Most people celebrate their birthdays with a piece of birthday cake and a party, but not Google Earth: it is celebrating its tenth birthday with a whole new version of its popular app.
(Way to set the bar high, guys.)
Sean Askay, an engineering manager at Google Earth, posted on Google's blog about the latest planned additions on June 29, while also waxing nostalgic and romantic, about his time spent working on Google Earth's capabilities and future possibilities as software:
"Earth has enabled people to discover new coral reefs, journey to the moon and into deep space, find long-lost parents, clear landmines and much more...The ability to empower groups as diverse as school children and NASA scientists to learn more about the world is what I love about Google Earth. It has the potential to make the planet a far more connected place, if you take the time to explore, discover and share what you learn."
In light of this, some of Google Earth's altruism is now in the form of some new updates. A new layer, Voyager, will feature five views -- street view, Earth view, 3D cities, satellite imagery updates, and highlight tour. The highlight tour is especially salient, including visual guides to some of the world's most gorgeous and interesting cultural sites.
There will also be 1,500 photos available on an updated Earth View, an archival gallery of some of the most arresting and indelible landscapes on the planet.
The new edition of Google Earth is available for download for desktop versions now.
