Google Earth's new Timelapse feature shows the dire effects of climate change

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• Google Earth's new Timelapse feature shows the dire effects of climate change

Google Earth users can now see the effect of climate change over the past four decades, thanks to its new 'Timelapse' feature, its biggest update since 2017. The latest technology tool, announced by Google CEO Sundar Pichai, provides Visual evidence of how the Earth has changed due to climate change and human behavior. This astonishing technical feat takes the platform's static images and turns it into a dynamic 4D experience, allowing users to click through timelapses that highlight melting ice caps, retreating glaciers, massive urban growth and the impact of forest fires on agriculture. “Our planet has experienced rapid environmental change over the last half century, more than at any other time in human history. @GoogleEarth's new Timelapse feature collects 24 million satellite photos from the last 37 years into an interactive 4D experience,” Sundar Pichai said in a tweet.

How does Google Timelapse work?

Our planet has experienced rapid environmental change over the past half century, more than at any other time in human history. @GoogleEarth's new Timelapse feature collects 24 million satellite photos from the last 37 years into an interactive 4D experience. Learn more Timelapse compiles the millions of satellite photos taken between 1984 and 2020, an effort that took Google two million hours to process thousands of machines on Google Cloud. To explore Timelapse in Google Earth, users can enter any location in the search bar --- g.co/Timelapse --- "to choose any location on the planet where you want to see the time in motion." Google says it has removed things like clouds and shadows from the images and has calculated a unique pixel for every location on Earth for every year since 1984. They've all been brought together in a Timelapse video. Google worked with experts from the CREATE Lab at Carnegie Mellon University to create the technology behind Timelapse, and worked with them to make sense of what was displayed. "As we considered what was happening, five themes emerged: forest change, urban growth, warmer temperatures, energy sources, and the fragile beauty of our world. Google Earth gives you a guided tour of each theme to better understand them." Google mentioned. Google hoped that governments, researchers, journalists, teachers, and advocates would analyze the images, identity trends, and share their findings.

Google ready to work with ISRO

(Image credit: Google) "Timelapse in Google Earth is truly a huge step forward. Because now our only static snapshot of the planet has become dynamic, providing continuous visual evidence of changes to Earth due to climate and human behavior." that occur in the world. 'Space and time for four decades,' said Rebecca Moore, director of Google Earth, Earth Engine and Outreach. She added: Timelapse was made possible by commitments from the US government and the European Union of open and accessible data. These images were provided by NASA, the US Geological Survey, the European Commission and the European Space Agency. Moore said Google was open to exploring a similar collaboration with ISRO. "To the best of our knowledge, Timelapse and Google Earth is the largest video ever made on the planet of our planet," he said. "When you mouse over Google Earth, the landscape below you effortlessly springs to life over the past four decades. And now billions of people around the world can experience it from their web browsers or even their phones,” she added. Google has said that it will update Google Earth every year with new timelapse images for the next decade.