A Google Earth view
The Google Earth desktop application provides a neat way to visualise geographic [and other] data. We've used Google Earth as a tool to collate some descriptive geographic data, metadata and imagery from sea ice research voyages.
Using Google Earth, you can fly along ship or aircraft tracks, view data in its geographical location, use a time scale to see what happened when, review metadata from scientific exercises and much more. The more you look, the more you'll find.
The data are all wrapped up in .kmz files, which you can open in Google earth and explore away!
If you don't have Google Earth, you can download it freely from Google.
[ Available files | download instructions | usage instructions | update information | credits and disclaimer ]
Available files
The Sea Ice Physics and Ecosystem eXperiment, September to October 2007.
network required: sipex.kml 4.5kb, updated: 21 January 2009
subsets: voyage ship track and daily locations, helicopter flight paths, drifting buoy locations, ice station meta data, images of places and events of interest, data overlays, photo overlays.
Download instructions
To use the .kml files with a network connection for fetching images, click the link to the the relevant .kml file to download the data file for Google Earth.
Usage
Once you have a .kml/kmz file on your computer, double clicking it will usually open Google Earth and load the data. Or, you can open Google Earth, choose 'file -> open', then browse to the .kml/kmz file.
All of the data are time-tagged. You will need to extend the timeline at the top of your Google Earth screen to see all of the data - Google Earth's default view is to show just the first day of the time span.
Explore, and enjoy! The Google Earth user guide is very comprehensive, and will aid your exploration considerably.
If you want the data you've just added to Google Earth to be included every time you open Google Earth, add it to your 'my places' list. To do this, you can click-and-drag the new folder list from 'temporary places' into 'my places' in the Google Earth places menu, or just exit Google Earth and say 'yes' when asked if you'd like to save any unsaved temporary places.
Be aware that the data are time-tagged as well as geolocated. If you can't see anything, look at the timeline in your Google Earth window and extend the visible time range. Also, some images in the photo overlays are very large. If you have a low bandwidth connection to the internet, you can turn off or remove the image and photo overlays.
Updates
Files will be updated with new data as it arrives. Please check back periodically - if the date at the file download link has changed, there will be new data.
Credits, and the disclaimer
All of the data published in the Google Earth files here so far are the property of the Australian Antarctic Division and/or the Antarctic Climate and Ecosystems CRC. Please contact Dr Tony Worby if you would like access to datasets displayed here.
Copyright for all photographs remains with the credited photographers, who have kindly given permission for their images to be used in these files.
Please contact Adam Steer if you have any contributions or questions about the Google Earth files themselves.
Finally, a disclaimer: The data contained in these Google Earth files are for informative purposes only. The software on this site is provided "as is" without any warranty of any kind, either expressed, implied, or statutory, including, but not limited to, any warranty that the software will conform to specifications, any implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and freedom from infringement, and any warranty that the documentation will conform to the software, or any warranty that the software will be error free.