Mount Fuji, Japan, as seen from the International Space Station. An active stratovolcano and the tallest peak in Japan at 12,389 feet (3,776 m), Fuji has an extremely symmetrical cone that is snow‑capped for several months of the year. During warmer months, climbing routes make it possible for hundreds of thousands of people to hike the summit each year.
35.362727°, 138.730265°
Source imagery: NASA
On Sunday, the “Blue Ghost” lander from Texas startup Firefly Aerospace made a smooth touchdown on the surface of the moon. This is the first time a private company has made a stable and upright moon landing, and its marks the first U.S. touchdown on the moon in more than 50 years. Blue Ghost carried a drill, vacuum and other experiments for NASA, and has transmitted several photographs from the lunar surface.
Video from Firefly Aerospace on Flickr
The Edmonton metropolitan area has grown in recent decades, its population doubling from 726,000 in 1984 to 1.5 million in 2021. Located on the North Saskatchewan River, it is the capital of the Canadian province of Alberta and the northernmost city on the continent with a population over one million. Edmonton is also a staging point for oil sands projects in the northern part of the province, as well as large-scale diamond mining operations in the Northwest Territories.
53.534444°, -113.490278°
Source imagery: Google Timelapse
Akimiski Island is the largest island in James Bay (a southeasterly extension of Hudson Bay), Canada. Most of the vegetation covering the island consists of lichen, moss, sedges and black dwarf spruce, giving it a vibrant color scheme from the aerial perspective. The island has no year-round human inhabitants; however, it is home to the 1,300-square-mile (3,367-sq-km) Akimiski Island Migratory Bird Sanctuary.
53.000000°, -81.333333°
Source imagery: Maxar
Aden is one of the most populous cities in Yemen, with more than 1 million residents. Its natural harbor lies in the crater of a dormant volcano, which now forms a peninsula joined to the mainland by a low isthmus. The city is situated on the eponymous Gulf of Aden, near the eastern approach to the Red Sea.
12.800000°, 45.033333°
Source imagery: Airbus Space
The peak of Krenitsyna Volcano rises as an island within an island in Russia's Far East. It is located on Onekotan Island in the northwest Pacific Ocean and surrounded by Kol'tsevoye Lake, a 4.6-mile-wide (7.5-km) caldera lake. Onekotan is part of the Kuril Islands, a volcanic archipelago and segment of the “Ring of Fire” — a path of tectonic activity that circles the Pacific Ocean.
49.350000°, 154.700000°
Source imagery: NASA / Planet
Some 8 million Chilean households were without power on Tuesday as a massive blackout cut electricity to most of the country. The blackout spanned 1,700 miles (2,736 km) and caused major disruptions, closing schools, knocking out traffic lights and halting subway networks. Power has now been restored for 90 percent of residents, many of whom live in cities such as Santiago, Antofagasta and Valparaiso (seen here).
Source imagery: Maxar
Singapore is the smallest country in Asia, yet it has gradually increased its surface area in recent decades through land reclamation. Since gaining its independence in 1965, the small island nation off the southern tip of Malaysia has grown from 224 square miles to 277 (580-717 sq km). Singapore’s population has also increased over this same time period, from 1.8 million to more than 6 million.
1.2833333°, 103.833333°
Source imagery: Google Timelapse
Adelaide is the capital and largest city of South Australia, with around 1.4 million inhabitants. Founded in 1836 as a planned capital, its design features a city center in a grid layout, interspaced by wide boulevards and large public squares, and entirely surrounded by parklands. The River Torrens can be seen flowing through the middle of the city in the Overview.
-34.927500°, 138.600000°
Source imagery: Maxar
Fish River Canyon, in southern Namibia, is the largest canyon in Africa. It features a gigantic ravine that is about 100 miles (160 km) long, up to 17 miles (27 km) wide, and almost 1,800 feet (550 m) deep in certain places. The Fish River — the longest in Namibia — flows intermittently, usually flooding in late summer; the rest of the year it becomes a chain of long narrow pools.
-27.589293°, 17.597587°
Source imagery: Maxar
Radiating streets surround the Plaza Del Ejecutivo in the Venustiano Carranza district of Mexico City, Mexico. This district — which is home to more than 440,000 people — contains three of Mexico City’s large traditional markets: La Merced, Mercado de Sonora, and Mercado Jamaica.
19.419889°, -99.088028°
Source imagery: Maxar
Taiwan is a country in East Asia, located roughly 100 miles (160 km) from the coast of south-east China. Its main island, also known as Formosa, is mountainous to the east and highly urbanized and populated to the west. With about 24 million inhabitants across 13,974 miles (36,193 sq. km), Taiwan is among the most densely populated countries on Earth.
25.066667°, 121.516667°
Source imagery: ESA - European Space Agency
Happy Valentine’s Day! We’re spreading the love today with some heart-shaped places on Earth from the aerial perspective. Overviews featured include:
Source imagery: Maxar / Nearmap
Seoul is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea, with more than 26 million residents in its metropolitan area. Strategically situated on the Han River, its history can be traced back more than 2,000 years to 18 BC, when it was founded by members of the Baekje Kingdom. With a GDP of more than $1 trillion USD, Seoul is one of the wealthiest cities in the world.
37.566667°, 126.966667°
Source imagery: Maxar
Chimalhuacán (top) and Ciudad Nezahualcóyotl are two municipalities in Greater Mexico City, with a combined population of nearly 1.8 million. Nezahualcóyotl is characterized by its long, straight, and gridded streets, while Chimalhuacán is arranged in a mostly radial pattern around the slopes of Cerro Chimalhuache. The two are separated by a canal of the Río de la Compañía.
19.395475°, -98.978875°
Source Imagery: Maxar
The Gulf of Mexico has been renamed The Gulf of America for Google Maps users inside the United States. The name change stems from an executive order signed by President Donald Trump on his first day in office, which directs U.S. authorities to make the change to official maps. Users in Mexico will continue seeing Gulf of Mexico, while people in the rest of the world will see both names.
Source imagery: NASA
Astana became the capital of Kazakhstan in 1997 and has since grown and developed economically into one of the most modern cities in Central Asia. Its population has tripled in 20 years, from about 500,000 in 2003 to more than 1.5 million today. This Timelapse focuses on the Esil District, a fast-growing sector south of the Ishim River.
51.147222°, 71.422222°
Source imagery: Maxar
