If you want to see the world, but do so via your desktop wallpaper on your Mac or PC, be prepared to have your breath taken away by Google Earth’s new satellite photos. Google is adding more than 1,000 new images to Earth View, which the company says is its biggest update yet.

The collection of satellite photos now includes 2,500 high-res images from locations around the world in resolutions up to 4K. If you’re unfamiliar, Earth View gathers some of the most interesting and compelling images from Google Earth, enhancing and presenting them in the Earth View gallery or via its Chrome extension. The project is a spinoff of Google Earth, a 3D representation of Earth that uses satellite photos and aerial photography to present landscapes and scenes from a different point of view than we usually see them.

The company partnered with German software company Ubilabs to develop technology capable of combing 36 million square miles of satellite photos while maintaining proper camera control. The colour profiles of the imagery are then optimized accordingly, before being exported int ultra-high resolution.

Gopal Shah, product manager at Google Earth, says users have been downloading visuals from the Earth View collection as wallpapers and screensavers for years. So, if this is you, it’s time for an update. Earth View now includes a colour map to search landscapes by colour palette. You can preview some new additions and enjoy the full Google Earth View collection here.

Source: https://www.blog.google/products/earth/most-stunning-images-from-google-earth/