Extreme Earth

The Globe of Extremes is an interactive 3D globe which pinpoints some of the most extreme places on Earth. Give the globe a spin and you can discover some fascinating facts about planet Earth. If you click on the orange markers on the globe you will learn about the most distant point from land, the altitude with the highest permanent human settlement and who was the first person to reach the lowest point on Earth.

If you want to discover how to make an extreme 3D globe then you need An interactive 3D globe of extremes - a DIY mapping guide. This step-by-step tutorial shows you how to use the ArcGIS API for JavaScript to create an interactive 3D globe just like the Globe of Extremes. Each step in the tutorial has its own commit on GitHub (so its very easy to cheat if you want). Among other things the guide shows you how to add a custom background to your globe, how to add exaggerated terrain and how to add clouds.

The tutorial also explains how you can add data to your own 3D globe using a GeoJSON layer. This means that it is very easy to update the 3D globe so that it displays your very own geographical data.