
3
I
A WebGL Globe
Rendering Pipeline
Patrick Cozzi and Daniel Bagnell
3.1 Introduction
WebGL brings hardware-accelerated graphics based on OpenGL ES 2.0 to the
web. Combined with other HTML5 APIs, such as gamepad, fullscreen, and web
audio, the web is becoming a viable platform for hardcore game development.
However, there are also other killer applications for WebGL; one we are partic-
ularly interested in is mapping. The web has a long history of 2D maps such as
MapQuest, OpenStreetMap, and Google Maps. WebGL enables web mapping to
move from flat 2D maps to immersive 3D globes.
In this chapter, we present a WebGL globe rendering pipeline that integrates ...