Original URL: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/07/09/google_may_announce_3d_google_moon/
Google Moon to go 3D
40th lunar anniversary with added terrain
Posted in Science, 9th July 2009 23:18 GMT
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Google is likely to announce a new 3D view of the Moon in honor of the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 11 lunar landing on July 20.
The Mountain View Chocolate Factory announced plans to hold a press conference that day in Washington, DC to discuss "a very special announcement about the newest addition to Google Earth."
Moon walker #2 Buzz Aldrin will speak at the event as well as Man on the Moon author Andrew Chaikin. Short of Google releasing hand-to-hand combat tips [1] courtesy of Aldrin, it's pretty clear what the company has brewing.
NASA recently launched the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter [2] (LRO), which has been happily beaming home compelling new snaps of luna firma. The orbiting probe will also be able to provide a 3D map of the moon's surface which could be used to complement the ageing overhead shots that Google Moon [3] currently offers.
The company obviously has a very friendly relationship with the US space agency, so Google getting hold of the data isn't exactly a stretch. NASA even let's Google cool their jets [4] at the Ames Research Center just a few miles from Google's headquarters — and by the way, Ames just happens to manage LRO's twin mission, the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS).
Furthermore, Google already provides a 3D view of Mars through Google Earth 5.0. The planets, as they say, are aligned for a three dimensional peek at our local orbiting harsh mistress. ®