I came across this interesting website recently. The Terrainator (is that a nod to Phineas and Ferb?) uses digital elevation model data to create a 3-D model that it can export to a site called Shapeways where it will be created using 3-D printing technology. The standard models are less than 3-inches square and a fraction of an inch tall. The cost is computed based on the amount of material needed to generate the model. This tiny model will run you somewhere in the neighborhood of $30. They recently added the capability to create larger models, but the price goes up to nearly $200 for a model roughly 8 or 9 inches square which seems to be about the max. The screen capture at left is of the US 89 Bitter Springs Landslide area in Northern Arizona. Terrainator has 10m USGS DEM coverage of most of the western US, and coarser coverage of the UK and other areas of Europe. Could make a great gift for a geologist or engineer in your life. But you need to pick someplace with pretty good relief to make it look interesting. [Source: . Image: Shapways.com]
