Have you ever wished to fly away to the moon ? heard the stories,from your granny, about the old woman with a spindle who sits there all through the nights ?? Well your wish could now come true . No no , ITG is not arranging a space shuttle for you , but Google on the 40th anniversary of the day when man first stepped on the moon (July 20, 1969) , is launching Moon in Google Earth, an interactive 3D atlas of the Moon, viewable with Google Earth 5.0.
Moon in Google Earth was announced yesterday at the Newseum, in Washington, DC, where Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin, Google Senior VP of Engineering Alan Eustace, NASA Deputy Administrator Lori Garver, A Man on the Moon author Andrew Chaikin, and space tourist Anousheh ansari delivered remarks.
It’s worth noting that Google Moon already offered a Google Maps-like experience since 2005, but the 3D-view and the higher degree of interactivity makes Google Earth a far better vehicle for these images.
Well , the Google Moon boasts of:
- Current and historic images
- Featured Satellite Imagery
- Panoramic images shot by the Apollo astronauts
- Street view-like photos that allow you to zoom into 360-degree to see astronauts’ footprints
- Apollo-era geologic and topographic maps of the Moon that were used in mission control for trips to the Moon.
- Guided tours with videos narrated by Apollo astronauts
- 3d models of spacecrafts
- Rare television footage of the Apollo missions
Google says
Each of the Apollo landing missions is chronicled in detail through pictures and stories. We’ve even embedded video footage from Spacecraft Films that covers the most well-known moments on the surface. There are also immersive lunar surface panoramas, composed of photos taken by the astronauts themselves, presented for the first time in a 3D Street View style interface
after installing the latest version of Google Earth 5.0, click on the planet button from the toolbar and select “Moon” After adding the ocean, the sky, Mars, you can now enjoy imagery from the moon on Google Earth
Have a look at this video
- Source: Google Blog;
- Download Google Earth: Click Here;
- Explore Google Earth Moon: Click Here
