Create a Map Overlay for Google Earth

If you ever wanted to change the overlay on Google Earth to display a topographic map or other types of maps, the information is sparse and sometimes wrong. I found out how to do it by experimenting. Here is what I found.

My search ended up at GPS Visualizer. It has several free tools that are very useful. I will focus on one of them for this post. They have an overlay creator for Google Earth that seemed to be what I was looking for. The only problem was that there was no step-by-step instructions. After some trial and error, I eventually got it to do what I wanted.

First:
Download and install Google Earth.

Second:
Fill out the form at the GPS Visualizer Overlay page for Google Earth and enter a overlay center point in either the "Location" box or "Latitude/Longitude" boxes. I chose  the "Enter a Center Point" radio button and "Dynamic" in the dropdown menu. The "Size of overlay" was entered with 2000 and the "GE document name field was left blank. I left the Dimensions at "Square". Lastly, I chose the "US: USGS topo map (2m: 2000px)". Once you are done click on "Create Overlay". You will be taken to a new page saying "Your KML overlay parameters have been processed". Click on the link reading "Click here to download your overlay". The "KMZ" file will download to your computer.

Third:
Double-click on the downloaded "KMZ" file which should load Google Earth as "USGS topo map" in Temporary Places. You can make this map persist by right-clicking on the "USGS topo map" link which will bring up a menu. Select "Save to My Places".

Fourth:
Your map overlay should show up on the main screen.

There are quite a few different ways to create overlays depending on your needs. I will go into some of them on my next post.