Sunday, March 16, 2008

Comparison - Google Maps and Microsoft Virtual Earth Maps (Continued)

Let's be fair - My first Dual Map of Fatu Hiva Island, Marquesas Islands depicts hi-res vs 14.5-meter res imagery. Google Map (GM) has a Infoterra Ltd & Blue Sky hi-res image, whereas Microsoft Virtual Earth (MVE) has a colorized Landsat ETM+ mosaic. The comparison does not do MVE justice. MVE has great hi res image coverage in many places throughout the world. The above side-by-side allows one to view hi-res imagery from both mapping sources. At the center of the images is Lindisfarne Castle located on Lindisfarne Island, Northumbria, UK. For the researcher, working on a limited budget, one can easily compare the two images which appear to be taken at different times of the year (center image a few hundred meters west and look at the fields and see the shadows), at different hours of the day (see the shadows), most likely different cameras and under different atmospheric conditions. Research on the cheap!

Both imagery providers give one hi-res imagery at many locations around the world. Islands, however, are often under imaged. It is nice to see an island, such as Lindisfarne, with great, cloud-free coverage.

Enjoy!

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