Managing Haunted Locations

Locations are the foundation of Ghost Planet investigations. Each location represents a haunted site where paranormal activity has been reported or investigated.

Understanding Locations

Locations in Ghost Planet contain:

Basic Information: Name, full address with city/state/zip
Geographic Data: Latitude and longitude coordinates
Historical Context: Lore and reported paranormal activity
Investigation History: Past investigations by you and the community
Popularity Metrics: Community engagement and investigation frequency
Visibility Settings: Public or private location access

Creating a New Location

Navigate to locations

From the main dashboard, click “Locations” and then “Create New Location” to begin.

Enter basic information

Fill in the required location details:Name (required, max 500 characters)

Use the common or historical name of the location
Examples: “The Stanley Hotel”, “Waverly Hills Sanatorium”, “Old Mill Ruins”

Address (required)

Provide the complete street address
Include city, state, and ZIP code
Example: “333 Wonderview Ave, Estes Park, CO 80517”

Set geographic coordinates

Add precise location coordinates:Latitude (required)

Must be between -90 and 90
Use decimal degrees format
Example: 40.7128

Longitude (required)

Must be between -180 and 180
Use decimal degrees format
Example: -74.0060

Use Google Maps or another mapping service to find exact coordinates. Right-click the location and select coordinates to copy them.

Add location lore

Document the paranormal history (required, max 500 characters):

Describe reported phenomena and activity
Include historical context or tragic events
Cite local legends or eyewitness accounts

Example lore:

Former tuberculosis hospital (1910-1962) where over 6,000 patients died. 
Visitors report shadow figures in the body chute, disembodied voices on 
the fourth floor, and the ghost of a young girl named Mary playing with 
a ball in the children's ward.

Configure visibility

Choose who can see this location:Public Locations:

Visible to all Ghost Planet users
Appears in community location searches
Other users can investigate and add evidence
Contributes to your community location count

Private Locations:

Only visible to you
Not searchable by other users
You control all investigation access
Useful for sensitive or personal sites

Review and save

Verify all information is accurate, then click “Create Location”. The system will validate your input and create the location if all requirements are met.

Coordinates are validated strictly. Latitude must be between -90 and 90, longitude between -180 and 180. Invalid coordinates will prevent location creation.

Location Validation Rules

The backend enforces these validation rules from /workspace/source/backend/internal/data/investigations.go:66:

Name Validation

v.Check(location.Name != "", "name", "must be provided")
v.Check(len(location.Name) <= 500, "name", "must not be more than 500 bytes long")

Name is required (cannot be empty)
Maximum length: 500 bytes
No special character restrictions

Address Validation

v.Check(location.Address != "", "address", "must be provided")

Address is required (cannot be empty)
No format restrictions currently enforced
Should include street, city, state, and ZIP

Lore Validation

v.Check(location.Lore != "", "lore", "must be provided")
v.Check(len(location.Lore) <= 500, "lore", "must not be more than 500 bytes long")

Lore is required (cannot be empty)
Maximum length: 500 bytes
Should provide historical context or paranormal activity description

Latitude Validation

v.Check(!math.IsNaN(location.Latitude), "latitude", "must be a valid number")
v.Check(!math.IsInf(location.Latitude, 0), "latitude", "must be a finite number")
v.Check(location.Latitude > -90 && location.Latitude < 90, "latitude", "must be between -90 and 90")

Must be a valid number (not NaN)
Must be finite (not infinity)
Must be between -90 and 90 (exclusive)
Use decimal degrees format

Longitude Validation

v.Check(!math.IsNaN(location.Longitude), "longitude", "must be a valid number")
v.Check(!math.IsInf(location.Longitude, 0), "longitude", "must be a finite number")
v.Check(location.Longitude > -180 && location.Longitude < 180, "longitude", "must be between -180 and 180")

Must be a valid number (not NaN)
Must be finite (not infinity)
Must be between -180 and 180 (exclusive)
Use decimal degrees format

Location Data Structure

Here’s the complete location object structure from /workspace/source/backend/internal/data/investigations.go:35:

{
  "id": 42,
  "name": "Waverly Hills Sanatorium",
  "address": "4400 Paralee Drive, Louisville, KY 40272",
  "state": "KY",
  "city": "Louisville",
  "zip": "40272",
  "lore": "Former tuberculosis hospital where over 6,000 patients died. Reports of shadow figures, disembodied voices, and ghostly children.",
  "latitude": 38.1347,
  "longitude": -85.9358,
  "past_investigations_user": [],
  "past_investigations_community": [],
  "popularity": {
    "investigation_count": 156,
    "evidence_submissions": 847,
    "star_rating": 4.7
  },
  "visibility": true,
  "created_by_user_id": 101,
  "owner_user_id": 101
}

The id, created_by_user_id, owner_user_id, and popularity metrics are automatically generated. You only need to provide the basic information fields.

Editing Existing Locations

Find your location

Navigate to “My Locations” and select the location you want to edit. Only locations you created can be edited.

