I love being an Aussie and it is cool when us Aussies get it over everywhere else in the world. Such is the case with the addition of The Great Barrier Reef in Google Maps.
The Great Barrier Reef is the first Marine Park in the world to feature in Google Maps. It is not that much to look at though. But it does give you an idea of why it has the name it does. Here are some stats so you can see why it should have been first!
- The largest coral reef system in the world
- More than 2,900 individual reefs make up the system
- Over 900 individual islands
- Stretches over 2,600kms
- Over an area of 34,4400 square kms
- Best of all the largest structure made by living organisms in the world that can be viewed from space
I lived in far north Queensland for many years in Cairns, right in the heart of the reef. It is a huge part of the community and supports many industries and jobs and place the locals love as well. Great to see it included in Google Maps.
In regards to the inclusion I was disappointed to see that the maps don’t include the names of the reefs. Each reef has a unique name and is known by that name. This would have been great to have seen as well. Without them the maps are just interesting to look at. For us locals; if they did have the names it would make them a real tool and more valuable in general. I certainly hope that in time this happens, because it needs to. In my opinion a large oversight.
Check out the maps yourself and see what all the fuss is about. Pitty about the names.
UPDATE: Thanks to the ever vigilant Dave Lifekludger, it appears that the names are indeed attached to said reefs. I swear that they were not there last night when I posted this. I zoomed in as far as I could go more than once and nope… I did think it was weird… Thanks Dave!
