The Uplift Model Terrain Generator

Terrain generation finds many applications such as in CGI movies, animations and video games. This paper describes a new and simple-to-implement terrain generator called the Uplift Model. It is based on the theory of crustal deformations by uplifts in Geology. When a number of uplifts are made on the Earth’s surface, the final net effect is an average of the influence of each uplift at each point on the terrain. The result of applying this model from Nature is a very realistic looking effect in the generated terrains. The model uses 6 parameters which allow for a great variety in landscape types produced. Comparisons are made with other existing terrain generation algorithms. Averaging causes erosion of the surface whereas fractal surfaces tend to be very jagged and more suited to alien worlds.