GOOGLE MARS

[tgpraveen]

SOURCE: http://blogs.zdnet.com/Google/index.php?p=128

Google lands on Mars

googlemars_logo.gifTonight I noticed that mars.google.com now has a CNAME record that points to www.google.com. This usually means that something is about to happen with that subdomain — with the exception of calendar.google.com of course. So I started digging and you will never guess what I found — a Google Maps type application that lets you view Mars. This service is called "Google Mars".

googlemars.jpg

Using this service, you can browse the martian landscape the same way as using Google Maps. Google has included three different types of data in Google Mars.

* Elevation - A shaded relief map, generated with data from the Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA) on NASA's Mars Global Surveyor spacecraft. This map is color-coded by altitude, so you can use the color key at the lower left to estimate elevations.

* Visible - A mosaic of images taken by the Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) on NASA's Mars Global Surveyor spacecraft. MOC is like the digital camera you have at home. Basically, this is what your eyes would see if you were in orbit around Mars.

* Infrared - A mosaic of infrared images taken by the Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) on NASA's Mars Odyssey spacecraft. Warmer areas appear brighter, and colder areas are darker. Clouds and dust in the atmosphere are transparent in the infrared, making this the sharpest global map of Mars that's ever been made.

When you first load the service, you will see a stunning map of Mars that by default shows you elevation. You can switch between the three views by clicking the buttons in the top right corner.

According to the about page, you cannot currently use the Google Earth client to view Mars data — but they're "working on it"

[naveenchandran]

http://www.google.com/mars/

[knight17]

Check this report from betanews

http://www.betanews.com/article/Goog...ars/1142266874

[it_waaznt_me]

Lol ... I think its one of their April fool jokes ..

[tuXian]

really batty!!? what makes you say so?

Google has made a giant leap beyond even the moon to give googlers their first close up of MARS.

http://www.google.com/mars/

The images were taken by a series of orbiting instruments: the Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter creates a map colour-coded by altitude while the Mars Orbiter Camera offers a visual dipiction of the red planet. Both are aboard NASA's Mars Global Surveyor spacecraft.

and "NO" this is certainly not a April Fools joke... those images r awesome

[mvishnu]

thanks... i was thinking of asking you all about where to get this thing...

been looking for it ever since it came on the backpage of the Hindu..

[saurabh.sauron]

google mars is cool. tried google moon yet?

[gaurav_sood91]

tried google mars and google moon. they are simply cool. their browser based tecnology makes it work fine on older PC's.

[mako_123]

man the images are awesome . i dont think it is a joke .

[dIgItaL_BrAt]

Do the guys at Google leave any place in this universe unmapped??

what next???
Google Toilets-"mapping every loo on the planet"????