​New Google Earth, 5 exciting updates you will want to see for yourself

Written by Kaitlin Sagdal

I spent some time reading about the update and exploring it myself. I will give you my top 5 exciting updates you will want to see for yourself.

•  The new update is aesthetically more pleasing. There are no longer those ugly yellow lines. There is an introduction video to the new version. This gives you an idea of how much the quality has improved.

https://youtu.be/O-XidwKsKAE

• Google Earth can now be used with Chrome. You no longer need to download Google Earth. It can now be accessed from any computer with Google Chrome installed. Support from other big browsers coming soon.
  
• You can now customize the style of your base map. You can use preset styles such as clean, exploration and everything. You can also customize your own style by adding places, roads, landmarks, water, transit, etc.

• There is now an “I feel Lucky” tab. When you click it, it will take you to a random location on the globe and give you a Wikipedia description. I clicked it and was taken to Swabian Jura, in Germany. Fun fact, Locals in the areas speak the distinct German dialect known as Swabian German, which varies even throughout the Jura region and is difficult to understand for speakers of Standard German. 

• But by far, my favorite update is the new feature called “Voyager”. The feature is similar to the tours in previous versions but a million times better. There are dozens of fun, themed “Voyager” journeys. Journeys include the best backpacking trails in the world, land art from above, exploring the Grand Canyon and Hemingway’s hangouts. They are broken up into categories of editor’s picks, travel, nature, culture and history so there is something for everyone.
• My favorite part is the BBC plant earth section. Google and the BBC partnered up to create tours to Islands, Mountains, Jungles, Deserts, Grasslands and Cities which featured on episodes of the new Plant Earth. You can actually take a tour of locations BBC shoot at. Each location comes with a small section explaining the landmark. Some also have 360° video content and YouTube videos.