Elevation MCP Server

What elevation-mcp-server MCP server does

The elevation-mcp-server MCP server exposes four terrain-analysis tools through MCP. It can retrieve ground height for individual coordinates, summarize elevation changes along a route, sample an area on a rectangular grid, and evaluate whether terrain obstructs a sightline.

Elevation results use meters and feet where applicable and identify the source dataset and resolution. The service selects between USGS 3DEP and Open Topo Data by default. USGS 3DEP covers the United States and territories, along with much of Canada and Mexico. Open Topo Data supplies coverage elsewhere using SRTM GL1 v3 and Mapzen terrain tiles where SRTM has no tile.

How it works

The elevation-mcp-server MCP server can run as a local STDIO process, a local Streamable HTTP service, or through the public endpoint at https://elevation.caseyjhand.com/mcp. Each tool accepts structured arguments and returns structured results. The source option can use automatic provider selection or pin requests to USGS 3DEP or Open Topo Data.

Automatic selection falls back only when a provider lacks geographic coverage. A provider outage is returned as an error rather than silently treated as a coverage miss. Sampling is subject to a 45-second budget, and concurrent USGS requests are limited by the service.

Tools and capabilities

• elevation_get_points accepts 1–100 WGS84 latitude/longitude points. Each result reports elevation, dataset, and resolution when available. USGS results can also include a raster identifier and acquisition date.
• elevation_get_profile samples a path at evenly spaced locations and reports distance, ascent, descent, minimum and maximum elevation, endpoints, and steepest grades. It can return the individual samples or only the summary.
• elevation_get_grid samples 2–25 rows and columns across a bounding box, with a maximum of 250 cells. Results include elevation and dataset matrices plus the highest point, lowest point, mean elevation, and relief. These are node samples, not cell averages.
• elevation_check_line_of_sight tests terrain between an observer and target. It supports flat, geometric, optical, and radio earth models, reports obstruction details, and can evaluate first Fresnel-zone clearance when a frequency is supplied.

Limitations and notes

The point tool accepts at most 100 coordinates. Profiles allow up to 1,000 path vertices and 250 samples; grids allow at most 250 nodes. Sightline endpoints may be no more than 1,000 km apart and use 3–250 samples. Invalid paths, bounding boxes, missing endpoint data, and overly long sightlines produce defined errors.

A coverage miss is represented as missing data rather than a tool failure. However, provider outages, rate limits, configuration problems, and sampling timeouts fail the complete call. Open Topo Data's public instance has a trailing 24-hour limit of 1,000 requests.

Line-of-sight analysis represents terrain only to the extent captured by the elevation source. Buildings and vegetation are not independently modeled. Optional water levels affect clearance calculations, and Mapzen sea-floor values can be interpreted relative to the sea surface under the documented rules. Fresnel results use a 60% first-zone clearance threshold when a frequency is provided.