Is there a way to see how a certain place has changed over the last few years (since the time google started keeping satellite / from the air pictures ) on google maps ? I am guessing, this could be the equivalent of doing a google search with start and end dates specified ?
Yes, on Google Earth (the standalone version you have to download).
If you are using the new version of Google Maps (which is sort of integrated with Google Earth), then I don’t think you can do it on the aerial view, but you can on Street View if there is more than one set of imagery.
Under the address window in the top left, there’s a little clock-face symbol. Click that and you get a sliding timeline.
Will give google earth a try - it’s been years since I uninstalled that.
Thank you for the good reply
Google Earth, as mentioned, has historic imagery that Google has purchased. But you may also want to have a look at historicaerials.com.