Since Obama’s election all the news was about the economy, what Obama is doing, what Obama isn’t doing and what he’s said he WOULD do that he hasn’t.  Fair enough.  Those subjects are important and relevant to our country and its survival.  In short they are NEWS.

But then it always happens.  Maybe the government wants our attention turned a different way for some particular reason, maybe the media doesn’t have anything fascinating to report.  But whatever the reason, all of a sudden all the news outlets suddenly become obsessed with…Anthrax…or Avian Flu…and this time Swine Flu.

But how is Swine Flu even news?  It’s not even deadly.  It’s not going to be a “pandemic” as the media repeatedly threatens.  It’s not anything more than a red herring, in my opinion.  The frustrating part is a red herring to distract us from WHAT?  That’s the part I don’t know.  And it’s the part that really bothers me.

Well, that said, as long as this ridiculous Swine Flu is going to be making headlines, I suppose I should at least mention a neat way that the instances of it are being monitored using Google Earth.

Several organizations have put together their own Swine Flu maps using Google Earth and other mapping resources.  Here is one really well-done and comprehensive map: Swine Flu on Google Maps.  It was created by Henry Niman, a Pittsburgh biomedical researcher.  This map shows the location of every case around the world, as well as whether swine flu was suspected, confirmed or tested negative. There are other maps as well, and for the original article and the rest of the links to Swine Flu maps, click here.

In my prior article I stated that I felt it was stalkerish and had zero intention of using it.  And while I do still feel that way, I have to say that occasionally a situation happens that makes me question that viewpoint of mine and consider even *gasp* installing Latitude.

On April 14th, a woman’s purse was stolen and then RETURNED with the assistance of Google Latitude.  How did this work, you ask?  Well, the woman, Janina Valiente, a San Francisco resident, was sitting outside in daylight waiting for the bus.  A man approached her and just yanked the purse away from her, took off running, got into a car and left.  Common story.  Here’s the video.

This is the good part.  Janina had Google Latitude installed on her phone.   She called her sister from someone else’s phone, and her sister (who ALSO had Google Latitude) was able to immediately see where Janine’s phone was.  The police went to the location and recovered the purse and all its contents.  And everyone lived happily ever after.

I’m really starting to re-think this.  I mean, truthfully, do I really need to worry about who knows where I am?  No.  I mean, if someone wants to find me, it’s not very difficult.  I have several websites.  I’m on countless social networks.  So perhaps, as a single woman in NYC, Google Latitude is JUST what I need.  If I do end up installing it on my iPhone, I will definitely do a follow-up post to let you know how it goes and what I think of it.  Thanks to TechCrunch for the info.

Rhett Dashwood, a graphic designer in Australis, with clearly a lot of time on his hands, has just put together the first official alphabet using only satellite images from Google Earth.

According to Mr. Dashwood, this project took him six months to locate a landmark somewhere inside the state of Victoria which corresponded to each of the 26 letters.

Perhaps this will inspire you to find a satellite image alphabet in YOUR state.  Perhaps you’ll find it a giant waste of time.  Either way it’s kind of cool and interesting, so I thought I’d tell you about it.  Thanks to Telegraph.co.uk for the info.

Dish Earth’s satellite images come from a camera on the Echostar 11 satellite, which was launched last year by DISH Network in an attempt to surpass Direct TV’s business and stay on top of the HD scene.  So now DISH network has over 100 HD channels, one of which is the new Dish Earth.

The camera itself was developed by the EchoStar Spacecraft Operations Team, Ecliptic Enterprises Corp. of Pasadena, Calif., and Space Systems/Loral of Palo Alto, Calif.  EchoStar is a digital media equipment company, which addresses the worldwide needs of the satellite, among other things.  It is operated under a license from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

No matter what the reasons may be for global climate change, that it is occurring is factual.  And Norway is a country very much affected by this.  So it’s vital to the survival of snow-dwelling animals to see and know where the snow is and where it isn’t, so they can survive.

There are other factors which make it necessary to sometimes move the reindeer to other locations, as well.  Construction of roads or buildings in previously uninhabited regions forces wild animals out of their homes and demands that they relocate.  Norwegian reindeer herders, using these polar view satellites can see what areas would be best for their animals and, in this way, improve and lengthen their lives.

To see how well Polar View has been working for them, read the CNN article here.

But there is definitely more to Google than just a giant game of Monopoly.

If you’ve done your research, you know about Google Earth Outreach.  But in case you haven’t done your research, I’ll tell you about it.  Google Earth Outreach is a way for organizations in the non-profit sector and other groups that benefit society to use the tools of Google Earth and Google Maps to exponentially increase their global reach.
Many organizations all over the world have been making use of Google’s generosity to create KML files which become part of Google Earth and enable all Google Earth users to see and use various environmental information that is implemented into the file.  The Sierra Club, The US Holocaust Memorial Museum and the Jane Goodall Institute are just three examples of organizations which have made use of this technology.  Their case studies and others are available for viewing here.

If you are affiliated with a non-profit or organization which helps our planet in some way, Google Earth Outreach is definitely something to consider if you want global exposure or the ability for the world to see what you do via Google Maps.

And if you have nothing to do with non-profits, you at least can take comfort in knowing that Google is doing something great for mankind.

He got off easy after his last arrest, only having to endure a hundred hours of community service with a suspended sentence.  But having gotten caught yet again, just three weeks later, the courts weren’t so easy on him.  This time he has to serve a year in jail.

His motivation?  To fuel his “champagne lifestyle.”  Polite britishman that he is, all he had to say when he got arrested this time was “Cool.  No worries.  Thank you.”   All I can say is this:  If you’re a criminal and you plan on using Google Earth to pull off your heists…watch your back.  Police use Google Earth too, you know.

The Washington Post, just yesterday, published an excellent article about some of the bodies of water which Google now features, as well as a lot of other great information that I could reword here.  But I thought it would probably be smartest to just have you take a look at that original article.  There are a TON of amazing links within that article as well.  I definitely suggest you look around there, click on the links, watch things, read things, download things, find out things.

Thanks, Washington Post, for a really excellent article for our readers.

Apparently the newest, high tech way people have been finding out about unfaithful spouses is from Google’s street view.  It’s kind of luck of the draw, because it really depends when the satellite images were shot whether or not you get some scandalous goodies, but some have definitely shown up since the launch of Google Street View.

Here’s the original article.

My advice to those who stray…you’re gonna get caught eventually. Maybe be Google street view, maybe some other way.  Wouldn’t it just be easier to…um…NOT CHEAT?  I’m just sayin’…

Technorati Tags: google earth, google maps, google street view, satellite images, surveillance

Google Earth acquires and licenses its satellite images from many different sources, including government organizations, directly from satellites, and from companies who sell their imagery to clients such as Google Earth.

When Google receives imagery, they have to edit it in the same way you would edit family photos before posting them, cutting off irrelevant bits, inspecting the quality of the photos, and then stitching them together with their already-existing imagery to create a “seamless” view of the globe.  Colors have to be matched, as they will change depending on the season, the weather and the time of day the photos were taken.

And all of that, apart from being tedious and time-consuming, is an ongoing process.  So what you see today will most certainly be better, clearer and even more fascinating next year.  Not to mention the new areas over coverage in Google Earth like Sky and Mars.  So stay tuned.

{tags]google earth, satellite imagery, satellite maps, google sky, google mars[/tags]