Parbati

Blender is the workbench where terrain meshes become explorable landscapes. The Python scripts automate the import pipeline: mesh loading, camera setup, landmark annotation, elevation banding, and viewport configuration. What the Scripts Do Script Purpose blender_5_import.py Minimal: import peak mesh, set viewport blender_5_annotated.py Full: import + labeled empties + 3D text + vertex colours blender_5_expanded.py Import expanded valley mesh (larger scene) blender_setup.py Post-import configuration (after manual import) kullu/kullu_blender.py Kullu district with 16 annotated landmarks Landmark Annotations Empties (point objects) mark key features: ...

Everything starts with elevation. The SRTM (Shuttle Radar Topography Mission) provides 1-arc-second (~30 m) digital elevation models covering the entire Parvati Valley and surrounding ranges. These are the raw material from which terrain meshes, hillshades, and satellite-textured landscapes are built. Data Source SRTM tiles from AWS Mapzen elevation tiles (public, no authentication): N31E077 and N32E077 — two tiles covering the Parvati Valley extent 3601 × 3601 pixels per tile, signed 16-bit big-endian ~30 m horizontal resolution, ~1 m vertical accuracy Processing Pipeline Download — fetch .hgt.gz tiles from S3 Parse — load as NumPy float32, handle voids (NaN) Stitch — combine adjacent tiles into continuous elevation grids Subsample — reduce resolution for mesh generation (step=3 to step=8) Hillshade — compute synthetic illumination for 2D visualisation Satellite texture — fetch Sentinel-2 Cloudless composite from EOX WMS The pipeline covers extents ranging from the Parbati Parbat peak (±0.10°, ~11 km) to the full Kullu district (1.3° × 1.2°, ~145 km). ...

The Kullu district expansion zooms out from the Parvati Valley to encompass the full Beas River drainage system — from Aut (1100 m) at the valley mouth to the Lahaul/Chenab divide (3080 m+) beyond Rohtang Pass. This is the geographic context within which the Parvati Valley sits. Geographic Extent Bounding box: 31.40–32.70°N, 76.80–78.00°E (~145 × 113 km) SRTM tiles: 4 (2×2 grid: N31E076, N31E077, N32E076, N32E077) Elevation range: ~800 m (Aut gorge) to 6632 m (Parbati Parbat) River System The Beas and its tributaries carve the district: ...

A digital elevation model is a grid of numbers. A mesh is geometry that can be rotated, lit, textured, and explored. This stage transforms SRTM grids into OBJ meshes with UV-mapped satellite textures — ready for import into Blender or any 3D application. Mesh Products Name Extent Resolution Vertices Texture Peak Parbati Parbat ±10 km step=3 (~90 m) ~400K 2048² Sentinel-2 Valley Bhuntar to Pin Parvati step=4 (~120 m) ~300K 4096×2048 Sentinel-2 Expanded Full GHNP + Khirganga NP step=6 (~180 m) ~416K Bare (vertex colour) Kullu Full Beas drainage step=8 (~240 m) ~316K Bare (vertex colour) Output Format Each mesh produces three files: ...