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Satellite images and aerial photos combine to help you explore the earth for free

Satellite images and aerial photos combine to help you explore the earth for free

Vote: (3,552 votes)

Program license: Free

Developer: Google

Version: 7.3.6

Works under: Windows

Also available for Android Mac

Vote:

Program license

(3,552 votes)

Free

Developer

Version

Google

7.3.6

Works under:

Also available for

Windows

Android Mac

Pros

  • View anywhere on the planet along with Mars and the Moon
  • Multiple views for seeing from the sky, on the street or off the planet
  • Simple user interface allows you to navigate any area with ease

Cons

  • Requires a good Internet connection or the program might lag

Google Earth is a geography program that lets you view the Earth from various angles. You can see the entire planet, or you can zoom in to see a specific continent, nation, city or house. This uses a combination of satellite imaging and aerial photography that allows you to view anywhere on our planet with ease. You can also see pictures of the Moon and Mars.

Virtual Tour

There are similar map and exploration tools, but none of them are as intuitive or detailed as Google Earth. This program allows you to take a virtual tour of anywhere on the planet. Simply choose a location and you can see everything there. There are different views as well, such as from a satellite, the sky or even on the ground.

On top of this, Google Earth is able to tap into the massive amount of information cataloged through the Google search engine. This means that every location will have lots of images, displays, information and more. It's almost like you're really there. The virtual tours are so detailed that this has helped people discover previously undiscovered locations both on and off the planet. You can view a specific area or you can click anywhere at random and see what it looks like.

Multiple Views

Google Earth is an interactive atlas and comes with multiple views to choose from. Nearly everywhere on the planet has at least one photo and this program seamlessly combines them for an interactive tour around the world. You can explore even the smallest corners of the world with a click of your mouse. This includes cities, national parks and major malls. You can even view the seas and oceans in extreme detail.

While viewing Earth is great, this program isn't limited only to terrestrial locations. You can easily view the Moon and Mars with this program. That's not all. You can also see the stars and navigate around them. This allows you to view constellations or other groupings of stars whenever you want. You can start your search by entering GPS coordinates, clicking anywhere on the map or typing in an address.

Seeing a place is great, but Google Earth does more than just showing you a location. There are borders, 3D renderings of buildings, weather patterns and descriptions of area. Not only that, but you are invited to change descriptions or add one if there's currently no description. The interface is open so that everyone can share their knowledge and experience. This allows the program to grow and be so comprehensive. You can also share your own photos of places so that other people can view them.

One of the most fascinating views is Street View. You can use this to see what it's like from the street. Navigate around by clicking forward or turning the camera. It's like walking through a city, forest or any other location of your choosing. There's also a flight simulator view that lets you see things as if you're flying from an airplane. You can explore the planet in so many different ways with Google Earth.

Easy Interface

Despite its many features and views, Google Earth has a simple interface that is very easy to navigate. You can type in locations by exact longitude and latitude degrees, the address or even common search commands like "nearest gas station." Google has worked on understanding how humans think and Google Earth functions much like the search engine proper. Not only that, but switching between views is simple. Just click the icon and the view will change accordingly.

Street View requires the most work to navigate through, but even this is simple. Start by entering a general location and selecting this view. From here you can click to go in a certain direction or hold the mouse button and scroll left to right. Every view, tool and function here is very simple to use. Whether you are great with computers or not, you should have no problem making use of Google Earth.

Fantastic Graphics

While much of Google Earth is powered by actual photographs of places, there are some views that require 3D graphics. These all look fantastic and very realistic. For example, viewing the entire globe requires a graphics engine. The planet looks very realistic and moves correctly, but it's all made with 3D graphics. The graphics engine also blends photos together and makes it feel like you're really moving from one area to the next. This program also enhances some textures to make them look even better.

Google Earth allows you to spin the entire planet with your finger or mouse and then choose a place at random to explore. This program helps generate the realistic graphics and also provides information about the Moon, Mars and the stars. On top of that, the graphics and interface are constantly updated to make them look better and to improve navigation.

Internet Connection

Google Earth is able to show lots of views, photos and information. While this is great, it can only do all this if it has an Internet connection. You cannot use this program offline as it relies too much on online information. This might be an issue if you have a spotty Internet connection. Not only that, but this program functions best if you have a fast connection. Those with slower connections may notice some lags here and there.

This shouldn't be a problem for most users, but you might notice Google Earth moving slowly if you have a poor connection.

Pros

  • View anywhere on the planet along with Mars and the Moon
  • Multiple views for seeing from the sky, on the street or off the planet
  • Simple user interface allows you to navigate any area with ease

Cons

  • Requires a good Internet connection or the program might lag

Pros

  • Excellent Graphics
  • Explore Earth, the Moon, the Sky, and Mars
  • Variable Layers
  • Includes Street View

Cons

  • Requires Strong Internet Signal
  • Some Regions Have Poor Content

Google Earth is a mapping app that lets you see the surface of Earth from a number of different angles. It uses aerial images, satellite photography, and Street View images to create a single immersive experience. The search engine behind Google Earth is quite powerful, and it has many images and data points to search through. The software is highly intuitive and includes the ability to explore sections of the sky, the surface of the Moon, and the surface of Mars.

The easiest way to describe Google Earth is as a type of digital world atlas. You can use the software to explore areas of the world that you otherwise would never experience. Landmarks and cities are recorded in impressive detail, and there are even some underwater icons that can be browsed.

Google Earth isn't limited to the surface of Earth either. It also gives you access to images of Mars, the Moon, and star navigation. With the help of the dedicated Google Earth search engine, you can find any location using GPS coordinates, addresses, or general search terms.

The software uses layers to showcase as much or as little information about an area as the user prefers. It can show information on weather patterns, borders, roads, buildings, and more. If you've visited somewhere and taken pictures, you can add that content to Google Earth. The Street View feature from Google Maps is built-in to the Google Earth software, so you can jump between an aerial view and a ground view.

You can also use Google Earth to perform a number of advanced personal features. You can create custom routes, save images, measure specific distances, use a flight simulator between preset points, and add bookmarks for your favorite locations.

To travel around the Google Earth environment, you only need to use your mouse. There are also dedicated buttons on the screen. Using these controls, you can rotate your point of view, zoom in, and move across the landscape with ease. To start a Street View experience, drag the human figure icon to a street that is outlined in blue. The blue outline represents streets that have Street View data. You can also scroll through Street View with your mouse. All your available options and the search engine are found in a single menu pane, and you can minimize this pane for a better viewing experience.

There aren't any other whole-world observational tools as complete and detailed as Google Earth. You can visit an exceptionally wide range of places, and the graphics are highly impressive given the vast amount of available data. Information on the varying layers as well as textures are updated consistently. If you want a way to travel across the world without having to leave home, Google Earth is the answer.

Pros

  • Excellent Graphics
  • Explore Earth, the Moon, the Sky, and Mars
  • Variable Layers
  • Includes Street View

Cons

  • Requires Strong Internet Signal
  • Some Regions Have Poor Content