Google Street View lets users explore some pretty cool places. How else could you tour the Colosseum, the Eiffel Tower and Westminister Abbey all in one afternoon? Soon, virtual travellers will also be able canoe down the Amazon and Rio Negro rivers in Brazil and explore surrounding communities.
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In effort to promote awareness of one of the world's most biodiverse ecosystems, Google has partnered with the Sustainable Amazon Foundation (FAS) to map the Amazon river, as well as the surrounding forests and river communities.
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Members of the Brazilian and U.S. Street View team, along with the Google Earth Outreach team will mount their Street View camera-trike to a boat as it floats downstream. They'll also use the trike to pedal along the dirt paths of communities near the rainforrest. Doing so, they say, will give viewers a chance to experience what it's like to live and work in Amazonian communities.
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"We’re honored to work with FAS on this project to bring the Amazon online for those who can’t visit in person, and help our partners share with the world the unique stories of its inhabitants and the beauty of this place they call home," team leader, Karin Tuxen-Bettman wrote on Google's Lat Long Blog.
[Via Inhabitat]
Tags: Adventure, Bicycles, Computers, Conservation, Digital Cameras
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