New Landforms Website

A long time coming, here is the new Kentucky Landforms website, completely rebuilt from the ground up. There are several new features, a new look, and a total rework of the backend to make new submissions live on the database in record time. No more waiting for quarterly or yearly updates. Here is an in depth look of what has been done.

Chimneys
We added a new type of landform in this reworked website. We now document natural chimneys. There had previously been two submissions for them in the last couple years. We combined them with GNIS data for Kentucky and have 11 chimneys for this new landform on launch.

New Landform Map
Any long time user of these databases knows that my favorite feature for years has been the landforms map. This map has now been reimaged. It showcases all the landform types, shows the track of the May 2025 tornado path that is still being dealt with through the southern portion of Daniel Boone National Forest. You can now turn landforms on and off as well as any other item that is on the map. Rainfall data as well as wind data from the Kentucky Mesonet is also now on the landforms map. Clouds and radar are on it as well. You can also now click anywhere to copy coordinates for use in a GPS unit or an app on your phone. You can also use that click to submit a landform. It will then automatically add those coordinates to your submission form. One of the biggest new features is not one that you will see, but you will experience. The map has been reworked to be optimized for mobile phones and mobile platforms. This means tiles load quicker and the map utilizes your screen for maximum value and experience. Lastly, county downloads now exist for using the map while you are out of cell range. You can pre-download them to your device and use them while offline and out of cell range in the forest. There will be enhancements to this in coming versions and updates.

Live Landform Counts
On the home page you will see counts of all the landform types. For ten years I have typed up the totals of all the landforms that were in the database. You will see this no longer. Now the totals are live as submissions are accepted into the database, the numbers grow and update on the fly. Due to this new feature there will no longer be large updates occasional of the databases. Instead you will see the changes as they occur. If we work on updating and adding landforms, the count will go up as we do that, one by one. So check back often as the databases have changes to them nearly weekly. You will no longer have to wait for an update and instead it will constantly be changing. This is huge for users that use the database. The data and new entries make it into your hands immediately and quickly allowing for new adventures often.

Backend
The website always used certain software packages to perform the tasks, like updating landforms, creating new landform pages, and the like. That has all been reworked to make the website and databases faster. It also has been reworked to make it easier on the admins that work on the databases. These changes mean the users get better data, quicker and more comprehensive.

What's Coming?
The goal is to continue these changes across all the database websites. In the near future expect to see a reworked arches website followed by others. The databases are being reworked so they talk to each other and update seamless and constantly. Please reach out if you have any bugs to report or feature requests that you would like to see as part of the databases.