Google Earth Gets Highest-Res Satellite Images Ever
The GeoEye-1 satellite will capture digital images of Earth from a distance of 423 miles, while moving at 4.5 miles per second.
The GeoEye-1 satellite is able to capture images at 5.5 feet resolution in color and 16 inches resolution in black and white. However, under current government regulations, GeoEye can only offer 1.64 feet resolution images to the general public.
Google founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin were on hand to watch the launch of GeoEye-1, according to Google spokesman Brian O'Shaughnessy, Reuters reported.
Reuters said that while GeoEye does provide images to Google competitors such as Yahoo!, that Google will be GeoEye's only online-search mapping customer.
The GeoEye-1 satellite was constructed by solution provider General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems, at General Dynamics' Gilbert, Ariz., facility. General Dynamics (No. 9 on the 2008 VARBusiness 500) designed and manufactured the satellite, integrated the camera and optical telescope assembly, and did environmental testing of the satellite.
The steadiness of the camera, the agility of the satellite, and the ability to map large areas daily are all innovations we've incorporated into the GeoEye-1 satellite, said Mike Greenwood, a General Dynamics spokesman.
Matthew O'Connell, GeoEye chief executive officer, said in a statement, "Later this fall, we will start providing high-resolution color imagery of the Earth from our newest satellite to customers around the globe. The imagery from GeoEye-1 adds to the quantity and quality of that currently provided by our IKONOS satellite, and together this magnificent constellation will enable us to meet world-wide customer demand."