Elevation tab
Colors show height above sea level. Green = low ground, tan/brown = mid elevation, white = peaks. The color scale adapts to the area you're viewing.
Contour lines connect points of equal elevation. Closely packed lines = steep slope. Widely spaced = gentle or flat terrain.
Why it matters: Elevation tells you where water naturally drains — and where it collects.
Surface Drainage tab
Shows surface drainage patterns based on terrain shape. Deep blue areas are low points where water converges. Light gray/white areas are ridges and high ground.
The moving dots simulate water particles following the terrain downhill.
Why it matters: A valley-bottom lot means rainwater from surrounding terrain naturally drains toward your land. For official flood risk, see the FEMA layer on the Hazards tab.
Solar tab
Shows satellite imagery with solar resource data. The key number is GHI from the NREL NSRDB — total sunlight per day in kWh/m²/day.
US ranges: Southwest 5.5–6.5, Southeast/Midwest 4.5–5.5, Pacific NW/New England 3–4.
Hazards tab
Flood
Official FEMA flood zones. Zone AE/A: high risk (100-year flood). Zone X shaded: moderate. Zone X unshaded: minimal. Zone V/VE: coastal wave action.
Seismic
Ground shaking hazard from USGS. The Ss value is ground acceleration as a fraction of gravity.
Fault lines
Mapped fault traces from the USGS Quaternary Fault Database.
Fire
Wildfire Hazard Potential from USFS — structural risk based on fuel load and fire weather.
Soil tab
Soil data from ISRIC SoilGrids: Clay %, pH, and Organic Carbon.
Vertical Profile chart
A cross-section from west to east (X) or south to north (Y). The red star marks your click location.
Water table line (dashed blue): estimated from USGS monitoring data.
Controls
Address box: accepts addresses, place names, lon,lat pairs, or Mercator coordinates.
ft/m: unit toggle. Contours: on/off. Exaggeration slider: vertical stretch.