People who are planning
vacations are accustomed to consulting maps prior to traveling - it just makes sense to have a look at where you are going, check out routes and distances and in general do a little research. Say, for example you're visiting a foreign city. Checking out a good small-scale map of the central areas will give you a good overview and help you orientate yourself as you wander around. You may also be able to identify places of interest that you'd like to see, and generally impose some order on your
vacation before your flight even touches down. On top of all that, many people find that poring over maps is strangely satisfying in itself - a kind of vicarious travel that gives you a sense of exploration and adventure without even having to leave your own home.
So what if you had a map that encompassed the whole word? Well, now you can. Google Earth is an application that is quickly becoming very popular with vacationers and travelers all over the world. It allows you to browse the whole globe, looking at aerial and satellite images from five hundred feet or five hundred miles above the surface. Even better, your bird's eye view doesn't have to stay at right angles to the surface below you. You can alter the angle of view to take in panoramas, and cruise around major geographical features such as Mount Everest or the Grand Canyon.
Only small portions of the globe are currently available in three dimensions, so for now you'll have to restrict your flying around to the few very famous places that have been subjected to 3d mapping by the Google team. Everywhere else the image is flat, and varies in resolution depending on the quality of the images available. The very clearest imaging covers Cambridge, Massachusetts, which has a resolution of one pixel to every six inches on the ground, meaning you can clearly pick out individual cars and people. Elsewhere, the resolution is lower, though this is generally in less popular areas. If you're intending to explore a famous city or vacation destination, the chances are you'll find it on Google Earth in high resolution. If you're going to the Arctic Tundra or rural Nebraska you might not get the same quality.
Additionally, navigational routes, towns, landmarks, businesses, restaurants and places of interest are indexed, so as well as admiring the geography of an area you can plan your 'on the ground' exploration in considerable detail. Best of all, the basic version of Google Earth - which is all you should need for leisure purposes - is completely free!