The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Christmas came a bit early for anyone interested in maps and space. Last week, Google and NASA signed an agreement to begin sharing data between their two massive organizations. NASA will begin sharing its data with Google, allowing them to include this information in programs such as Google Earth. This will allow Google to begin to include the ability to do real-time data presentations on things such as weather, natural disasters and other types of climate information. In exchange, Google will allow NASA to use its massive power to crunch the huge amount of computer data the agency produces. In a surprise deal, that came with no leaks or rumours ahead of time, these two companies signed an agreement that will provide a huge data advantage to both. A year ago, Google celebrated the anniversary of the Apollo moon landings by uploading high resolution moon maps onto its website and allowing people to drive around on them just as they do on Google Earth. Google also plotted the places where the moon landings took place. This new deal promises even more. From real time weather tracking from data streamed from NASA satellites, to plotting the location of the International Space Station, to soon-to-be available fly overs and maps of Mars using the data being currently collected by the rovers and satellites surrounding the red planet. This information will take Google Earth one step higher and move us closer to having an online, real time representation of the Earth. But by no means is this a one-way deal. NASA creates mountains of data each day. From telescopes to satellites to rovers on other planets; an incredible number of photos, measurements of temperature, and atmospheric sensing information travels each day to NASA's servers. Obviously, searching for clues is like searching for the proverbial needle in a haystack. It takes a massive amount of computing power to sift through all of this data looking for the tiniest clues that may lead astronomers and scientists to new discoveries. This is why the U.S. space agency thought this deal was good for them as well. NASA recently announced that by the year 2012, it would be returning to the moon. As well, current plans include the construction of a permanent, manned moon colony by the year 2020. This means massive investments in planning, engineering, and problem solving for unique situations is on the way. This deal will mean that Google will be on the front lines for this project, lending their experience and engineering staff to help solve problems as needed. It is important to remember that Google is a much larger company than a search engine. With a staff of engineers, computer programmers, cartographers, mathematicians, and designers that numbers up into the thousands, it can bring a lot of brainpower to bear on any issue it sets itself to. They are an information, data, and engineering powerhouse of the 21st century and this deal will go a long ways to ensuring this growing company gains an even larger space in this century. ([email protected])
