Contour Lines vs. Reality. As reliable as a topographic map might be, it can’t reveal every detail of the terrain. A 20-foot-high cliff or a 30-foot deep ditch could exist between two 40-foot ...

An instrument aboard the Terra satellite has generated the most complete digital topographic map of the Earth ever made, covering 99% of the ... giving a detailed view of the contours of the land.

Also, if you want to include better topographical contour maps onto Google Earth, there’s a tool which will overlay USGS topographical maps automatically for your current view.

The MAGELLAN SPORTRAK TOPO ($269) is the first GPS sold with pre-installed elevation maps of the entire country. The six-ounce waterproof unit holds 108 megabytes of contours and elevations (along ...