Using half a million images taken by spacecrafts including the Cassini probe, Google Maps added over a dozen distant planets and moons to its repertoire yesterday.
Google Maps now lets you explore more than a dozen planets and moons
By zooming out of Earth and into other moons like Enceladus, Saturn’s sixth largest moon which is thought to have water underneath its crust, you can re-create the journeys of Cassini and other spacecrafts. Pluto, Venus, and several moons were also added to Google Maps. Astronomical artist Björn Jónsson put together maps of Europa, Ganymede, Rhea, and Mimas using images from NASA and the European Space Agency.
A few hours after Google’s announcement, planetary scientist Emily Lakdawalla noted on Twitter that several of the icy moon maps, including Enceladus and Europa, had their names and images off by 180 degrees. We’ve reached out to Google to see if the error has been corrected.
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