Difference Between Google Maps & Google Earth

By Jake Robinson, eHow Contributor

Google provides two similar products, Google Earth and Google Maps, that use satellite imagery to give Internet users a bird's-eye view of the world around them. These free applications are powerful tools for those seeking to visualize the Earth. However, some basic differences exist between the two.

Platform1. The most basic difference between Google Earth and Google Maps is that while

Google Maps may be accessed via a web browser, Google Earth is a program that must be downloaded and installed on the user's hard drive. Both require Internet access.

3-D View2. One of the features that distinguishes Google Earth from other visualization

software, including Google Maps, is the 3D visualization of certain cities, buildings and natural landmarks. Except for "street view," which allows users to scan certain areas as if they were at street level, Google Maps is limited to a two-dimensional visual experience.

Extraterrestrial Maps3. Google Earth allows users to go beyond the planet and explore the surface of the

moon and Mars. Google Maps lacks this feature.

Flyovers4. Google Earth is designed to give users a majestic flyover visual experience as they

navigate from point to point. Google Maps does not have this feature and is oriented more toward conveying information than depicting the world in a visually stimulating manner.

Usage5. Because of its unique visual aspects, Google Earth is often used forentertainment.

Google Maps is more often used for utilitarian purposes such as locating buildings or obtaining driving directions.

The Difference Between Google Earth and Google Maps

Explaining the differences between Google Earth and Google Maps - Interface

For starters, there is one clear difference between Google Earth and Google Maps. To use Google Maps, you need to type maps.google.com into your browser, while anyone wishing to use Google Earth must first download the client application (see above). One other notable difference is the level of zoom. With Google Earth, you can view the entire planet from above as a globe.

Released in 2005, Google Earth combines satellite images with aerial photography and provides a view of the entire planet. Conversely, Google Maps almost exclusively uses satellite images and is restricted to parts of the planet that can be accessed by road and foot. Google Earth features coverage of the poles, where Google Maps does not. One result of this difference, in focus, is a lack of accurate detail in Google Earth. When viewing cities, some road names and locations are found to be inaccurate.

Google Earth can also be used to replicate real world geographic features. Data collected by NASA has been applied to the data elevation model (DEM) to recreate the Grand Canyon in three dimensions. Google Maps cannot do this; although, Street View provides at street level panoramic images of many towns and cities around the world.

Google Earth also offers a range of alternative views that Google Maps simple cannot. Google Mars and Google Sky offer satellite views of the Red Planet and the Heavens, while Google Moon has also been available since the 2009 40th anniversary of the first moon landing.

Similarities Between Google Earth and Google Maps

While Maps and Earth serve as two different tools, they retain some similarities and a degree of closeness.

One key similarity between Google Earth and Google Maps, probably the most important, is the ease in which each app can be used, potentially without any help functions or instructions. This is due to the clarity of the design and on screen functions.

Both applications feature regions of Earth that are detailed in low resolution. This is a result of lower quality images from the individual satellite. However, steps are being taken to resolve these problems with newer images.

Google Street View, is available for both tools. The popular street level panoramic photo service is the ultimate zoom level on each application, and is one of many available layers on Google Earth, along with YouTube content.

User generated content can be submitted on both Google Earth and Google Maps. On the web based map application, users can review and add their own photos of locations. Several Google Earth users have submitted structures and landmarks mapped in the SketchUp 3D modelling program.