Latest satellite images. Google Maps (Google maps)

What are Google Maps? This is a service that consists of several applications provided for free, and includes the mapping site Google Maps and a route planning program (Google Transit). Maps from Google offer a satellite view of many cities on the planet and include a detailed layout of streets, houses, routes for traveling by public transport or car, a guide to various objects, etc.

Features of work

Google Maps is displayed in two variations:

• an ordinary traditional map (analogous to Mercator maps)

• and satellite images (not online, but taken a certain time ago).

The scale of the maps is also based on the Mercator projection, that is, it is constant and changes from the poles to the equator downward.

Another separate project of the corporation is closely related to Google Maps - Google Planet, which corresponds to a globe on which the regions of the Earth's poles are clearly visible.

What locations are satellite imagery available for? Not for everyone, but only for large cities in Russia, England, America, Canada and others.

Not all governments have approved such placement and use of images (since the placement of some objects that are clearly visible on maps can be used by terrorists to plan and carry out attacks).

That is why many objects on maps are shaded. Such “classified” objects include, for example, the White House or the Capitol.

Different places on satellite images are shown in different resolutions - the less populated the area, the less detailed it is. Also, some places in the pictures may be hidden due to cloud shadows.

Google Maps online

• switch to satellite mode- lower left corner;
• zoom in/out- lower right corner.

As soon as the company introduced the new service, a wave of interest in satellite images swept across the world.

The creation of websites began on which satellite images of interesting places, unusual architectural landmarks, stadiums, and man-made formations began to be freely available. Since 2008, the US Weather Service began using Google Maps to prepare its forecasts.

It should be noted that not all images were taken from a satellite - most of the images were obtained through aerial photography from a height of 300 meters.

Google Maps online maps make fairly extensive use of JavaScript. As the user moves around the map by dragging it, new areas are downloaded from the server and displayed on the page.

If the user is looking for specific objects, the search result is inserted into the sidebar, and the page itself does not require a reload. The location on the map is displayed dynamically via a red marker icon.

• In 2006 The first version for mobile phones appeared in 2007, and the second version appeared in 2007. A service similar to GPS is used to determine the location of the phone.

• In 2008 year Google Maps could be used for Android, Windows Mobile, Symbian, BlackBerry, Java (from 2+), IOS (Apple), Palm OS (Centro+).

• In 2011 In 2018, the corporation announced that it provides mapping services to more than 150 million customers.

To allow owners of third-party sites to use Maps, Google announced in 2005 a free Maps API (Application Programming Interface) service.

The map can be placed on any website using this technology for software interaction. Today there are more than 350 thousand such sites around the world.

Google Map is one of the most popular services today. It provides users with the opportunity to observe our planet (and not only) from a satellite online in high quality and in real time (sights of the planet in). At some point, the primacy of the schematic map view was captured by the Open Street Maps application. Where everyone in the know can edit a map in Wikipedia style, but this does not change anything and today Google Maps is the most popular online map service. The popularity of this company's maps has been in first place for many years due to the good quality of satellite images in every corner of the planet; even Yandex could not provide such quality in its homeland.

Google Maps online

Google continues to improve its brainchild in the form of visualization of our planet, improving the quality and detail of surfaces. More recently, the company has improved its services using the new Landsat 8 satellite, which can photograph the surface of planet Earth with a resolution of 15/30/100 meters per elemental point. The database of satellite images in real time was previously updated only in 2013. At that time, the application used images taken by the Landsat 7 satellite, which was also known for introducing some bugs and glitches into the maps. To compare the quality of images taken by different satellites, pay attention to the screenshot below.

Images taken by different satellites

In the examples given on the screen you can see that the image of the new satellite shows not only improved detail of earthly objects, but also more natural colors. Representatives of Google announced that about 700 trillion pixels of graphic data were spent on assembling a mosaic of the earth's surface of a new generation. Almost 43 thousand powerful computing machines in the Google cloud worked for a week on gluing together pictures.

