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Revision as of 03:33, 25 May 2008

The Algorithm, as shown in xkcd comic #426.

Use this tool to find geohashing coordinates for a given area/date.

NoTerminal and Drache at the February 19, 2008 coordinates for Portland, Oregon

Welcome to the Geohashing Community Wiki. Geohashing is a Spontaneous Adventure Generator, brought to you by the xkcd webcomic. If you are already familiar with GPS and xkcd, then proceed onwards!

What is this?

xkcd comic #426, published on May 21, 2008, contains an algorithm that generates random coordinates around the world¹ every day. Everyone in a given region gets the same set of coordinates. As such, these coordinates can be used as destinations for adventures, à la Geocaching, or for local meetups.

For a little more interactive discussion, consider joining the #geohashing IRC channel on Foonetic.

1. For time zone issues in Europe, Africa, Asia, and Australia, see 30W Time Zone Rule for an addendum to the algorithm rules.

How it works

Play with the coordinate calculator at http://xkcd.com/geohashing. All coordinates refer to the WGS84 datum.

Every day, the algorithm generates a new set of coordinates for each 1°×1° latitude/longitude zone (known as a graticule) in the world. They are randomly placed -- they could be in the forest, in a city, on a mountain, or even in the middle of a lake! You can use this wiki to document the daily coordinates (geohashes) you've been to.

Unless you can accurately predict the stock market, you can't figure out what the coordinates will be ahead of time. You can first calculate a weekday's coordinates at about 9:30am ET, and on Friday morning you can calculate the coordinates for each day that weekend (sometimes even through Monday when there is a US holiday).

When visiting geohash locations, please respect the area you are visiting. Absolutely do not litter or otherwise disturb the natural integrity of the area. However, if possible, creating some kind of a marker out of nearby materials (i.e. cairn of stones, blair-witch-style 'stick figures', etc.) is encouraged.

Disclaimer: When any coordinates generated by the Geohashing algorithm fall within a dangerous area, are inaccessible, or would require illegal trespass, DO NOT attempt to reach them. Please research each potential location before attempting to access it. You are expected to use proper judgment in all cases and are solely responsible for your own actions. See more guidelines.

Official xkcd meetups

Official xkcd meetups happen every Saturday afternoon at that day's normal geohash coordinates. All meetups start at 4:00pm (local destination time). If you go at these times, you might encounter other readers of xkcd. Bring games!

In such cases when it is unwise to attempt to access the generated coordinates, the Saturday meetup is postponed until a day when the algorithm provides a more suitable location. Alternatively, when the coordinates fall within a body of water, you can rent a boat and win the Water Geohash achievement.

Active Graticules

Want to find geohashers in your local area? See Active Graticules for a list of graticules with active users in them.

An interactive map is available for [Google Earth] or on [Google Maps].

Implementations

A full list of reference and practical implementations can be found on the Implementations page.

Recent and Upcoming Expeditions

The coordinates for the Saturday meetup on May 31, 2008 will be based on the Dow's opening price at 9:30am ET on Friday, May 30. See timeanddate.com to convert this time to your local time zone.

Template:30w

Tuesday 27 May 2008

The first day the 30W Time Zone Rule is in effect.

West of -30°: The coordinates will be announced at 9:30am ET on Tuesday, May 27.
East of -30°: The coordinates for Tuesday, May 27 are available. They were available early by combination of the Dow's Memorial Day holiday and the new 30W Time Zone Rule.

