Month: March 2023

Understand the causes of Earth’s change

As far as we know, Timelapse in Google Earth is the largest video on the planet, of our planet. And creating it required out-of-this-world collaboration. This work was possible because of the U.S. government and European Union’s commitments to open and accessible data. Not to mention their herculean efforts to launch rockets, rovers, satellites and astronauts into space in the spirit of knowledge and exploration. Timelapse in Google Earth simply wouldn’t have been possible without NASA and the United States Geological Survey’s Landsat program, the world’s first (and longest-running) civilian Earth observation program, and the European Union’s Copernicus program with its Sentinel satellites.

An inside look at Google Earth. With mountains, valleys, buildings and more, Timelapse videos are draped over our planet using advanced 3D graphics rendering techniques. At any given moment, the correct videos for your location, view angle and zoom-level are seamlessly stitched together on the fly to compose Timelapse in Google Earth, updated as you pan, zoom and explore.

24 million satellite images from 1984 to 2020 were analyzed, and we identified and removed artifacts in the imagery, like clouds. We then computed a single representative pixel for every location on the planet, and for every year from 1984-2020 to produce our global, cloud-free Timelapse experience. 

Timelapse also reveals beautiful natural geologic processes, such as the beach sands of Cape Cod slowly shifting south. This footprint of time is captured in our featured locations collection, “Mesmerizing Changes.” 

What will you do with Timelapse?

We invite anyone to take Timelapse into their own hands and share it with others — whether you’re marveling at changing coastlines, following the growth of megacities, or tracking deforestation. Timelapse in Google Earth is about zooming out to assess the health and well-being of our only home, and is a tool that can educate and inspire action. 

Visual evidence can cut to the core of the debate in a way that words cannot and communicate complex issues to everyone. Take, for example, the work of Liza Goldberg who plans to use Timelapse imagery to teach climate change. Or the 2020 award-winning documentary “Nature Now” that uses satellite imagery to show humanity’s growing footprint on the planet.

Timelapse for the next decade to come

In collaboration with our partners, we’ll update Google Earth annually with new Timelapse imagery throughout the next decade. We hope that this perspective of the planet will ground debates, encourage discovery and shift perspectives about some of our most pressing global issues.

Tree cover height satellite imagery

This work was possible because of the U.S. government and European Union’s commitments to open and accessible data. Not to mention their herculean efforts to launch rockets. Rovers, satellites and astronauts into space in the spirit of knowledge and exploration. We invite anyone to take. Timelapse into their own hands and share it with others — whether you’re marveling at changing coastlines. Following the growth of megacities, or tracking deforestation. Take, for example, the work of Liza Goldberg who plans to use Timelapse imagery to teach climate change

This work was possible because of the U.S. government and European Union’s commitments to open and accessible data. Not to mention their herculean efforts to launch rockets. Rovers, satellites and astronauts into space in the spirit of knowledge and exploration. We invite anyone to take. Timelapse into their own hands and share it with others — whether you’re marveling at changing coastlines. Following the growth of megacities, or tracking deforestation. Take, for example, the work of Liza Goldberg who plans to use Timelapse imagery to teach climate change