How to use Google Maps online

Anywhere in the world you can use Google Maps online in high quality using your tablet, mobile phone or computer. Just follow the link https://google.com/maps/ or use the embedded map below and you can find the country, city, and even the route to the museum by entering the desired search parameters. And for mobile devices you can download a special application that is more convenient to use.

To find the way to a laundromat or a cafe that you often visit, simply enter the addresses in the program line and you will no longer need to enter this data every time. At the same time, you can not only view the route to the establishment, but also get acquainted with information that relates to this establishment, for example, opening hours, contact details, etc.

Let's try using Google's satellite map 2018 as an example.

1. Go to the website or open the app on your mobile device.
2. All you have to do is point or touch on the touch screen and you can view the details of that area.
3. In order to find out the distance between cities, right-click on one of them and select “Measure distance” from the drop-down menu. Now the second point can be specified with the left mouse button. If necessary, you can drag the point with the mouse to another location, and the information about the distance will be updated.
4. To select the “Relief”, “Bike Paths”, “Traffic” mode - select the menu sign (three stripes) and press the desired option. If you are using Apple devices, click on the diamond icon with a layer and also on the desired option.
5. To take advantage of high quality 3D images, click on the quad in the lower left corner. It will say "Satellite", if you need to return to map mode, press it again.
6. To select Street View mode, drag the yellow man to the desired area of ​​the map or simply enter the exact location in the query bar, preferably including your home address.
7. Google Maps high resolution allows you to view streets in historical mode, i.e. how they have changed over time. To do this, throw the little man to the desired place on the map. Select the clock icon and move the time slider to select the desired date.

Amazing Facts About Google Maps

Features and benefits of online maps in real time

From the first days, Google Maps became a revelation for all users. They made it possible to look at cards in a new way, to pay new attention to this tool in general. Everyone who accessed the Internet back in 2005 wanted to immediately use online maps and see their city or country from a satellite.

It seems unthinkable, but today it is possible to view other planets of the solar system in the Google Maps application!

Planets in Google Maps

To do this, go to the web version of the program and zoom out the Earth image with the mouse wheel to the maximum. Other planets will appear in the block on the left that you can select to view. There are all the planets of the solar system and several additional satellites. For example, Callisto is a satellite of Jupiter. True, the photographs do not allow us to look at other planets as closely and in detail as happens with the Earth.

Google Maps from satellite in 2018 will allow you to view the surface of the earth and populated areas in excellent quality, which cannot be done using a regular map. When drawing up paper and other versions of maps, natural colors, clear contours of the banks of rivers, lakes, the colors of areas of the earth and other color schemes are omitted, which is why we have poor orientation. Having looked at a desert area on a regular map, one can only guess what kind of vegetation or relief there is. By accessing Google Maps in real time, you can even see the color and shape of the fence at any address on another continent.

In contact with

A satellite map of the world allows you to quickly move around the entire planet between any populated areas. Detailed map of the world from satellite in Russian:

Explore the schematic map or switch to the satellite world map in the lower left corner of the map. Schematic map of the world is a map of countries and cities with street names and house numbers in Russian. The schematic map of the world shows attractions and tourist sites, the location of train stations, shops, restaurants and shopping centers, and a map of city roads. Satellite world map will allow you to view satellite photographs of the city thanks to images from the Google Maps service.

You can zoom in on the online map, scaling it to streets and house numbers. To change the scale, use the “+” (zoom in) and “-” (zoom out) icons located in the lower right corner of the map. You can also zoom in or out on the map using the mouse wheel. The left mouse button zooms in on the map, the right mouse button zooms out. You can use the mouse to move the interactive map in all directions by using the left mouse button to grab any place on the map.

Interactive world map online is a very convenient and modern guide for exploring the city, its districts and attractions, hotels, places of recreation and entertainment. An online world map can become an indispensable assistant for you in your independent travel. Interactive map provided by Google Maps.

How satellite maps of the world are created:

The satellite, passing over the planet, scans the earth's surface and maps are compiled using software. More recently, a few years ago, satellite maps showed the surface of the planet from a height of several kilometers. Now technologies make it possible to make satellite maps from a height of several meters, and in the near future technologies will make it possible to create satellite maps with detail up to 30 centimeters.