2008-05-24 Shaumburg, IL -- DavidEGrayson and cousin Noah reached the point, meeting ShakeDown and Bill.
2008-05-24 Zug, Switzerland -- Adi Reached at about 16.20 local time.
2008-05-24 Christchurch, New Zealand -- Phire Failed to reach this geohash, and had to be rescued by the police.
2008-05-24 Canberra (West), Australia -- Missed by miles by Psud (Adam) and Chris. Psud trying again another day. Brewing beer 2008-05-25.
2008-05-24 Adelaide (South), Australia -- Successfully reached suburban location.
2008-05-24 Brisbane (Southwest), Australia -- Successfully reached.
2008-05-24 Eelde, The Netherlands -- Successfully reached after grueling hike of about 200 metres through a meadow.
2008-05-24 London West, United Kingdom - Kira reached this point with Oliver, Kit and James. Updating wiki from actual spot :)
2008-05-24 Helsinki, Finland -- Successfully reached.
2008-05-24 Munich, Germany -- Split-double-wrong achievement!
2008-05-24 Birmingham East, United Kingdom - Successfully reached field of cows.
2008-05-24 Carlisle, United Kingdom - Three groups met up while independently reaching another field of cows.
2008-05-24 Middlesbrough, United Kingdom - Ajtag Missed, getting close then gps ran out of batteries.
2008-05-24 Hazerswoude, The Netherlands - Reached.
2008-05-24 Paris, France - Successfully reached, although there didn't seem to be anyone else there :-( Actually it seems that I messed something up with the coordinates...
2008-05-24 Baltimore, Maryland, USA - Nearly reached by Avagara and four others, but location was in a private home and access was not allowed by homeowner.
2008-05-24 Frederick, Maryland, USA - Successfully reached by Dan, Kyle, David, and Jillian.
2008-05-24 Berlin, Germany - Missed - one person tried and messed something up with the geography...
2008-05-24 Sheffield, UK - Successfully reached on 55 mile cycle trip.
2008-05-24 Shenandoah Valley, Virginia, USA - Reached, but alone.
2008-05-24 Vienna, Austria - Meeting point was inside the airport territory. Had to stop 50m away.
2008-05-24 Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada - Reached, sat under a shelterbelt tree for half an hour all by myself.
2008-05-24 Lockport, New York, USA - Reached the roadside 500 feet from the area; it was someone's back lawn. Waited 'till 4:30 listening to Dethklok, but nobody else showed.
2008-05-24 Rochester, New York, USA - Meet point within city limits; 6 people showed up (4 on time); pics forthcoming.
2008-05-24 Rancho Cucamonga, California, USA - Reached
2008-05-24 Eugene, , Corvallis, Monmouth, and West Salem Oregon, USA -Stood alone on a mountain top.
2008-05-24 Des Moines, Iowa, USA - Nearly reached, alone
2008-05-24 Houston, Texas, USA - Sucessfully Reached, 4 People showed up.
2008-05-24 Atlanta, Geogia, USA -- Monica Reached this spot at about 4:30 EST with Andy and Eric with only minimal trespassing upon a logging/hunting ground involved. Subsequently met a very nice guy named Chris.
2008-05-24 Cedar Rapids, Iowa, USA - Meeting point was well inside private farmland with no direct access. Nfomi settled for a drive-by.
2008-05-24 Sacramento, California, USA - Meeting point was well inside private farmland, and I decided to be good too. Settled for a picture.
2008-05-24 Ithaca, New York, USA - Two of us got as close as we could by car, didn't have a handheld GPS receiver. Arrived ~4:15 pm EST, saw no one else, but had a lovely drive and bought some delicious strawberry rhubarb pie at a farmstand.
2008-05-24 Los Angeles, California, USA - Darcy (with mother and dog in tow) and seven others (who can add their own names if desired) got within about 250 feet of the meeting point by a bit after 5pm and took pictures.
2008-05-24 Aurora, Illinois, USA - Side of a road, no one there. Took pictures.
2008-05-24 Boston, MA, USA - About 40 people, despite bad suburban location found park, played Frisbee, went for pizza, played various games, stayed until after sundown. Pictures forthcoming.
2008-05-24 Atibaia, São Paulo, Brazil - We two almost reached the spot. Was in a private property. Talked to owners but did not enter. Played chess. Placed xkcd signs. Took very geek photos (coming soon)
2008-05-24 Nashville, Tennessee, USA - Got close. Location was in a fenced-in field. Went and saw the new Indy movie at a nearby theater.

Friday 23 May 2008

The coordinates for Friday, May 23 are available.

2008-05-23 Schaumburg, Illinois -- First reached by Virginia.
2008-05-23 Boston, Massachusetts -- First reached by Randall, davean, and Tesia.
2008-05-23 Austin, Texas -- Reached by Sigma.

Thursday 22 May 2008

The coordinates for Thursday, May 22 are available.

2008-05-22 Denver, Colorado -- This geohash has been reached by Akedrou.
2008-05-22 San Diego, California -- This coordinate was reached by Somnivore.
2008-05-22 Stoughton, Wisconsin -- This geohash was reached by Alric.
2008-05-22 Lincoln, Nebraska -- This geohash was reached by Spike and crew.
2008-05-22 Southern Minneapolis, Minnesota -- This geohash was reached by Chris and Abi.

Older Events

View expedition archives for: November 2024 | October 2024 | September 2024 | More...

Known Issues

Several known issues are presented at Known Issues. There is an ongoing discussion on these and other issues at Talk:Main Page.

@@ Line 65: / Line 65: @@
 The coordinates for Saturday, May 24 are available. Convenient city graticules in the U.S. include: Madison, San Antonio, Cleveland, Portland, Rochester and Baltimore.
-* [[2008-05-24 42 -88|2008-05-24]] -- [[User:DavidEGrayson|DavidEGrayson]] and cousin Noah reached the point, meeting [[User:ShakeDown|ShakeDown]] and Bill.
+* [[2008-05-24 42 -88|2008-05-24 Shaumburg, IL]] -- [[User:DavidEGrayson|DavidEGrayson]] and cousin Noah reached the point, meeting [[User:ShakeDown|ShakeDown]] and Bill.
 * [[2008-05-24 47 7|2008-05-24 Zug, Switzerland]] -- [[User:Adi|Adi]] Reached at about 16.20 local time.
 * [[2008-05-24 -43 172|2008-05-24 Christchurch, New Zealand]] -- [[User:Phire|Phire]] Failed to reach this geohash, and had to be rescued by the police.