Ever wondered what is it like to go on a space journey and see all those planets and moons for real and is it really like what they show in all those big budget hollywood movies? (Any big fans of interstellar out there?)
Well now we have a way to find out!
Google has recently announced its latest update to Google Maps called ‘planets’ that will enable its users to visit planets and moons in our solar system since the maps now include images of a total of 16 celestial bodies including Pluto, Venus and various other moons of Mars and Saturn.
To access this new update, all you need to do it zoom out of your google map as far as possible until the imagery of entire planet Earth appears. Switch to the satellite view and if you further zoom out, a list of planets and moons will appear at the left size. Select the planet of your choice and explore it as much as you want. Since Google Map hasn’t provided search tool for space yet so it might not be possible to navigate. Still it would be fun to play around with this new tool. You can also click here to access the planetary map.
The update has a detailed view of Mars (thanks to Cassini) but does not have too much detail of distant planets like Pluto, for which very little information was available. Also the feature appears to have mislabelled some of the craters as pointed out by planetary scientist, Emily Lakdawalla in her recent tweet.
I'm in contact with a Googler about the problem maps, which include Ganymede, Mimas, Enceladus, Dione, Rhea, Iapetus, Europa, and Titan.
— Emily Lakdawalla (@elakdawalla) October 17, 2017
Google Map has created this breathtakingly amazing 3D view of our solar system with the help of thousands of images taken by the Cassini probe and astronomical artist Björn Jónsson to bring planetary maps to its use.
Also, while you are toying around with this new feature, do not forget a free ride to International Space Station.