What to see on the world map from satellite:

First of all, people look on the map for their country, their hometown, the street and the house in which they live. To do this, you can zoom in on the schematic map of the world to your city, and then turn on the “Satellite” mode in the lower left corner of the map. In exactly the same way, you can travel around all countries of the world online, exploring the sights of countries and cities in real time. Popular places that are often searched for on a satellite map: Reichstag in Berlin (Germany), Acropolis of Athens in Greece, Egyptian pyramids, Italy - Colosseum in Rome (Ancient Roman gladiatorial arena, Peterhof in Russia (west of St. Petersburg), Statue of Liberty in the USA - a symbol of America, the Eiffel Tower in Paris (France), the Great Wall of China.

Every user has at least once wondered how to find their home using aerial photographs.

The surprising thing is that access to this information via the Internet is now completely free.

Thanks to the launch of commercial Earth observations, we now have access to online tools that make it easy to see your home from space.

In our modern space age, there are more than 8,000 satellites that constantly orbit the Earth.

The vast majority of them receive data and transmit encoded.

Many of them are equipped with high power cameras. Just look at the sky and you are sure to see the satellite's trail after the satellite passes overhead.

But how can you access this satellite data and aerial imagery of your home?

Satellite images of the entire Earth

If you just want to look at satellite images of the entire planet, you have a few simple solutions.

You can go to the NASA weather forecasters website. Every three hours, images taken by NOAA's Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite appear on the site.

This is a release of images of an entire hemisphere of planet Earth.

From these images you can see the major changes in weather patterns affecting different hemispheres of the Earth.

The images are so precise that you can see a specific place on Earth as close as possible.

These photographs are striking in their extreme realism. The weather changes that you see in these pictures are happening on the planet right now.

If you don't want to watch videos, but just want to enjoy the extraordinary hemispheres of the Earth, these are the pictures you need.

Also on the Internet you can find amazing new satellite images of the Earth, which come from the Meteosat 3rd generation spacecraft of the European Space Agency.

Approximation. Looking at satellite images of houses

If these weather satellite photos aren't enough for you, let's see how to zoom in enough to see houses from space.

To do this, we need the best tool on the market today, in my opinion, . All you need is a web browser and an internet connection.

When first launched, the user receives a satellite view that is located over North America.

You can then zoom in or pan the camera across the surface to see any location on Earth.

You can also enter the exact address you want to see.

Once you do this, you will receive free access to satellite images of the house whose address you provided. You can save the image or print it.

Another interesting tool is Google Earth. It can be accessed via this link: http://earth.google.com.

The main difference between Google Maps and Google Earth is that you have to download and install the corresponding application on your local computer (they have a version for PC, Mac, Linux and even iPhone).

Once you have downloaded and installed, you can see a 3D view of the Earth that you can zoom in and out.

You can also rotate the 3-dimensional model of our planet. You can enter your address and view your home from above.

The printing feature in Google Earth works much better than in Google Maps because it uses a printer directly to print rather than through a web browser.

There are those among modern users who prefer not to use the products of this search engine leader, suspecting that the company's technical engineers are spying on them.

Microsoft's service was previously called MSN Maps, but now the developers have changed the name to Bing Maps, completely updating the interface and functionality.

Yahoo's service is called Yahoo Maps, and it is very similar to Google Maps.

There is a big difference between these two services.

You can find a cool app on the Internet that allows you to see both of these apps side by side.

Comparing them, you can understand that the latter are worked out in more detail.

And most cities are best viewed through this application.

Where do all these photos come from?

Google Maps and other popular mapping services are really just clients.

They, just like users, use satellite communication services to actually download these photos from space.

There are several major service providers in the market, including Geoeye.

Geoeye's main competitors are Digitalglobe and Spot Image.

Each company has a fleet of satellites that they use to observe the Earth.

Their technical capabilities make it possible to photograph tiny objects on Earth.

