GeoVisibleRegion

GeoVisibleRegion[{lat,lon,h}]

is a two-dimensional GeoGraphics primitive that represents the region on the surface of the Earth visible from the point of coordinates lat,lon and height h above the reference ellipsoid.

GeoVisibleRegion[pos]

represents the region visible from the position pos.

GeoVisibleRegion[{pos1,pos2,…}]

represents the collection of regions visible from the positions posi.

Details

  • GeoVisibleRegion assumes an ellipsoidal shape for the Earth and does not take into account the terrain elevation. Corrections for atmospheric refraction are not included.
  • The angles lat,lon in GeoVisibleRegion[{lat,lon,h}] can be given as numeric objects in degrees, DMS strings, or Quantity angles.
  • The height h in GeoVisibleRegion[{lat,lon,h}] can be given as a numeric amount of meters or as a Quantity length.

Examples

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Basic Examples  (3)

The visible region from an altitude of 10 km over the reference ellipsoid:

The visible region from geostationary orbit:

The region currently viewable from the International Space Station:

It only covers 3% of the total area of the Earth:

Scope  (4)

Visible region from a {lat,lon,h} position:

Smaller heights correspond to smaller visible regions:

For vanishing height, the visible region collapses to a point and default padding is used:

Specify the coordinates as Quantity objects:

Specify latitude and longitude as DMS strings:

Specify the viewing position as any type of geodetic position:

Move vertically 1 kilometer from New York, assuming the city is on the reference ellipsoid:

Visible regions from a collection of different locations at different elevations:

Applications  (1)

Show the region currently viewable from the International Space Station, together with its orbital track:

Properties & Relations  (3)

The boundary of a GeoVisibleRegion primitive is given by GeoVisibleRegionBoundary:

Position and height of the Willis Tower:

Show the region visible from the top of the building, assuming flat local terrain:

Horizon distance from elevation d, assuming a spherical Earth of radius :

Evaluate the formula for the height of the Willis Tower:

Compare a GeoCircle of that radius with the result of GeoVisibleRegion:

Zoom around the east border of the geo circle:

Neat Examples  (1)

Define a list of various notable (tall) North American structures:

Form a list of properties for each building:

Show the visible region, assuming flat local terrain:

Wolfram Research (2014), GeoVisibleRegion, Wolfram Language function, https://reference.wolfram.com/language/ref/GeoVisibleRegion.html (updated 2021).

Text

Wolfram Research (2014), GeoVisibleRegion, Wolfram Language function, https://reference.wolfram.com/language/ref/GeoVisibleRegion.html (updated 2021).

CMS

Wolfram Language. 2014. "GeoVisibleRegion." Wolfram Language & System Documentation Center. Wolfram Research. Last Modified 2021. https://reference.wolfram.com/language/ref/GeoVisibleRegion.html.

APA

Wolfram Language. (2014). GeoVisibleRegion. Wolfram Language & System Documentation Center. Retrieved from https://reference.wolfram.com/language/ref/GeoVisibleRegion.html

BibTeX

@misc{reference.wolfram_2022_geovisibleregion, author="Wolfram Research", title="{GeoVisibleRegion}", year="2021", howpublished="\url{https://reference.wolfram.com/language/ref/GeoVisibleRegion.html}", note=[Accessed: 24-July-2025 ]}

BibLaTeX

@online{reference.wolfram_2022_geovisibleregion, organization={Wolfram Research}, title={GeoVisibleRegion}, year={2021}, url={https://reference.wolfram.com/language/ref/GeoVisibleRegion.html}, note=[Accessed: 24-July-2025 ]}