Ever wondered how Google’s globe-imaging software Google Earth works? Well, think no more! Declan Butler over at Nature.com explains how Google’s program optimizes the pictures you are resquesting in order to make them downloadable by an average internet connecion:
To slash the amount of data they have to transmit across the Internet, virtual globes such as Google Earth approximate the sphere of the planet’s surface with a polygon made up of flat tiles. The further away your viewpoint is from the surface, the fewer tiles are needed to create the illusion of roundness, and the lower the resolution of these tiles can be.
Read more at Nature.com
