Highlights
- Google Maps is introducing sharper satellite imagery using the Cloud Score+ AI model.
- It is also expanding Street View imagery to 80 new countries.
- Google Earth will now offer historical satellite and aerial views from up to 80 years ago.
- Google Maps on Android Auto is improving lane guidance.
Google Maps and Google Earth are getting some exciting new updates. The new features are aimed at making navigation and exploration easier.
Google Maps is rolling out sharper satellite imagery using its Cloud Score + AI model. This can remove clouds, haze, and mist to give users a clearer view of Earth. However, the feature will give a vibrant view without losing important details like snow or mountain shadows.
This new improvement will bring more accurate pictures for users to explore.
Street View is also getting one of its biggest updates. It is adding new imagery from 80 new countries.
Google Maps’ Street View feature is adding new imagery from 80 new countries. (Image credit – Google Maps/ 9to5Google)
The new feature is launching in Bosnia, Namibia, Liechtenstein, and Paraguay for the first time.
Meanwhile, the imagery is expanded in many other countries such as Australia, Argentina, Brazil, Costa Rica, Denmark, France, Iceland, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, Philippines, Rwanda, Serbia, Spain, South Africa, Switzerland, and Uruguay.
Google Earth Historical Imagery Feature
Secondly, Google Earth is also introducing more historical imagery. It will be now offering satellite and aerial views from up to 80 years ago on both the web and mobile apps.
This new feature will allow users to explore various changes on Earth in the mentioned time span.
San Francisco in 1938 compared to the image taken in 2022. (Image credit – Google Maps)
An example of Google Earth’s historical imagery includes, “…black-and-white photo of San Francisco in 1938, taken by Oakland Airport pilots. During this period, you can see that ports were mainly used for shipping and industry — compared to the 2022 image, where you see the piers dotted with restaurants and cruise ships docked in the harbour.”
Android Auto Makes Lane Guidance Clearer
Moreover, Google Maps on Android Auto is getting a new improvement to the lane guidance features. The new improvement will make it easier for Google Maps users to read and follow while driving.
Google is improving arrow placements indicating which lane to be in. After the updates, the arrows will have more space between them, which will make the lanes clearer. This will highlight the correct lane for the users to easily follow.
The company is hoping this change will make navigation smoother. It will be more useful during complex driving situations.
Lane guidance is an old feature. However, users have often complained about how lanes in Google Maps are more scrunched together. It makes recognising the correct lane difficult while you are driving on the road.
All these updates will definitely improve the overall user experience on Google Maps.
However, we are waiting for Google to pay heed and roll out the much-anticipated incident reporting feature on Android Auto soon.
FAQs
Q1. What new feature is Google Maps introducing to improve satellite imagery?
Answer. Google Maps is rolling out sharper satellite imagery using its Cloud Score+ AI model. This feature removes clouds, haze, and mist to provide a clearer view of Earth while retaining important details like snow and mountain shadows.
Q2. Which new countries are being added to Google Maps Street View?
Answer. Google Maps Street View is adding new imagery from 80 countries, including Bosnia, Namibia, Liechtenstein, and Paraguay for the first time. The imagery is also being expanded in countries like Australia, Argentina, Brazil, Costa Rica, Denmark, France, Iceland, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, Philippines, Rwanda, Serbia, Spain, South Africa, Switzerland, and Uruguay.
Q3. What historical imagery updates are coming to Google Earth?
Answer. Google Earth is introducing more historical imagery, offering satellite and aerial views from up to 80 years ago on both web and mobile apps. This allows users to explore changes on Earth over time.
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