Remote Map Services (WMS / WMTS)

OpenSpace's GlobeBrowsing engine streams multi-resolution planetary imagery and elevation tiles dynamically based on camera distance. Instead of downloading multi-terabyte global datasets upfront, you can connect RenderableGlobe nodes directly to remote WMS (Web Map Service), WMTS (Web Map Tile Service), or XYZ/TMS endpoints.

GlobeBrowsing Layer Groups

Inside any planet or moon node (Scene <Planet> Renderable Layers), datasets are organized into functional pipelines:

Adding a Remote Layer via .asset

Use openspace.globebrowsing.addLayer(...) inside asset.onInitialize to attach a remote map layer to an existing planet without modifying factory planet files:

local earthAsset = asset.require("scene/solarsystem/planets/earth/earth")   -- (1)!

local CustomWmsLayer = {
    Identifier = "USGS_Global_Imagery",
    Name = "USGS Global Imagery Mosaic",
    FilePath = "WMS:https://planetarymaps.usgs.gov/cgi-bin/mapserv?map=/maps/earth/earth_simp_cyl.map&SERVICE=WMS&VERSION=1.1.1&REQUEST=GetMap&LAYERS=MODIS&SRS=EPSG:4326&BBOX=${west},${south},${east},${north}", -- (2)!
    Enabled = true,
    BlendMode = "Normal"
}

asset.onInitialize(function()
    openspace.globebrowsing.addLayer("Earth", "ColorLayers", CustomWmsLayer)-- (3)!
end)

asset.onDeinitialize(function()
    openspace.globebrowsing.deleteLayer("Earth", "ColorLayers", "USGS_Global_Imagery")
end)

1. Require Target Globe: Ensures "Earth" (or "Mars", "Moon", etc.) is initialized before injecting the layer.
2. Bounding Box Tokens: WMS URLs use ${west}, ${south}, ${east}, and ${north} placeholders; XYZ/TMS endpoints use ${z}, ${x}, and ${y} tile indices.
3. Target Group: Specify the exact globe identifier ("Earth"), layer group ("ColorLayers"), and layer definition table.

Configuring globebrowsing.asset & Local Tile Caches

Global cache behavior and default map server definitions are controlled via globebrowsing.asset (or overridden in ${USER}/data/assets/):

• Forward Slashes Only: Any FilePath pointing to a local XML GDAL WMS service description file (<GDAL_WMS>...</GDAL_WMS>) must use forward slashes (C:/OpenSpace_User/data/...).
• Inspecting Active Tile Requests: Open Settings Property Visibility Developer, then expand Renderable.Layers.ColorLayers.<LayerName> to inspect tile cache hit rates, projection bounds, and HTTP error flags.