# Seen anything odd on Google Maps recently? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [December 1, 2008, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seen-anything-odd-on-google-maps-recently/475177 "2008-12-01T13:48:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2008, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seen-anything-odd-on-google-maps-recently/475177/1 "2008-12-01T13:48:12Z")
I was randomly wandering across Google Maps just now, and I looked up the [old airport in Austin](http://maps.google.com/maps?q=mueller+blvd+austin+tx&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&sa=X&oi=geocode_result&resnum=1&ct=title). Sure looks like an airport. Only trouble is, is that it’s not there any more: the runway was dug up three or four years ago. Even stranger, the map view shows all the new roads that have been put in. What’s the oddest thing you’ve seen recently? ---
**Author:** ![Mama\_Zappa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2008, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seen-anything-odd-on-google-maps-recently/475177/2 "2008-12-01T15:06:56Z")
They’ve since fixed this ☹ But for quite a while, you could request directions for places that crossed the Atlantic ocean. They generally routed you to a wharf in Boston, then instructed you to swim across the ocean (3,000 miles, 30 days). Totally bogus obviously - maybe Michael Phelps could do 100 miles per day, but I sure couldn’t! I discovered this by accident when I was attempting to get directions to somewhere in Delaware. It seems Google maps thought “DE” was Deutschland. Google street view has recently added my street. Inspired, I looked up several former addresses. At one, it looked as if they’d added a trailer in the middle of a cul-de-sac. It turned out that advancing along the road past its end would cause you to teleport into a trailer park 1/10th of a mile away. ---
**Author:** ![Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troy_mcclure_sf/32/4150_2.png) [@Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Troy_McClure_SF)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2008, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seen-anything-odd-on-google-maps-recently/475177/3 "2008-12-01T17:29:56Z")
> [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](#): > > I was randomly wandering across Google Maps just now, and I looked up the [old airport in Austin](http://maps.google.com/maps?q=mueller+blvd+austin+tx&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&sa=X&oi=geocode_result&resnum=1&ct=title). Sure looks like an airport. Only trouble is, is that it’s not there any more: the runway was dug up three or four years ago. Even stranger, the map view shows all the new roads that have been put in. They can’t have current photos of _everywhere_, you know. ---
**Author:** ![Hampshire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hampshire/32/4887_2.png) [@Hampshire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hampshire)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2008, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seen-anything-odd-on-google-maps-recently/475177/4 "2008-12-01T19:32:47Z")
> [@Troy\_McClure\_SF](#): > > They can’t have current photos of _everywhere_, you know. Yep. Some of the images they have are pretty old. There are full subdivisions near me built 5 years ago that show up as empty fields on the aerial images. ---
**Author:** ![DMark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@DMark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMark)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2008, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seen-anything-odd-on-google-maps-recently/475177/5 "2008-12-01T20:28:11Z")
I read an article not too long ago that said Google Maps had been sued by a few celebrities and therefore took certain areas off the map. Seems some celebrities didn’t want crazed fans to know exactly how to get onto their property and how to avoid road blocks. The article also mentioned that some classified areas had been deleted at the request of some US Government agencies. ---
**Author:** ![sailor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a587f6/32.png) [@sailor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sailor)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2008, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seen-anything-odd-on-google-maps-recently/475177/6 "2008-12-01T21:35:08Z")
> [@Troy\_McClure\_SF](#): > > They can’t have current photos of _everywhere_, you know. You’d be amazed at the numbers of people who believe Google Earth works in real time. ---
**Author:** ![Illuminatiprimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/illuminatiprimus/32/11520_2.png) [@Illuminatiprimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Illuminatiprimus)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2008, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seen-anything-odd-on-google-maps-recently/475177/7 "2008-12-01T21:55:36Z")
Nothing that amazing - in Truro in Cornwall there’s a car park on the map that has since been turned into a pedestrianised area, and in Wimbledon near where I live a parade of shops is on the map but has since been torn down for redevelopment. Both of these are within about 3 years so not all that out of date. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2008, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seen-anything-odd-on-google-maps-recently/475177/8 "2008-12-01T22:15:45Z")
