Extract text from DT2 files
To convert your DT2 file to another format, you need Global Mapper or other GIS software.
To convert other file formats to the "Elevation Raster Grid" file type, you need software like Global Mapper or a similar tool.
The .dt2 extension most critically serves as a DTED Level 2 file, a format standardized by the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency for storing Digital Terrain Elevation Data. These files represent a grid of elevation points, typically with a post spacing of approximately 30 meters, used heavily in military simulation, flight planning, and GIS analysis. The main issue for users is that .dt2 files are binary data grids, not visual images; standard photo viewers like Microsoft Photos or Preview cannot open them, and professional GIS software like Global Mapper or ArcGIS Pro can be prohibitively expensive or complex for casual viewing.
For GIS workflows, users often need to convert .dt2 to GeoTIFF or DEM to ensure compatibility with modern mapping libraries like QGIS. For visualization or 3D modeling, converting to a grayscale PNG or JPG heightmap is often required.
A secondary, legacy use case involves Windows Live Messenger or browser cache files. In this context, the file is often a renamed PNG or JPG lurking in old backups. These files are functionally useless in their current state because the operating system does not recognize the extension. Renaming them or processing them through a converter restores them to standard image formats.
Convert.Guru analyzes your DT2 file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
Users also converted ID2, DT, GIC, GMP, MPZ and DT1 files.
If you want to convert DT2 file to SHP, KML, KMZ, GPX, GEOJSON, TOPOJSON, TIF, TIFF, ECW, SID, IMG or DEM, you can use Global Mapper or similar software from the "Digital Terrain Elevation Data" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….
To convert LAZ, KMZ, DTM, CSV, DEM, PRJ, LAS, GPX, DSM, SHP, DBF or KML files to DT2, try Global Mapper or another comparable tool in the "Digital Terrain Elevation Data" category.
The history of Convert.Guru began over 25 years ago in California with Tom Simondi’s file-format database. A former contributor to Space Shuttle development and a software pioneer of the 1980s, Simondi established a trusted resource for file type analysis that was even referenced by Microsoft Windows XP. Today, we use modern technology to process and convert thousands of file formats while continually improving our DT2 converter.