Google Earth and Google Maps

There is a lot of confusion surrounding these two Google products, especially as many of their functions overlap.

Google Maps

I find it helps to think of Google maps as an online street directory, only accessible with an internet connection. Google maps has more functionality than a printed street directory, such as incorporating photos from Panoramio, satellite view, street view, and contour view. A Google Map is essentially a flat and static representation of the world (it doesn't show changes over time), including streets and landmarks, and is predominantly useful for plotting a route you want to travel. Google Maps is slightly smart and estimates how long it will take you to travel the route by car, and in some areas, estimated public transport times or walking times are available. Google Maps also provides turn-by-turn directions, which can be printed, along with a map. Street view and satellite view are useful for locating parking, shady spots, or other landmarks.

Google has worked with phone and software developers to bring their maps to mobile phones and other websites. Google Maps is often more up to date than printed street directories, although at times Google Maps does get it wrong (indicates there is a street, but it is blocked or not there, or displays a wrongly named street, etc.). Businesses often include a Google Map on their website to advertise their location.

Google Maps has been integrated into other Web 2.0 applications (often called mashup - when two web applications are combined). For example, Google Maps has been combined with the CFA and DSE list of Victorian fires to make a fire map (pictured above), plate tectonics map from geology.com, geolocated world news (archived since 2005!), MyFitness, Trailguru and other fitness websites use Google Maps to plot and track exercise routes (running/hiking/cycling/skiing/etc.). Many more Google Maps mashups are reviewed at the Google Maps Mania blog. This blog has also posted links to the Google street views of the fire affected towns in Victoria, 2009.

Satellite photos and street view photos are updated rarely, about once every three years. There are still some locations that are covered by cloud in the satellite view, and many regional locations do not have street view. Many of the people I encounter during training classes are very worried that they are being constantly watched and photographed by Google, but surveillance cameras that record movements in shopping centres and office buildings 'watch' everyone much more often and in more detail.

Google Earth

Google Earth is a program that you install on your computer, and then you can use it without being connected to the internet. It is a simulation of Earth, combining satellite imagery, topographic and elevation data, aerial photography, 3D models of some buildings/cities. You can fly around the earth, viewing it from above or at an angle (great for viewing mountains and the 3D modelled cities). Google Earth is much more flexible and extensible than Google Maps, it even includes a flight simulator (see the Wikipedia article for more information).

You can make your own layers to add to Google Earth, with sightseeing or other information. Or you can create your own 3D models of buildings that you submit to Google, and if approved, they are added to the 3D buildings layer.

Street view (originally from Google Maps), has been integrated with Google Earth as a layer, and third parties have made a host of other information layers available (volcanoes, conservation projects, places of interest to local communities, historical maps). If an internet connection is available, Google Earth can show up-to-date related information from Wikipedia, photos from Panoramio, weather information, traffic conditions for some large cities, geotagged videos from YouTube, tourism information, and much more.

Because there is so much information available in the layers, Google Earth is extremely flexible, and sometimes confusing. Many people use Google Earth to plan trips or hikes, or learn about areas for school assignments or in classes. Teachers may use Google Earth to explore topics in history, biology, ecology, and more. But it is also powerful enough to be used to visualise big environmental, health and social trends, such as the avian flu pandemic several years ago, or monitor events in real-time, such as the earthquake monitoring layer. Time lapse tools allow researchers to monitor trends and activity visually, and more easily predict future activity. Researchers in many fields regularly make their own private layers incorporating time-stamped and location data. Building sites can be planned, 3D modelled and viewed in Google Earth to see how the proposed designs fit with existing buildings and terrain. The outreach showcase from Google has some extremely interesting layers that you can add to Google Earth on your computer.

Google Sky (pictured above) was added as a layer in Google Earth, using imagery from various telescopes and observatories around the world to show the solar system and constellations. It still exists as a web application for those who don't have Google Earth installed.

More recently, Google Ocean, which incorporates ocean imagery and research information, and Google Mars with 3D renderings and panoramic photos of the martian terrain, were added to Google Earth, along with a submarine simulator. A low functionality version of Google Earth was also recently released for the iPhone. There are also plans to migrate Google Moon, currently a separate web application like Google Maps, into the Google Earth program.