An Analytical Model to Assess the Visibility of Landmarks

Landmarks in urban areas, such as castles, churches, bell towers, tall buildings, large hills, and tall trees, are common points of geographical reference in landscapes. However, modern construction methods have pushed buildings higher, so the visibility of these landmarks has been reduced. This article develops a simple analytical model for use in an urban setting to estimate how building height and density affect the area from where a landmark is visible. The probability of visibility from observation points will be derived by the use of a stochastic process. Three relationships between the visibility of a landmark and its setting are mathematically derived and illustrated using a monocentric city.