 3D views of an area that has SRTM data. You will not really notice this function till you zoom in closer to a point on the earth.
Both Mouse Buttons = Zoom in and out of the Earth.
Scroll Wheel = Use this to zoom in and out of the Earth.
Keyboard Commands
Key chart
Key chart

You can use keyboard commands to navigate around the World in World Wind. You can access a chart of common key commands from from the Help->Key Chart menu item.

Menus

The file menu choices are “File‿, “Edit‿, “View‿, “Tools‿ and “Help‿.

File
Save Screen Shot - Saves a screen shot of your current view of the world in World Wind
Exit – Exits World Wind
Edit
Copy Coordinates - Copies a string similar to this, worldwind://goto/world=Earth&lat=64.21778&lon=24.72139&view=0.18390, to the clipboard. It can be used as a URL in an HTML document. Clicking the link will open World Wind and load the Lat/Lon and Altitude for that location.
Paste Coordinates
View (Has some of the same choices as the Toolbar)
Show Toolbar – Turns the toolbar on and of
Show Lat/Lon Lines – Turns the Lat/Long grid on or off
Lat/Lon Line Color – Sets the color of the Lat/Lon lines
Show Planet Axis – Turn the axis line (show the poles) of the earth on or off
Show Cross Hairs – Targeting cross hairs that show the center of your view
Show Position – Turn on the display of the Lat/Lon lines, Heading and Altitude
Motion Momentum – When enabled, when you move the Earth with the mouse it will keep moving in that direction and speed
Point Go-To – When enables, where you click on the globe, the view will rotate to that point so that it is the center of your view.
Vertical Exaggeration -
Always On Top -
Fullscreen -
Tools (Like View as the Toolbar choices)
Layer Manager – Opens the Layers so that you can enable and disable layers in World Wind
WMS Browser – Loads WMS
SVS – Loads the Animated Earth
Rapid Fire MODIS – Loads the MODIS interface
Place Finder – Loads the World Wind search function
Help
Keychart - Loads the key chart image
Website – Loads the World Wind website
About – About World Wind
Useful Sites – A listing of World Wind related sites
Toolbar

The toolbar is a quick link resource to the most commonly used World Wind layers. It can be turned on or off via the Tools > Show Toolbar menu choice. The toolbar looks like the one pictured below. It can differ if extra Add-Ons have been added to World Wind.

Navigating in World Wind

Accessing Data Views

There are several different types of data views to World Wind, you read about them in Introduction section of this documentation. The most commonly used icons are located on the toolbar of World Wind.

Blue Marble

Blue Marble is what loads by default in World Wind. It is 4km to 1km resolution images of Earth. Once you are zoomed in past the 1km resolution of the earth, the LandSat7 Layers then start to load. Blue Marble Imagery is shown down to an altitude of 780,000 meters.

Creating World Wind Add-Ons

World Wind is designed to allow you to create additional features that can be used in World Wind without having to write your own copy of the program.

Information about the different types of Add-ons and how to create them can be found at Add-ons.

Appendix

NASA OPEN SOURCE AGREEMENT VERSION 1.3

See NOSA for the full NASA Open Source Agreement

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