From Map to 3D Digital Model of Reality… and Back to Map

The article considers the evolution of digital maps and virtual globes and current issues associated with their creation and use. The author shows that as technology has evolved, digital cartographic applications have become increasingly different from traditional maps and globes, becoming essentially three-dimensional interactive digital models of the Earth and near-Earth space, territories, objects and processes. These models often also act as an interface for interacting with large volumes of poorly structured data. Characteristic new qualities of such 3D models of the Earth (virtual globes), according to the author, are multiscale, multitasking and multitemporality.

Analyzing the features of modern digital cartographic applications, the author highlights the key problems and potential risks associated with their creation and use. These include, first of all, the issues of data status in virtual worlds and trust in them; control of information flows between digital models and the real world; manipulation of user perception through software algorithm settings, data filtering or spoofing. The article focuses on the issues in legal regulation of 3D documents, including virtual globes, as well as issues of user responsibility for the possible consequences of their actions in the virtual models and technological difficulties in providing a comfortable work with 3D models in stereo mode. As a consequence, according to the author, two-dimensional mapping products, including traditional maps, are still preferred by most users, although they are now created on the basis of three-dimensional digital models. Prospects for further development and application of digital 3D reality models depend not only on the improvement of technology, but also on the formation of new habits of working with information.