Natural England heralded this week''s launch of ‘Ocean in Google Earth’, the newest version of Google Earth.
Dr Helen Phillips, Chief Executive of Natural England, said: “‘Ocean in Google Earth’ is a real opportunity to raise worldwide awareness of what exists in our marine environment, and to inspire people to protect it. We are excited at the potential that ‘Ocean in Google Earth’ has to raise the profile of the state of our seas, as it will encourage people to discover an amazing 3-D underwater world from their computers. Natural England has played an ongoing role in providing information about England’s seas to Google Earth and is looking forward to the opportunities that ‘Ocean in Google Earth’ presents.”
She continued: “The marine environment is a vital cultural, economical and social asset that matters to everyone. Regardless of where we live in the world, all of us depend upon healthy ocean ecosystems to shape and regulate our climate and underpin sustainable economic activity.”
Professor Dan Laffoley of Natural England is also Vice-Chair of the World Commission on Protected Areas for the international Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and on Google’s Ocean Advisory Council. He said: “'We are delighted to be working with Google on bringing oceans to life for many millions of people throughout the world. Internet users can now ‘dive in’ and explore our seas in 3-D. They can also help us create the world's first multimedia map of how we are protecting our oceans by uploading underwater data and photos online.”
Marine Protected Areas on Google Earth
Natural England first became involved with this project by contributing data to the Marine Protected Area (MPA) layer of software added to Google Earth on 7 October 2008. This layer has icons on Google Earth that, when clicked, show compelling video streams, photos and stories showcasing the network of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) around the world. It includes a fascinating insight into life below English seas courtesy of Natural England which provided information for 43 marine sites around our coastline.
The unique difference that this MPA layer has from all other software layers on Google Earth is that it is interactive. Anyone around the world can upload their underwater photos, videos and stories on to this layer. Natural England started the process of uploading marine data for England’s seas when the MPA layer was launched; now it is encouraging users to get involved by sharing their local marine discoveries online too.
http://earth.google.com/ocean/