Update fields

Modify any of the editable fields:

Name, address, city, state, ZIP
Lore and historical information
Coordinates (if more precise data is available)
Visibility settings

Save changes

Click “Update Location”. Changes are validated using the same rules as creation.

Changing a location from public to private will hide it from other users, but existing community investigations at that location will remain visible to their creators.

Managing Investigation History

Locations track two types of investigation history:

Your Investigations

The past_investigations_user array contains all investigations you’ve conducted at this location. This helps you:

Track your investigation frequency at specific sites
Review your historical evidence from the location
Identify patterns in paranormal activity over time

Community Investigations

For public locations, past_investigations_community shows investigations by other users. This provides:

Validation of reported phenomena from multiple sources
Different perspectives and evidence types
Collaboration opportunities with other investigators

High community investigation counts indicate popular or highly active paranormal sites. Check the popularity metrics to find trending locations.

Popularity System

Public locations accumulate popularity based on:

Investigation Count: Total number of investigations conducted
Evidence Submissions: Amount of evidence recorded at the location
Star Rating: Community ratings from investigators

Locations with higher popularity appear more prominently in search results and recommendations.

Finding Existing Locations

Use location search

Click “Find Locations” and enter search criteria:

Location name or keywords
City, state, or region
Specific phenomena types

Filter results

Narrow results using filters:

Visibility: Public locations only or include your private locations
Popularity: Sort by investigation count or star rating
Distance: Show locations near your current position

View location details

Click a location to see:

Full lore and paranormal history
Map with exact coordinates
Past investigation summaries
Evidence gallery from all investigations

Best Practices

Creating Quality Locations

Research thoroughly: Verify paranormal claims and historical facts before documenting lore
Use precise coordinates: GPS coordinates ensure investigators can find the exact site
Write compelling lore: Include specific phenomena, time periods, and eyewitness accounts
Update regularly: Add new information as you conduct more investigations

Privacy Considerations

Private residences: Always mark residential locations as private unless you have explicit permission
Sensitive sites: Use private mode for locations with tragic recent history
Legal access: Only create locations where paranormal investigation is legally permitted
Coordinate accuracy: Ensure coordinates don’t expose private property boundaries

Community Contributions

Share freely: Make locations public when appropriate to build the investigation community
Maintain accuracy: Keep information factual and avoid sensationalism
Cite sources: Reference local historical societies or documented accounts when available
Respect others: Don’t duplicate existing public locations—contribute to them instead

Troubleshooting

'Latitude must be between -90 and 90' error

Your latitude value is outside the valid range:

Latitude measures north/south and cannot exceed ±90 degrees
Check that you didn’t swap latitude and longitude
Verify you’re using decimal degrees, not degrees-minutes-seconds format
Example valid latitude: 40.7128 (New York City)

'Longitude must be between -180 and 180' error

Your longitude value is outside the valid range:

Longitude measures east/west and cannot exceed ±180 degrees
Ensure you’re using negative values for western hemisphere
Example valid longitude: -74.0060 (New York City)

'Name must not be more than 500 bytes' error

The location name is too long:

Keep names concise and descriptive
Move detailed information to the lore field
Example: Use “Old Miller Hospital” instead of “The Old Miller County General Hospital Established in 1923 and Abandoned in 1987”

Can't find coordinates for my location

Use these methods to find accurate coordinates:

Google Maps: Right-click the location and click the coordinates that appear
GPS device: Visit the site with a GPS-enabled device and record coordinates
Address lookup: Use a geocoding service to convert the address to coordinates
Street view: Use Google Street View to pinpoint the exact building or site

Location appears but coordinates are wrong

To update coordinates:

Edit the location from your “My Locations” list
Enter the corrected latitude and longitude
Save changes—the system will validate the new coordinates
Evidence and investigations remain linked to the location

Next Steps

Creating Investigations

Set up investigations at your locations

Recording Evidence

Capture paranormal evidence during investigations

Get Started

Core Features

Guides

Managing Haunted Locations

Understanding Locations

Creating a New Location

Location Validation Rules

Location Data Structure

Editing Existing Locations

Managing Investigation History

Your Investigations

Community Investigations

Popularity System

Finding Existing Locations

Best Practices

Creating Quality Locations

Privacy Considerations

Community Contributions

Troubleshooting

Next Steps

Creating Investigations

Recording Evidence

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Get Started

Core Features

Guides

​Understanding Locations

​Creating a New Location

​Location Validation Rules

​Location Data Structure

​Editing Existing Locations

​Managing Investigation History

​Your Investigations

​Community Investigations

​Popularity System

​Finding Existing Locations

​Best Practices

​Creating Quality Locations

​Privacy Considerations

​Community Contributions

​Troubleshooting

​Next Steps

Creating Investigations

Recording Evidence

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Understanding Locations

Creating a New Location

Location Validation Rules

Location Data Structure

Editing Existing Locations

Managing Investigation History

Your Investigations

Community Investigations

Popularity System

Finding Existing Locations

Best Practices

Creating Quality Locations

Privacy Considerations

Community Contributions

Troubleshooting

Next Steps