Big Ol' Map

August 15, 2013 1:55 PM

Does anybody know about a huge relief map of the US?

I remember reading, in Smithsonian magazine back in the early eighties, about a HUGE relief map of the United States--like so big it fits into a gym-sized room. It's at some college in the Midwest, I think. Does anybody know about this?

posted by John of Michigan to Science & Nature (7 answers total)

Is it something relating to this map?
posted by xingcat at 2:03 PM on August 15, 2013

The Great Relief Map (formerly) at Babson College fits the bill.
posted by MrMoonPie at 2:05 PM on August 15, 2013

Probably not what you're talking about, but related: the Army Corps of Engineers had a 200-acre model of the Mississippi River Basin located in Mississippi.
posted by brentajones at 2:06 PM on August 15, 2013

There is this giant one of California but it was written up in Scientific American and not Smithsonian. You're sure it was the US?
posted by jessamyn at 2:07 PM on August 15, 2013

as an aside, this boutique publisher makes some stunners, yo.

2d shaded-relief best-of-breed. Nice to see a world map that - ya know - shows the whole word (suck it, web mercator).
posted by j_curiouser at 3:25 PM on August 15, 2013

forgot about this USGS six-sheet beauty (physical, not shaded relief)
posted by j_curiouser at 3:32 PM on August 15, 2013

Response by poster: Thanks for the answers, everyone!
posted by John of Michigan at 11:36 AM on August 16, 2013