The City of Manchester Stadium has only been shown complete for the past year or so, despite having been in use since 2002. ---
**Author:** ![sailor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a587f6/32.png) [@sailor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sailor)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2008, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seen-anything-odd-on-google-maps-recently/475177/9 "2008-12-01T22:50:56Z")
At 38.8409, -77.0892 you can see a large parking lot. In reality it has been built up for a couple of years or more with apartment buildings, commercial senter, public library etc. ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Barchetta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/da6949/32.png) [@Red\_Barchetta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Barchetta)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 7:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seen-anything-odd-on-google-maps-recently/475177/10 "2008-12-02T07:58:44Z")
> [@Mama\_Zappa](#): > > They’ve since fixed this ☹ But for quite a while, you could request directions for places that crossed the Atlantic ocean. They generally routed you to a wharf in Boston, then instructed you to swim across the ocean (3,000 miles, 30 days). IIRC, it was an easter egg, and not a glitch. It seems to have been removed though ☹ ---
**Author:** ![firstname](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7ab992/32.png) [@firstname](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/firstname)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 8:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seen-anything-odd-on-google-maps-recently/475177/11 "2008-12-02T08:40:29Z")
https://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&saddr=new%2Byork&daddr=sydney&hl=en&geocode=&mra=ls&sll=37.020098,-95.712891&sspn=42.395963,93.164063&ie=UTF8&z=3&ll=37.020098,-95.712891 Used to go straight to Sydney, but now via japan. I think i might have to practice kayaking. ---
**Author:** ![atomicbadgerrace](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8e7dd6/32.png) [@atomicbadgerrace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/atomicbadgerrace)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 10:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seen-anything-odd-on-google-maps-recently/475177/12 "2008-12-02T10:13:58Z")
> [@firstname](#): > > [Google Maps](http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&saddr=new+york&daddr=sydney&hl=en&geocode=&mra=ls&sll=37.020098,-95.712891&sspn=42.395963,93.164063&ie=UTF8&z=3) > > Used to go straight to Sydney, but now via japan. I think i might have to practice kayaking. I did a double take before reading on–a bridge built from Japan to Australia? Where have I been?! > [@](#): > > 1. Kayak across the Pacific Ocean > Entering Australia (Northern Territory) 3,358 mi :smack: Heh. Is it just me or does Japan seem to have _a lot_ of toll roads? ETA: Change “car” to “walking” – you can now spend 216 days, 11 hours making the trip! And, of course, > [@](#): > > Use caution – This route may be missing sidewalks or pedestrian paths. Coupled with the kayaking, this makes me laugh. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 11:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seen-anything-odd-on-google-maps-recently/475177/13 "2008-12-02T11:20:02Z")
> [@atomicbadgerrace](#): > > Is it just me or does Japan seem to have _a lot_ of toll roads? [Yes](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Expressways_of_Japan), the expressway network has tolls throughout. (3 miles per US$ :eek:) ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 12:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seen-anything-odd-on-google-maps-recently/475177/14 "2008-12-02T12:02:06Z")
> [@sailor](#): > > You’d be amazed at the numbers of people who believe Google Earth works in real time. But wouldn’t it be cool if it did? Maybe in a decade or two it may be possible. Doubtful, but then Google Earth itself was pretty much beyond possible ten years ago. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 12:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seen-anything-odd-on-google-maps-recently/475177/15 "2008-12-02T12:05:34Z")
> [@firstname](#): > > [Google Maps](http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&saddr=new+york&daddr=sydney&hl=en&geocode=&mra=ls&sll=37.020098,-95.712891&sspn=42.395963,93.164063&ie=UTF8&z=3) > > Used to go straight to Sydney, but now via japan. I think i might have to practice kayaking. There are kayak rental places in that neighborhood of Seattle, so I started zooming in to see exactly where the kayak trip started. As I did that, it added a ferry route onto the map highlights. Their easter egg has a bug in it. ---
