I typed this into Google Docs, one of about fifteen tabs open on my Google browser (Chrome). I just got off the phone—a Google-developed Android—where I had a conversation in which I, professional cartographer, said “I don’t know, Google it.”
Thanks to Google Maps, Google is also everywhere in a different sense. Launched in early 2005 and inclusive of satellite imagery by that July, the nascent app was already making a splash when it updated the imagery to show the flooding that immediately followed Hurricane Katrina. A September 2, 2005 post on Google’s official blog explains that satellite photos taken on August 31 had been added to the program. Compare this insight to President Bush, who on August 31 took Air Force One over a flooded New Orleans. On September 2, he uttered the immortal “Brownie, you're doing a heck of a job." Which was more helpful to those affected by the storm: a search engine, or the President of the United States?
But I’m not here to talk to you about the history of Google. I’m here to talk to you about our history with Google. Our collective history. You see: in its six short years of existence, the average person has used Google Maps to strengthen their sense of place.
I don’t mean that they’re better at the practice of geography—flip back to Generation Geo-Dumb for more on that one. But we’re at least no longer just looking at maps; we’re interacting with them. Having easy access to GPS in cars, and location-based apps on smartphones, lends a sense of directionality. Just try to get lost these days. It’s difficult when you have a detailed world map in your back pocket, complete with “You Are Here” marker.
Where does that pinpoint come from? How does the marker more or less know where you are? And why is it sometimes not quite right? GPS, Global Positioning Systems, works by triangulation. For GPS to work properly, your device needs to be able to communicate with three separate satellites. In a car or handheld GPS device, it looks something like this:
For a smartphone, substitute cell towers for those satellites. Your location is calculated based on relative signal strength from area cell towers. This is the same technology that emergency services use to find you when you call 911 from a cell phone.
The early 2000s explosion in GPS predates Google Maps, however. In the last year of President Bill Clinton’s second term, he ordered the military to end the practice of intentionally scrambling GPS signals. On May 1, 2000, the GPS network available to civilians became 10 times more accurate. Still, it’s not perfect. Sometimes the device can’t get enough of a signal. Sometimes, it tells you that you’re in a lake.
Like the location-based services, the imagery overlay also comes from satellites. Google doesn’t operate its own satellites, but instead has acquired imagery from a number of providers over the years. The lion’s share of Google Maps content comes from DigitalGlobe and GeoEye. These two companies are the main providers of commercial satellite imagery. Available at a higher resolution than government-launched birds (well, those satellites accessible to us non-military folk), Google has covered the majority of the planet’s land areas with regularly updated pictures of what’s going on all over the planet. An incredibly quick revisit time—that is, refreshed images from an individual satellite that passes over the same area within a day or two—means that world events like the aforementioned Katrina flooding are captured on a regular basis. When you have a free moment, visit the GeoEye website and spend some time with the image gallery.
As the lines between satellite imagery and mapping continue to blur, it’s difficult to have a conversation about modern cartography without mentioning Google. And while there are myriad ways I could direct this essay from that statement, this is the fifth essay you’ve read where I’ve blathered on about maps. Let’s talk about the actual doing. Google Map Maker, introduced in 2008, has brought cartography to the masses. Though you can’t make terribly complex maps or alter the underlying geography, the tool is invaluable for basic mapping.
For example: my friend Bethany was visiting DC for a special event and needed to know which hotels she had looked at were closest to the Kennedy Center and accessible without switching Metro lines from Union Station. She could look them up all individually. Or....
I whipped that up with Google Map Maker in approximately fifteen minutes. Only minimal cartography expertise was required. All I had to do was plug in the addresses and draw in the Metro lines, which took the lion’s share of the time (even lines I can’t draw to save my life). That fifteen minutes of work probably saved my friend an hour of decision-making. Having the location of the hotels, the train station, and the relevant Metro lines all in one place made it simple for her to choose.
You would think this kind of openness would be putting me out of a job. But for cartographers, Google Maps has actually been a boon. Your average person has grown accustomed to seeing and using more maps in his or her daily life through things like GPS and immediate access to satellite imagery. Cartography is now in high demand. Regardless of whether or not someone can pinpoint where they are on a map, they can recognize a map of, say, the United States.
And, I mean, I’m not the most objective observer here, but maps just look cool. If you can display information on a map, why wouldn’t you? If the user can read the map, the data’s geospatial attributes add another dimension to what you’re trying to convey. Even if the user can’t read a map, the data is still comprehensible. It’s a (nearly) universally known medium with a set of built in, immediately understood guidelines. North is up, blue is water, stars are capitals. With Google Maps, cartography is more accessible than ever. Requiring no special training or expensive software, anyone and everyone can experience the joy of creating their own maps and sharing them with others. As part of the millennial generation, we’ve become accustomed to sharing everything online. Why not maps, too?
