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# Google Maps Elevation

## Google Maps Elevation API Documentation

This document describes how to use the **Google Maps Elevation API** to retrieve elevation data for specific geographic locations or paths on Earth’s surface.

***

### Base Endpoint

To request elevation data, use the following endpoint:

```
https://maps.googleapis.com/maps/api/elevation/json?parameters
```

Replace `parameters` with query arguments such as `locations`, `path`, and your `key`.

***

### 1. Basic Elevation Request

#### Endpoint Example

```
https://maps.googleapis.com/maps/api/elevation/json?locations=39.7391536,-104.9847034&key=YOUR_API_KEY
```

This request returns the elevation for one or more geographic coordinates.

#### Parameters

| Parameter   | Type   | Description                                               |
| ----------- | ------ | --------------------------------------------------------- |
| `locations` | string | One or more latitude/longitude pairs separated by \`      |
| `key`       | string | Your Google Cloud API key with the Elevation API enabled. |

#### Response Fields

| Field          | Type   | Description                                                                                                   |
| -------------- | ------ | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `results`      | array  | Contains one or more elevation results.                                                                       |
| `elevation`    | float  | Elevation of the location in meters above sea level.                                                          |
| `location.lat` | float  | Latitude of the requested point.                                                                              |
| `location.lng` | float  | Longitude of the requested point.                                                                             |
| `resolution`   | float  | Maximum distance between data points from which the elevation was interpolated, in meters.                    |
| `status`       | string | Status of the request (e.g., `OK`, `INVALID_REQUEST`, `OVER_QUERY_LIMIT`, `REQUEST_DENIED`, `UNKNOWN_ERROR`). |

***

### 2. Path Elevation Request

#### Endpoint Example

```
https://maps.googleapis.com/maps/api/elevation/json?path=36.578581,-118.291994|36.23998,-116.83171&samples=3&key=YOUR_API_KEY
```

This returns elevation values along a path between multiple coordinates.

#### Parameters

| Parameter | Type    | Description                                                                    |
| --------- | ------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| `path`    | string  | A set of two or more latitude/longitude pairs defining a path, separated by \` |
| `samples` | integer | The number of equally spaced points along the path to sample for elevation.    |
| `key`     | string  | Your API key.                                                                  |

#### Response Example

```json
{
  "results": [
    {
      "elevation": 1608.637939453125,
      "location": {"lat": 36.578581, "lng": -118.291994},
      "resolution": 4.771975994110107
    },
    {
      "elevation": 1523.73828125,
      "location": {"lat": 36.400433, "lng": -117.561852},
      "resolution": 4.771975994110107
    },
    {
      "elevation": -64.37896728515625,
      "location": {"lat": 36.23998, "lng": -116.83171},
      "resolution": 19.08790397644043
    }
  ],
  "status": "OK"
}
```

***

### 3. Common Response Fields

| Field                    | Type   | Description                                                   |
| ------------------------ | ------ | ------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `results`                | array  | Contains one or more elevation data points.                   |
| `results[].elevation`    | float  | Elevation in meters above sea level.                          |
| `results[].location.lat` | float  | Latitude of the elevation point.                              |
| `results[].location.lng` | float  | Longitude of the elevation point.                             |
| `results[].resolution`   | float  | Maximum resolution (in meters) of the elevation data.         |
| `status`                 | string | Status code indicating the success or failure of the request. |

***

### 4. Error Status Codes

| Status             | Meaning                                                                |
| ------------------ | ---------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `OK`               | Request succeeded.                                                     |
| `INVALID_REQUEST`  | The request is missing a required parameter or has an invalid value.   |
| `OVER_QUERY_LIMIT` | The request exceeded your usage quota.                                 |
| `REQUEST_DENIED`   | The request was denied, often due to an invalid or restricted API key. |
| `UNKNOWN_ERROR`    | A server error occurred. Try again later.                              |

***

### Example Use Case

**Retrieve the elevation profile along a hiking trail**

```bash
curl "https://maps.googleapis.com/maps/api/elevation/json?path=34.11,-118.11|34.13,-118.15&samples=5&key=YOUR_API_KEY"
```

This returns five elevation points evenly spaced along the specified path, allowing you to plot an elevation profile.


---

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