At this point, everyone has seen NASA Earth maps before. Most of us have even gotten directions online through a sophisticated mapping programs such as Yahoo maps. Until you have seen Google Earth maps, however, you really haven’t any idea how far the technology has gone. What looked like science fiction a couple years ago has now become reality. Although the data is incomplete, and many parts of the world aren’t clearly visible, if you are fortunate enough to live in the United States or one of the other industrialized countries, you can even see your house from space!
The great thing about a Google Earth map is that it combines some resources that have been available for a long time in new and innovative ways. For years and years, we have been able to use online maps to find directions. These maps include detailed diagrams showing street names, addresses, and anything else you might need to find your way anywhere in the United States. Similarly, satellites have been taking photos of the earth for decades. What is so cool about Google Earth maps, however, is that they flawlessly combine these two technologies. Basically, with Google maps you can zoom in on any spot in the entire earth! You can see buildings, natural features, streets, and landmarks.
One of the neatest things about Google Earth map technology is that it is interactive. Basically, anyone can put a comment anywhere in the global Earth map. People add webcams, notes about local cultures and sites, and links to webpages that can explain the community better. The Google Earth map, in fact, truly unites the earth for the first time. Everyone with access to a computer can participate.
Of course, there are still some serious flaws with the Google Earth map. One of the biggest flaws is that the satellite coverage is uneven. In most areas of the United States, for example, you can really see your house from space! In large parts of the world, however, you can’t see anything but the barest details. Once you zoom in to within a mile of the Earth’s surface, nothing is visible anymore. This is not a flaw in the Google Earth program so much as a result the absence of good pictures for some parts of the world. I don’t know why Google doesn’t fix this, but the sooner they do, the sooner we will all be able to enjoy the program fully.
Tags: earth maps, google earth map, google maps