The smallest object that has been recorded so far is about 45 cm (18 inches).

In other words, a 45cm object will appear as one pixel in the photograph.

Private satellites that monitor our planet around the clock:

• GeoEye – 5 satellites: IKONOS, OrbView-2, OrbView-3, GeoEye-1, GeoEye-2 (in 2013).
• DigitalGlobe – 4 satellites: Early Bird 1, Quickbird, WorldView-1, Worldview-2
• Spot Image – 2 satellites: Spot 4, Spot 5

Each of these services allows customers to purchase satellite imagery directly, but the prices are extremely high: hundreds or even thousands of dollars for specific satellite imagery.

It is usually not possible to purchase photographs directly from the company that owns the satellite.

Most often, in such cases, the services of international intermediaries are used.

Average users are better off sticking to free sources.

When you look at these amazing images from space, you may be surprised at the accuracy and detail. In fact, this is far from the most current data.

At the moment, photographs from two years ago can be found in the public domain.

More current data is purchased by special services and intelligence organizations and is never made publicly available.

But, if you have a burning thirst for up-to-date information, you should turn to other sources that will give you a live view of the Earth from space.

For example, you can access a live feed from NASA's International Space Station.

About 40% of the time, if you go to their website, you will be able to see a video of Earth from the space station.

Another service called Urthecast launched a high-definition camera feed from the International Space Station in 2013 to broadcast video of Earth from space.

Navigation

Google Maps is not just a popular program used by the company, but it is also one of the most popular maps used for hybrid web applications.

This makes Google Maps a very popular and versatile tool that is used in various ways.

It is used in localization applications and weather forecasting services.

Learning to use the application is easy. This way you can navigate through various map-based hybrid web apps.

Although some of these hybrids change some default settings.

But knowing Google Maps will allow you to quickly adapt to small changes in the software's display.

Tip: While reading the instructions for using the application, try moving the cards to a separate browser window. You can practice in parallel by reading useful tips.

Many users are interested in online satellite maps, which give them the opportunity to enjoy a bird's-eye view of their favorite places on our planet. There are quite a number of such services on the Internet, but all their diversity should not be misleading - most of these sites use the classic API from Google Maps. However, there are also a number of resources that use their own tools to create high-quality satellite maps. In this material I will talk about the best high-resolution satellite maps available online in 2017-2018, and also explain how to use them.

When creating satellite maps of the earth's surface, both images from space satellites and photos from special aircraft are usually used, allowing photography to be carried out at a bird's eye view (250-500 meters).

Satellite maps of the highest resolution quality created in this way are regularly updated, and usually the images from them are no more than 2-3 years old.

Most online services do not have the ability to create their own satellite maps. They usually use maps from other, more powerful services (usually Google Maps). At the same time, at the bottom (or top) of the screen you can find a mention of the copyright of a company for displaying these maps.

Viewing real-time satellite maps is currently not available to the average user, since such tools are used primarily for military purposes. Users have access to maps, photographs for which were taken over the past months (or even years). It is worth understanding that any military objects may be deliberately retouched in order to hide them from interested parties.

Let's move on to a description of the services that allow us to enjoy the capabilities of satellite maps.

Google Maps - view from space in high resolution

Bing Maps – online satellite map service

Among online mapping services of decent quality, one cannot ignore the Bing Maps service, which is the brainchild of Microsoft. Like other resources I have described, this site provides fairly high-quality photographs of the surface created using satellite and aerial photography.

The functionality of the service is similar to the analogues already described above:

At the same time, using the search button you can determine the online location of a specific satellite, and by clicking on any satellite on the map you will receive brief information about it (country, size, launch date, etc.).

Conclusion

To display high-resolution satellite maps online, you should use one of the network solutions I listed. The Google Maps service is the most popular worldwide, so I recommend using this resource to work with satellite maps online. If you are interested in viewing geolocations on the territory of the Russian Federation, then it is better to use the Yandex.Maps toolkit. The frequency of their updates on our country’s relations exceeds the similar frequency from Google Maps.