The Google Earth app will now show you stars surrounding the planet when you zoom out, because, you know, stars are a thing.
Though the feature was previously standard on web and pro versions of Google Earth, mobile app users can now enjoy “wide views” of the night sky too.
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“Realism is important to us — we want people using Google Earth to see our planet in context with our place in the universe,” Google explained on its website.
According to the company, images of the stars and Milky Way come directly from the European Southern Observatory.
This means users can view the stars “as they’d appear to a space explorer at a point some 30 000 miles above the planet”.
Additionally, Google Earth also features animated clouds depicting different weather conditions around the world too.
Back in November last year, the company also launched creation tools on Google Earth to help users share stories about the places they’ve visited.
It’s clear from updates like these that Google Earth is not just a digital representation of the globe, but an increasingly interactive map of our world and beyond too.
Feature image: screenshot, Google Earth
