How routing works
When you run TerrainIQ, PVMath checks your site location and selects a region-routed DEM. All sources are resampled to the same 5 m analysis grid inside your boundary — see GLO-30 vs 5 m grid for why grid spacing and native posting are different numbers.
Europe — Copernicus EEA-10
EEA-10 (~10 m posting) is preferred for sites in the European screening bounds. If the tile cannot be fetched, TerrainIQ falls back to Copernicus GLO-30.
USA — USGS 3DEP
USGS 3DEP (~10 m where available) is the default route for United States coordinates. Coverage and quality vary by tile — some areas still resolve to coarser public data (GLO-30 fallback).
Rest of world — Copernicus GLO-30
Outside Europe and the USA, TerrainIQ uses Copernicus GLO-30 (~30 m) as the global default. It is a public DEM suitable for screening-grade slope and elevation analysis — not LiDAR or a ground survey.
What you see in the app
- terrain_source_used — which dataset was actually applied
- Terrain PDF disclaimer — native posting and routing notes
- reference.json — export metadata for CAD handoff