Topo to 3D

How to make a printable 3D model from topo maps - notes.

Get the topo map data

Get the topo map, in GeoTiff format. Possible sources are:

• http://opentopo.sdsc.edu
• https://viewer.nationalmap.gov/basic/

Convert to DEM

Convert the GeoTiff file to USGS ASCII DEM (Digitial Elevation Model) format. Possible tools are:

• On Linux: GDAL translate option

sudo apt install gdal-bin
gdal_translate -of AAIGrid /yoursourcepath/output_alos.tif /youroutputpath/out.asc

• Or from another program like QGIS. Load your raster file and then from the menu: Raster->Conversion->Translate. You will have to manually edit the command to change the format from GTiff to AAIGrid

Alternatives

You could import the map image to Blender and edit it there. There is a nice tutorial for that.