Harris Corporation and DigitalGlobe announced Thursday that they will provide high-resolution, 3-D satellite imagery to NBC to support the network’s coverage of the 2004 Olympics from Athens, Greece. Harris is using its ImageLinks TrueTerrain technology to enhance DigitalGlobe’s satellite imagery of Athens.

The imagery will be further enhanced with 3-D modeling to provide remarkably detailed “virtual views” of Athens landmarks like the Acropolis, as well as the Olympic Village and sporting venues, during NBC’s broadcasts of the Olympic games.

NBC’s Olympic coverage is slated to begin with the opening ceremonies on Friday, August 13 and continues through the closing ceremony on Sunday, August 29.

DigitalGlobe’s 60-centimeter resolution imagery collected by the QuickBird satellite is merged with digital elevation data into Harris’ ImageLinks TrueTerrain product.

Together, these data sets create realistic and highly accurate 3-D terrain models for use by NBC. Harris also provided NBC 3-D models of Athens using its RealSite 3-D urban modeling tool.

Harris and DigitalGlobe will continue to acquire imagery of Athens and Olympic venues based upon customer interest and demand.

“Our goal is to continually raise the bar on the quality of our Olympic programming, and the 3-D imagery provided by Harris and DigitalGlobe helped NBC to create a visually stunning virtual tour of Athens and the Olympic venues,” said Neil Wright, producer/graphic designer for NBC Olympics.

“These realistic 3-D models of Olympic venues and stadiums, the Olympic Village and Athens landmarks will significantly enhance our 17-day broadcast coverage of the 2004 Olympics from Athens.”

“We’re proud to support NBC’s coverage of the Olympics in Athens,” said Howard Lance, Harris chairman, president and chief executive officer.

“The TrueTerrain product’s 3-D imagery and modeling should greatly enhance the ‘Olympic experience’ for viewers.”

“DigitalGlobe has been offering updated imagery of Athens to the media for the past several months in preparation for the Olympic Games. We’re thrilled to expand that offering with Harris for NBC,” said Herb Satterlee, DigitalGlobe’s CEO and chairman.

“NBC is sure to wow viewers with the amazing detail and realistic perspectives these imaging and 3-D modeling technologies afford.”