Google has added "time machine" capabilities to the popular Google Maps Street View service , which now allows the user to "travel back in time" and see how much certain locations have changed over the years.
This new feature allows the user to see changes in landscapes, buildings, streets and even entire neighborhoods from around the world since 2007 – the year the company's mapping program began.
Specifically, the user clicks on a new icon that appears in the corner of the screen while using Street View in Google Maps on a desktop or laptop computer, thus activating the “time machine.” They then change the time or even the season they want to see, and see how the image has changed over time.
“If you’ve ever dreamed of becoming a time traveler like “Doc” Brown (from “Back to the Future”), now’s your chance,” Vinay Seth, product manager for Google Street View, wrote in a blog post. “We’ve pulled together imagery from older Street View collections dating back to 2007 to create this digital time capsule of the world.”.
“Now with Street View you can see the evolution of a landmark from its inception, like the Freedom Tower in New York, or the 2014 World Cup Stadium in Fortaleza, Brazil. The new feature can also act as a digital timeline of recent history, like the reconstruction after the devastating 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Onagawa, Japan. You can also experience different seasons and see what it would be like to move around Italian streets in summer and winter.”.
“Forget 88 miles per hour in a DeLorean (second reference to “Back to the Future”) - you can stay where you are and use Google Maps to virtually explore the world as it is and as it was. Happy time travel!” wrote Vinay Seth.
Source: naftemporiki.gr
