The Digital Press

A side project is using a novel Total Viewshed algorithm to find the longest line of sight on Earth by analyzing 4.5 billion elevation samples globally. The approach involves tile-based calculations balancing coverage and computational efficiency to identify maximum visible distances.

Why it matters: Understanding longest lines of sight has practical uses in geography, navigation, and optimizing visibility-based applications.

The big picture: The project uses elevation data and theoretical horizon distances to tile the globe, enabling scalable viewshed and line-of-sight analysis worldwide.

The stakes: Without careful tile sizing and overlap management, computations become inefficient or incomplete, wasting resources and missing true maximum sightlines.

Commenters say: Many appreciate the detailed methodology and global scope, noting atmospheric refraction and data precision as important factors for real-world accuracy.