Google Maps news stories on Newser

Iran Threatens Google Over Nameless Gulf

Rob Quinn — Fri, 18 May 2012 02:19:23 CDT

The body of water separating Iran from the Arabian peninsula is nameless on Google Maps, and Iran isn't happy about it. Iran's foreign ministry accuses Google of dropping the name Persian Gulf "as one of the seditionist acts taken as part of the soft war against the Iranian nation," Reuters...

Digging Through Planet Earth? Here's Where You'd Appear

Neal Colgrass — Sat, 12 May 2012 15:35:34 CDT

A journey through the center of the Earth would spit you out on the other side—but where? A Google Maps-based website aims to answer that question. AntipodeMap.com allows you to pick a location and automatically see the spot on the opposite side of the globe, Mashable reports. Most...

10 Places Blurred on Google Maps

Dustin Lushing — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 18:42:53 CDT

Google Maps provides a vast photographic atlas of the planet, but many locales are blurred out and hidden from the public because of security concerns by the country in question. Mashable rounds up 10 such spots you are forbidden to see with clarity:

Google Maps Advises Against Mordor Visits

Matt Cantor — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 13:51:05 CST

With The Hobbit trailer out , some among us may feel inspired to risk the trek to Mordor. But if you look for walking directions to it from the Shire on Google Maps, you'll be greeted with a warning: "Use caution—One does not simply walk into Mordor." The phrase echoes...

Cops: Google Maps Helped Burglar Case Homes

Evann Gastaldo — Thu, 29 Sep 2011 06:50:33 CDT

So you want to rob some houses, but you’re not sure where to start? Well, Samuel A. Watson came up with the idea to use Google Maps, he admits to Chicago police. Watson, suspected of breaking into as many as nine homes since March, “said he Googled ‘expensive homes along...

Track Hurricane Irene With Google's Help

Kate Schwartz — Fri, 26 Aug 2011 18:47:05 CDT

Worried about how Hurricane Irene will affect you? Google to the rescue. The Google Crisis Response team has produced a map that tracks Irene's path and provides other valuable info. Search for your address at crisislanding.appspot.com and see how close your home is to the thick of things....

Weather Forecasts Come to Google Maps

Rob Quinn — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 04:42:05 CDT

Google Maps has got a treat for weather nerds: The service has added a "weather layer" showing weather conditions and cloud cover around the world, using data provided by the Weather Channel's weather.com and the US Naval Research Laboratory, reports PC World . "To add the weather layer, hover over...

Google Maps Sends Travelers to My House: NJ Woman

Matt Cantor — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 16:01:36 CDT

Get driving directions to a New Jersey state park on Google Maps, and you just may end up in a private driveway. The mapping error has been the source of endless frustration for resident Laurie Gneiding and her husband, she tells the Star-Ledger . “It started with one or two people...

Android Is Tracking You, Too

Kevin Spak — Fri, 22 Apr 2011 06:36:24 CDT

Apple isn’t the only one tracking its users’ every move . Google’s Android OS does something very similar, a security analyst has found. The HTC Android phone he tested collected data on its current location every few seconds, transmitting it to Google several times an hour, the analyst tells the Wall...