Many of us have had the opportunity to climb over mountains, soar above deserts or zoom in on metropolises worldwide from the comfort of our home or office through Google Earth.  However, until recently, users have only been able to look on top of the earth, our land.  This perhaps reflects our more limited knowledge of the water that covers 2/3 of our planet.  However, we will now have the opportunity to each become Jacques Cousteau and explore the depths of our oceans through an upgrade on Google Earth that will expand viewing to include the deep blue seas.

Now you can swim with whales, navigate coral reefs and cross the Atlantic faster than the Concord.  The updated program will also allow you to look back at previous satellite images so that you can see the coastal growth, the effects of hurricanes and other environmental changes to the coastline.

All of this is pretty fantastic and amazing, in my opinion (I’m a fish out of water, so I leap at any chance to be near water, even if remotely).  And, it’s timely to give the world greater access to learning more about our oceans as they continue to experience rapid environmental changes due to global warming, pollution and over-fishing.  And, these changes  aren’t only occurring in distant bodies well-beyond our shores, but in the water that surrounds the US. The Pew Trust condemned Mexico’s vote for aquaculture in the Gulf of Mexico and described it as “an accident waiting to happen.” takepart with the Pew Trust’s Marine Conservation Campaign.

[Hat tip to Danny's post below!]

(photo: lorkatj, flickr Creative Commons)