**Author:** ![sailor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a587f6/32.png) [@sailor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sailor)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seen-anything-odd-on-google-maps-recently/475177/16 "2008-12-02T13:36:59Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > But wouldn’t it be cool if it did? Maybe in a decade or two it may be possible. Doubtful, but then Google Earth itself was pretty much beyond possible ten years ago. What we have seen in the last couple of decades is just amazing and I think most people do not appreciate it because they lack the necessary perspective. Not only computers but the Internet, Google search, Google Earth, etc. It is truly astonishing. You can put a word or three into google and it can search millions upon millions of pages in a fraction of a second. Nobody could even dream of that twenty years ago. I can walk around in China all day with a GPS in my pocket and then plug it into Google Earth at the end of the day and see exactly where I was every minute of the day. Or see it in real time on my blackberry or GPS navigator. GPS, mobile phones… we just do not realize how much things have advanced and the complexity of the technology behind it. When I was a kid I would be marvelled by some mechanical toy because I could see the complexity of it. Now kids believe anything and everything is possible because they have no idea of what is behind it all. I believe the next big thing is going to be the convergence of separate technologies. Today for voice we have POTS, cordless phones, cell phones, VOIP… I believe they will all come together, POTS will gradually shrink to nothing, it will all be data over IP, your cell phone will be connected to your own [picocell](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Picocell) when at home and so you will not need a separate POTS line, your internet router will include wifi and picocell and all will go out over fiber which will also deliver video, internet etc.. There are huge changes coming. Same thing in biotechnology. It is simply amazing. So while I do not believe we shall see Google Earth in real time any time soon experience shows you just never know what you may see next. probably we will not see the things we imagined and yet we will see many things we never imagined. ---
**Author:** ![Mama\_Zappa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seen-anything-odd-on-google-maps-recently/475177/17 "2008-12-02T20:14:32Z")
> [@firstname](#): > > [Google Maps](http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&saddr=new+york&daddr=sydney&hl=en&geocode=&mra=ls&sll=37.020098,-95.712891&sspn=42.395963,93.164063&ie=UTF8&z=3) > > Used to go straight to Sydney, but now via japan. I think i might have to practice kayaking. There’s a bug in the routing. I tried changing the origination to San Diego, CA and it still routed me through Seattle. “shortest possible” my ass! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troy_mcclure_sf/32/4150_2.png) [@Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Troy_McClure_SF)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seen-anything-odd-on-google-maps-recently/475177/18 "2008-12-02T21:19:39Z")
> [@sailor](#): > > You’d be amazed at the numbers of people who believe Google Earth works in real time. No, sadly, I’m not any more. ---
**Author:** ![Terrifel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c68b51/32.png) [@Terrifel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terrifel)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2008, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seen-anything-odd-on-google-maps-recently/475177/19 "2008-12-03T00:03:36Z")
> [@DMark](#): > > I read an article not too long ago that said Google Maps had been sued by a few celebrities and therefore took certain areas off the map. Seems some celebrities didn’t want crazed fans to know exactly how to get onto their property and how to avoid road blocks. > > The article also mentioned that some classified areas had been deleted at the request of some US Government agencies. Ah, that must explain it then. I was talking to my uncle over the phone during the Thanksgiving holiday, and he asked me to look up his place on Google Maps. Strangely, although the surroundings were quite clear, the lot containing his trailer and two broken pickup trucks were blurred into indecipherability. At the time I assumed that it was just the omnipresent haze of pot smoke; but it could be that he’s attempted to sue Google Maps. That would explain the request, at least. He gets some funny ideas sometimes. But at least he’s still trying to get ahead in life, in his way. ---
**Author:** ![sailor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a587f6/32.png) [@sailor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sailor)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2008, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seen-anything-odd-on-google-maps-recently/475177/20 "2008-12-03T19:42:17Z")
At 38.899, -77.021 , Chinatown in Washington DC, Google Earth shows a big hole in the ground and construction site but in reality there is a huge building which has been completed for quite some time now. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seen-anything-odd-on-google-maps-recently/475177.md?page=2)