Thanks to Google Maps, Google is also everywhere in a different sense. Launched in early 2005 and inclusive of satellite imagery by that July, the nascent app was already making a splash when it updated the imagery to show the flooding that immediately followed Hurricane Katrina. A September 2, 2005 post on Google’s official blog explains that satellite photos taken on August 31 had been added to the program. Compare this insight to President Bush, who on August 31 took Air Force One over a flooded New Orleans. On September 2, he uttered the immortal “Brownie, you're doing a heck of a job." Which was more helpful to those affected by the storm: a search engine, or the President of the United States?
But I’m not here to talk to you about the history of Google. I’m here to talk to you about our history with Google. Our collective history. You see: in its six short years of existence, the average person has used Google Maps to strengthen their sense of place.
I don’t mean that they’re better at the practice of geography—flip back to Generation Geo-Dumb for more on that one. But we’re at least no longer just looking at maps; we’re interacting with them. Having easy access to GPS in cars, and location-based apps on smartphones, lends a sense of directionality. Just try to get lost these days. It’s difficult when you have a detailed world map in your back pocket, complete with “You Are Here” marker.
Where does that pinpoint come from? How does the marker more or less know where you are? And why is it sometimes not quite right? GPS, Global Positioning Systems, works by triangulation. For GPS to work properly, your device needs to be able to communicate with three separate satellites. In a car or handheld GPS device, it looks something like this:
For a smartphone, substitute cell towers for those satellites. Your location is calculated based on relative signal strength from area cell towers. This is the same technology that emergency services use to find you when you call 911 from a cell phone.
The early 2000s explosion in GPS predates Google Maps, however. In the last year of President Bill Clinton’s second term, he ordered the military to end the practice of intentionally scrambling GPS signals. On May 1, 2000, the GPS network available to civilians became 10 times more accurate. Still, it’s not perfect. Sometimes the device can’t get enough of a signal. Sometimes, it tells you that you’re in a lake.
Like the location-based services, the imagery overlay also comes from satellites. Google doesn’t operate its own satellites, but instead has acquired imagery from a number of providers over the years. The lion’s share of Google Maps content comes from DigitalGlobe and GeoEye. These two companies are the main providers of commercial satellite imagery. Available at a higher resolution than government-launched birds (well, those satellites accessible to us non-military folk), Google has covered the majority of the planet’s land areas with regularly updated pictures of what’s going on all over the planet. An incredibly quick revisit time—that is, refreshed images from an individual satellite that passes over the same area within a day or two—means that world events like the aforementioned Katrina flooding are captured on a regular basis. When you have a free moment, visit the GeoEye website and spend some time with the image gallery.
As the lines between satellite imagery and mapping continue to blur, it’s difficult to have a conversation about modern cartography without mentioning Google. And while there are myriad ways I could direct this essay from that statement, this is the fifth essay you’ve read where I’ve blathered on about maps. Let’s talk about the actual doing. Google Map Maker, introduced in 2008, has brought cartography to the masses. Though you can’t make terribly complex maps or alter the underlying geography, the tool is invaluable for basic mapping.
For example: my friend Bethany was visiting DC for a special event and needed to know which hotels she had looked at were closest to the Kennedy Center and accessible without switching Metro lines from Union Station. She could look them up all individually. Or....
I whipped that up with Google Map Maker in approximately fifteen minutes. Only minimal cartography expertise was required. All I had to do was plug in the addresses and draw in the Metro lines, which took the lion’s share of the time (even lines I can’t draw to save my life). That fifteen minutes of work probably saved my friend an hour of decision-making. Having the location of the hotels, the train station, and the relevant Metro lines all in one place made it simple for her to choose.
You would think this kind of openness would be putting me out of a job. But for cartographers, Google Maps has actually been a boon. Your average person has grown accustomed to seeing and using more maps in his or her daily life through things like GPS and immediate access to satellite imagery. Cartography is now in high demand. Regardless of whether or not someone can pinpoint where they are on a map, they can recognize a map of, say, the United States.
And, I mean, I’m not the most objective observer here, but maps just look cool. If you can display information on a map, why wouldn’t you? If the user can read the map, the data’s geospatial attributes add another dimension to what you’re trying to convey. Even if the user can’t read a map, the data is still comprehensible. It’s a (nearly) universally known medium with a set of built in, immediately understood guidelines. North is up, blue is water, stars are capitals. With Google Maps, cartography is more accessible than ever. Requiring no special training or expensive software, anyone and everyone can experience the joy of creating their own maps and sharing them with others. As part of the millennial generation, we’ve become accustomed to sharing everything online. Why not maps, too?
***
Victoria Johnson is a GIS (geographic information science) analyst and cartographer based in Washington, DC. She graduated from the Department of Geography of George Washington University.