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Google Street View might add a virtual Disney World tour
Whenever the Google View Street View Trekker is spotted in a certain location, a virtual tour of that place is sure to follow. Well, Orlando Weekly has reported that someone who was wearing the photo-capturing backpack was seen walking around the Magic Kingdom earlier this month with some cast members. Folks on Twitter were also quick to report their Trekker sightings in various parts of both the Magic Kingdom and Epcot parks, which means we might be able to tele-visit Orlando's Disney World via Street View in the future.
Google Street View gives you a tour of ancient Jordan landmarks
Jordan is home to some extremely significant historical and religious sites. However, visiting those landmarks in person is no mean feat -- which is why Google just added many of them to Street View. Fire up your web browser and you can get virtual, 360-degree tours of more than 30 ancient locations, including the city of Petra (above), Jerash and legendary castles from the Crusades. We suspect that this will pale in comparison to the grandeur of seeing these relics first-hand, but you should at least have an inkling of what the experience would be like.
Video series gives you a rare peek into Google's world
As open as Google is about its plans, it doesn't say much about what it's like to actually work there. Just what are those engineers doing every day? Googlers Nat and Lo might just answer that for you. They've kicked off The 20% Project, a video series that explores some of the behind-the-scenes action in Mountain View and beyond. The first two episodes delve into work on the Street View Trekker as well as what Google X's Design Kitchen does (spoiler: it breaks a lot of early prototypes). Future shows will explore things as exotic as self-driving cars. You're not going to learn about any secret projects, but this is fascinating stuff if you've ever wished that Google would give the public more than blog posts and glitzy promo clips.
Google Street View cameras zip through (and over) the Amazon
Google already has some odd ways of getting its Street View cameras into hard-to-reach places, but its latest effort might just take the cake. The search firm has posted panoramic imagery of the Amazon rainforest that, at some points, was taken by Trekker cameras ziplining through the canopy -- yes, you'll get a view that even locals won't usually see. There are some down-to-Earth sights, too, including snapshots from rivers and remote villages. Between this and recent collaborative mapping projects, you may end up learning a surprising amount about the Amazon without setting foot in South America.
Tour one of Earth's grandest deserts in Google Street View
Visiting a large desert in person can be difficult. Roads will only take you so far, and you probably aren't used to navigating gigantic sand dunes. Thankfully, you no longer have to plan a whole adventure just to see this austere beauty at ground level. Google has used camel-mounted Trekker cameras to bring Street View to Liwa, an oasis-laden desert in the southern end of the United Arab Emirates. The move gives you 360-degree panoramas of everything from massive dunes (up to 131 feet high) to date farms. This won't compare to making the trip yourself, but it'll probably be much more comfortable.
Google's Trekker project brings beautiful Hawaii imagery to Street View
After launching Street View Trekker last year, Google is now starting to show us what we can expect from its loaner program. What you see above are some pictures from the Hawaii Tropical Botanical Garden, which were taken by Google's first Trekker partner, Hawaii Visitors and Convention Bureau, and added to Street View as part of the company's imagery project. The search giant says there's a lot more where that came from too, including beaches, historical sites, hiking trails and parks. And with the summer right around the corner, this is a perfect opportunity to virtually explore The Islands of Aloha before booking your next vacation.
British canal boaters, welcome to Google Street View
In the same way that you can't really call The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy a trilogy any more, Google's once again stretching the definition of a street. The company has loaned out one of its backpack-worn trekker units to the UK's Canal and River trust, which will document 100 miles of the country's waterways for Street View. Users will be able to tour London's Regent's Canal, the Bingley Five Rise and the Stoke Brueme blacksmiths on the Grand Union Canal. Just remember folks, even if you're touring from the comfort of your laptop, it's not a proper rambling holiday unless you bring a packed lunch and a flask of weak lemon drink.
Google to loan Street View Trekker to third parties, build out Maps on the cheap
Are you a tourism board, non-profit, government agency, university or research organization? Google wants you to help add 360-degree imagery with its nifty Street View Trekker, through a brand-new loan program. If you get the nod from GOOG, you'll have a chance to roam the Earth with the company's human-mounted camera equipment. The Hawaii Visitors and Convention Bureau was tapped as the first volunteer -- the group is currently hard at work shooting popular attractions throughout the 50th state. Though the terms aren't entirely clear, we're willing to bet that Google's giving preference to bonafide orgs, rather than sending its pricey gear off with individuals. Still, if you've been dying to contribute to Maps, it never hurts to apply. To get started, just fill out the form at the source link below. Oh, and as you've probably already guessed, there's a 60-second video after the break, too.
Google Trekker to put the Galapagos Islands on Street View, one tortoise at a time
Google's Street View Trekker has already captured some dramatic scenery in its young life, but we haven't seen it venture far beyond US borders. The company is making up for that in style through its recently completed image-gathering expedition to the Galapagos Islands. The visit will produce 360-degree shots of 10 representative areas chosen by the Charles Darwin Foundation and the Galapagos National Parks Directorate. There's more involved than just stunning Google Maps imagery, however: the panoramas will help document any threats to the local climate and wildlife. While we'll only see the results of the Galapagos trip later this year, it's good to know that they should help both humans and slow-moving reptiles in equal measure.
Google delivers Grand Canyon panoramas to less-than-patient tourists
Google must take as long to sift through vacation photos as everyone else. A few months after it sent its Trekker cameras to sweep the Grand Canyon, the resulting panoramas are at last showing on Google Maps. The expansion gives us 360-degree views from paths spanning roughly 75 miles, including tougher routes like the South Kaibab Trail. The views won't fully convey the majesty of standing on the canyon's edge, but they're quicker than booking a hiking expedition in Arizona -- and certainly easier on the legs.
Google Trekker goes to the Grand Canyon, takes Street View souvenirs back home
You might remember Google's unveiling this spring of the Street View Trekker, a seeming cross between a backpack and Van de Graaff generator that lets the mapping team produce 360-degree imagery where even trikes dare not tread. The portable camera ball is just going on its first trip, and Google has chosen the most natural destination for a novice tourist -- the Grand Canyon, of course. Staffers with Trekkers are currently walking trails along the South Rim of the canyon to provide both eye-level points of reference for wayward hikers as well as some breathtaking, controllable panoramas for those who can't (or won't) make it to Arizona. Once the photos make it to Street View sometime in the undefined near future, it'll be that much easier to turn down Aunt Matilda's 3-hour vacation slideshow.
