Using Google SketchUp with Earth for Scientific Applications

Numerous scientists and engineers have discovered the value of the Google Earth application and Keyhole Markup Language as a medium for research and teaching in earth science, life science, and environmental science. Google SketchUp, on the other hand, has been used mainly for designing buildings and for recreational 3D modeling.This talk demonstrates the use of Google SketchUp to create Collada models that have Earth and Planetary Science applications on the virtual globe. Sample applications include plate tectonics, geophysics, atmospheric science, and the generation of paleoDEMs that represent the earth's landscape during previous geological periods.
Presenter: Declan De Paor
Director of the Pretlow Planetarium and Research Professor of Geophysics at Old Dominion University, Norfolk VA.
Declan obtained a PhD from the National University of Ireland in 1981. He came to the U.S. in 1983 as a Senior Fulbright Scholar and has since worked at Johns Hopkins University, Boston College, Harvard University, Boston University, and Old dominion University. His main research interests are strain and kinematic analysis of deformed rocks and digital mapping of geologic structures.