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Christchurch, New Zealand now features 3D Imagery

Thanks to a tip from GEB reader ‘Anthony’, we see that Christchurch, New Zealand is now shown in full 3D thanks to Google’s “3D Imagery“.

christchurch 3d

As with all 3D cities (a list of which can be found on Wikipedia), things look awesome from the air, but get a bit melted when you get in close. That said, the streets (for the most part) are flat and smooth, as compared to some past cities that are quite lumpy. In all, it seems that Google is continuing to refine their process for adding 3D imagery and each new city looks a bit better than the previous one.

christchurch 3d street level

I’m still holding out hope that they eventually integrate 3d imagery with their street view imagery. They did it four years ago on the old-style 3d buildings, and it looked amazing. I’m sure the technical hurdles are much higher when working with 3d imagery, but I’m guessing they’ll get there eventually.

About Mickey Mellen

Mickey has been using Google Earth since it was released in 2005, and has created a variety of geo-related sites including Google Earth Hacks. He runs a web design firm in Marietta, GA, where he lives with his wife and two kids.

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Comments

  1. alfski says

    If the slightly lumpy buildings aren’t your thing there’s plenty of lovely Christchurch countryside to checkout. There’s about 360sq.km of 3d imagery, roughly 18km x 20km.

    • Chris says

      Absolutely right, great to look at the coast nearby, and with respect it’s not the grid plan settlements with modern high rise buildings that make NZ distinctive, but the countryside and particularly the mountains. 3D imagery is getting better though if Christchurch is typical.

  2. David Timpe says

    Well, this new imagery may be lumpy, but for weird 3D, check out the floating building in Fond du Lac, WI at 43, 46′, 48″ N, 88, 26′, 52″ N. I think this was added sometime in the past year or so. Warning, at least on my computer, if you move around the area, Google Earth is prone to suddenly dump you in random locations on the planet, usually in the middle of an ocean.

  3. David Timpe says

    I believe the trees are starting to look a bit better in this update. Meanwhile, GE just jumped me from Christchurch to Antarctica. Maybe it’s a bug related to the imagery? I don’t usually have this happen.



PLEASE NOTE: Google Earth Blog is no longer writing regular posts. As a result, we are not accepting new comments or questions about Google Earth. If you have a question, use the official Google Earth and Maps Forums or the Google Earth Community Forums.