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By Elliot Mann
Post-Bulletin, Rochester MN
WINONA -- Ryan Ledin last month looked at the dirt, grass and maze of rocks along Devil's Den in Pennsylvania, where Confederate sharpshooters once dug in against advancing Union Army troops during the Battle of Gettysburg.
The 23-year-old never had to leave Winona.
Winona State University students used GigaPan images, or extremely high-resolution, panoramic digital photos, to virtually tour seven different battlegrounds around Gettysburg National Military Park. While a textbook photo would show a singular view, a GigaPans is several hundred photos combined into one panoramic image. Users can move around the photo freely, retaining quality as they zoom in hundreds of feet.
Touring the battlefield
Winona State students needed to tour the sites up close for an ecology course, Advanced Geomorphology, which studied the rock formations and topography of the region. Winona State assistant professors William Lee Beatty and Candace Kairies Beatty also brought three samples of rock types found at the Gettysburg Battlefield so students could see them first hand.
"This allows you to get students exposed to things you couldn't just drive to," Kairies Beatty said.
Ledin started out looking at a wide photo of Devil's Den, showing the entire site. But thanks to high-quality magnification, he could zoom close enough to read a historic marker at the site.
"We were able to get as close as you can get without actually touching the rocks," Ledin said. "Now, I have an idea of what the battlefield was like."
After viewing the GigaPans, students used Google Maps to create topographical maps based on the information they viewed from both sources. In studying the topography, students learned how the rocky battlefield accounted for high levels of casualties. The terrain didn't allow soldiers to dig in and create trenches, leaving them susceptible to opposing fire.
As Beatty explained, the students could take in the sights with a few computer clicks.
"We can see Pickett's Charge from both sides of the battle," Beatty said. "It's almost like you can put your nose right on the rocks."
From the birds-eye bluff
Winona State University staff has since taken the GigaPan technology to the Garvin Park bluff. They have created a 1.39 gigapixel photo of Winona. To put that in perspective, an average picture offers 8 megapixels. The Winona picture is roughly 173,750 times larger than an average photo.
If fully printed, the Winona image would stretch 105 feet wide, longer than the length of a basketball court, and 18 feet high, almost twice the height of a regulation basket.
Those involved in the Winona GigaPan project hope to allow viewers to take virtual tours of the city.
Visitors can click on a series of pre-marked locations, taking them away from the bluffs for an up-close look. When a visitor clicks on a location, or snapshot, a small box with additional information pops up, too. Clicking on the Winona State Observatory brings up the Twitter feed used by the site's employees.
Ideally, the site will showcase some of Winona's unique history.
"Someone in Brazil could tour the city, or read the story about a building in Winona," Beatty said.
Web links
Winona State University staff took this GigaPan photo of Winona from Garvin Park bluff. The 1.39 gigapixel photo allows people to take virtual tours of the city.
A portion of a 1.39 gigapixel panoramic image shows the Mississippi River from the Garvin Park bluff at Winona.
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