New imagery of Port-au-Prince

In the wake of the devastating Haiti earthquake, aid organizations have been hard at work on the ground and citizens around the world have pitched in to help in whatever way they can. On the Geo team, we've been looking for ways we can help relief efforts using our mapping tools. Last week, thanks to our partner GeoEye, we published updated satellite imagery of Haiti in Google Earth and Google Maps that illustrated the devastation and current conditions on the ground. This data was made available for public consumption and also to assist relief efforts including those by many UN organizations and the Center for Interdisciplinary Geospatial Information Technologies.

With the hope of furthering awareness and relief efforts, we arranged for a collection of the Port-au-Prince area at even higher resolution (approximately 15cm) to complement the existing imagery. Here are some examples of the kind of detail this new dataset can convey:

click to see full-size

These images were gathered on Sunday (January 17). You can currently view the imagery in Google Maps in Satellite mode. It will also be available via the Google Maps API and in Google Map Maker. We're working to make this available as the base imagery in Google Earth by tomorrow morning (and all previous imagery of Haiti will be included in the Historical Imagery feature). We're also making this imagery directly available to relief organizations.

Earlier today we updated the Haiti Earthquake KML layer (download for Google Earth) with additional information, including more imagery from GeoEye, Digital Globe, and NOAA, as well as earthquake epicenters and other maps. Aid groups can also download Map Maker data as well.

Update, 1/20 9:30am: This high-resolution imagery is now available in Google Earth as the base imagery, and has been published in the Haiti Earthquake KML layer.

Posted by Matt Manolides, Senior GIS Strategist

Take a virtual tour of the Olympics in 3D

[Cross-posted from the SketchUp Blog]

The countdown to the 2010 Winter Olympics has begun, and the Google Boulder office has been busy modeling the Olympic venues in Vancouver, BC using Google SketchUp.

Last month, we introduced photo-realistic 3D models for eight of the nine venues hosting the games.

Today, we released updates to many of the models using higher-resolution imagery, and, the last venue for the Olympics: the Bobsled Course!


With today's release, all nine venues (54 buildings in total) are completely modeled in 3D and available for viewing in Google Earth's "3D Buildings" layer (or view the collection in the Google 3D Warehouse). The collection includes 3D models that range from downtown event centers to ski lifts and spectator bleachers.

In addition, the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games incorporated the models into the Official website using the Google Earth plugin. To see the models, simply click on "Spectator Guide," then "Venues." You'll find a "3D View" tab that loads the 3D model.

So wax your virtual skis and take a tour!

Posted by Bruce Polderman, Product Manager

Doing our share to help Haiti

It's impossible to watch the aftermath of the Haiti earthquake without wondering how one can contribute in helping the thousands of families who lost everything in this disaster.

Google set up a disaster relief page, which includes information and resources for anyone interested in helping out, and the Google Voice team also wanted to respond in our own way.

Particularly in the wake of such a catastrophe, for people in the US who have family in Haiti, it is critical to stay in constant contact with your loved ones, provide moral comfort, and offer daily updates to friends and family in Haiti.

To help those families, we're offering free calling to Haiti through Google Voice for the next two weeks. To place a call using Google Voice, use the Click2Call button on the website, the Google Voice mobile app, or dial your own Google Voice number and press 2 to place an outbound call.

Posted by the Google Voice team.

Cincinnati now in 3D

[Cross-posted from the SketchUp Blog]

We're pleased to announce that we added Cincinnati, Ohio to Google Earth in 3D today. Start exploring by opening Google Earth and searching for "Cincinnati, OH"; make sure the "3D Buildings" layer is turned on.

This city is a great example of how multiple sources have been used to populate Google Earth with 3D buildings. The city contains a large number of user-generated models (made with SketchUp), Google-generated models, and untextured 3D models contributed via theCities in 3D Program. Have fun exploring Cincinnati in 3D!

Posted by Bruce Polderman, Product Manager

Download The Spy Next Door torrent

Download The Spy Next Door torrent ( Coming soon)

Download Sherlock Holmes torrent

Download Sherlock Holmes torrent ( Coming soon)

Download The Lovely Bones torrent

Download The Lovely Bones torrent ( Coming soon)