Tornado Hits Towns in Oklahoma and Missouri
By Nick on May 11, 2008
The tiny towns of Picher and Seneca in the South Central region of the U.S have become the victims of a huge tornado that killed at least 18 people in the area known as Tornado Alley. Here’s a Google Earth screenshot of Seneca before havoc struck:
Seneca, in Missouri, has a population of about 2,100, whereas Oklahoma’s town of Picher, which was formerly a center for lead and zinc mining, has a population of just 1,600.
I found the following picture of a tornado on the article, “Six Tornado Tips that Could Save Your Life“, and because so many tornadoes roll through Oklahoma each year, you’d expect Picher to be well prepared.
Unfortunately, as this video shows, no amount of preparation could have saved the town from this wreckage.
Learn more about Tornado Alley and the Picher/Seneca tornadoes:
- Google Earth Coordinates for Picher: 36°59′13.42″N 94°49′51.38″W
- Google Earth Coordinates for Seneca: 36°50′18.10″N 94°36′38.64″W
- Visit what’s left of Picher in Google Maps
- Visit what’s left of Seneca in Google Maps
- Tornado Alley on Wikipedia
- BBC: “Tornado wrecks Central US towns”
Posted in North America | Leave a Comment
Virtual Travelling from Crowborough, UK
By Mark on May 10, 2008
This is my first ever post. It all starts in a small town named Crowborough, north of East Sussex in the south-east of England. Crowborough is a town of natural surrounding beauty with the main view of Ashdown Forest and St. John’s wood. Crowborough is also renowned for the Winnie the Pooh stories.
Also Crowborough had a very famous person in the name of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the writer of the most exciting adventures of the Sherlock Holmes stories. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle has a public house named after him at the Crowborough Cross.
Find out more about Crowborough
- Google Earth Coordinates: 51° 3′38.00″N 0° 9′42.09″E
- Visit Crowborough in Google Maps
- Learn about Crowborough on Wikipedia
- Visit Winnie the Pooh on Wikipedia
- Visit Sir Arthur Conan Doyle on Wikipedia
Visiting Red Square for the Victory Day Parade
By Nick on May 9, 2008
Since Moscow’s Red Square played host to Russia’s Victory Day parade today, I took a virtual trip across to the Kremlin to check out the views from Google Earth.
This was the 63rd anniversary of victory over Nazi Germany in 1945, and according to this article, “the biggest military extravaganza seen on Red Square since the collapse of the Soviet Union”.
Red Square is full of sightseeing spots, including the Kremlin, St. Basil’s Cathedral, and in Google Earth you can see a 3D version of the Moscow Manege. This was a large building constructed between 1817 and 1825, and used as a riding academy, training school for officers, an exhibition hall and an art gallery, before being destroyed in a fire in 2004. One year later, after reconstruction, it was reopened, hosting the same exhibition it was due to have on the day of the fire.
Learn more about Red Square
- Google Earth Coordinates: 55°45′14.55″N 37°37′13.49″E
- Visit Red Square in Google Maps
- Learn about Red Square on Wikipedia
- Learn about Moscow Manege on Wikipedia
- Moscow Victory Day 2008 video on YouTube
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The Disputed Island of Dokdo a.k.a Takeshima
By Nick on May 7, 2008
I remember hearing a few months ago of an island between Korea and Japan which goes by two names. The Koreans call it Dokdo, and the Japanese call it Takeshima. There is such controversy over which country actually owns the island, I decided to go and see what all the fuss was about.
As you can see from the Google Earth screenshot, you’d never know the island was even there unless you zoomed right in. The actual size is about 185,000m², or 30 football pitches, and is no more than two giant rocks, really.
As an outsider, it’s hard for me to understand what the big deal is about a couple of rocks in the middle of the ocean. No-one even lives on the island, at least not permanently anyway. Honestly, I haven’t doen enough research to weigh in with an opinion, but it is obviously a subject that some people feel very passionately about.
![Koreans protest Japan\'s \](http://www.virtualtripping.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/05/dokdo-takeshima-protest-450x355.jpg "Koreans protest Japan\'s \")
Discover Dokdo/Takeshima for yourself:
- Google Earth coordinates: 37°14′35.16″N 131°52′13.27″E
- Visit Dokdo/Takeshima in Google Maps
- Learn more about Dokdo/Takeshima on Wikipedia
- The Territorial Dispute Over Dokdo
Posted in Asia | Leave a Comment
Traveling the Virtual Globe from Kakamigahara, Japan
By Nick on May 5, 2008
I’m in my pajamas, I’ve got my cup of coffee and a PC running Google Earth, so that means I’m all ready to take to the skies and start my tour of the “virtual” world.
Which one is Nick?
Recognizable by my still full head of hair, it’s clear I’m the younger of the two Ramsay brothers. I attest my youthful looks to a decade in Japan, where I live with my Japanese wife who has cooked me such delights as the poisonous blowfish, fugu, and the very smelly fermented soybeans, natto.
My hair makes up for my very poor eyesight, which I blame on the wonderful world of the internet, and especially Google Earth, which is what I’ll be writing about with my brother on this blog. Subscribe now or I’ll set the fugu on you!
Virtual postcards from Google Earth
As we virtually trip around the world, Mark and I will be writing blog “post” cards and giving you the links to each place, so instead of wishing you were here, you virtually can be! Rather than pointing out the amazing “It’s a missile!”-type photos that other Google Earthers regularly post (see the blogroll), we’ll be doing some real sightseeing, learning about the cities we visit and sharing our experiences as virtual trippers.
Beginning in Kakamigahara, Gifu, Japan
My journey starts here in Kakamigahara, a small city in Gifu prefecture, just north of the megalopolis, Nagoya.
With 150,000 people living here in Kakamigahara, us residents need a bit of entertainment. First, you can watch and listen to the fighter jets take off from Gifu Air Base, then learn a bit about the place at the Kakamigahara Aerospace museum. YouTube is now embedded in Google Earth, which is where I found this video of the Self-Defence Force Air Show.
Tired of planes? Give your ears a rest while watching the fish at the fresh water aquarium, Aqua Totto, and then go for a round of golf at Gifu Country Club. I don’t think there are any nightclubs here, but you can shake your booty in the earthquake simulator at the Gifu Prefecture Regional Disaster Management Center!
Discover Kakamigahara for yourself
- Google Earth Coordinates: 35°24′3.21″N 136°52′17.49″E
- Visit Kakamigahara in Google Maps
- Learn about Kakamigahara on Wikipedia
- Kakamigahara Online International
A few Posts from my personal blog about Kakamigahara
- Photos of Nick’s Neighborhood
- Nick’s trip to AEON Kakamigahara Shopping Center
- Nick’s Trip to Techno Plaza
- Nick’s Trip to the Kakamigahara Incinerator
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