Google has made life easier and everyone is dependent on Google as it often comes to the rescue. I wonder how people navigated in old times with the help of compasses and maps, but for sure they were skilled people. However, after the launch of Google Maps on 08-February-2005, traveling became far easier than anyone could have imagined. And then came Google Earth, which took the mapping experience to another level. Well, coming to think of it, can you see the great garbage patch on Google Earth? Where is the Great Pacific Garbage Patch located on Google Earth? Can you see the Great Pacific Garbage Patch on satellite? Let’s begin and explore this side of Google.
1. What is Google Earth?
A computer program that presents a 3-dimensional image of the Earth based primarily on the imagery obtained from the Satellites. The imagery on Google Earth is displayed on a digital globe. Google Earth can also display images of the Moon and Mars, along with images of outer space. (See What is North South East West called on a Map?)
2. What is Google Sky?
Google Sky feature was introduced in the Google Earth 4.2 update on 22 August 2007 in a browser-based application. This feature was produced through a partnership with the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) in Baltimore, the science operations center for the Hubble Space Telescope. This feature allows you to watch various celestial bodies along with stars.
3. What is Google Mars?
Google Mars is another version of the program developed for displaying imagery of the planet Mars. It is an in-built application in the Google Earth application. On the Browser-based version, you can get higher-resolution imagery and even include 3-dimensional terrain, infrared imagery, and elevation data.
4. What is the Great Pacific Garbage Patch?
A garbage patch and a gyre of marine debris particles are known as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. Since it is a large system of circulating ocean currents located in the North Pacific Ocean, it is also known as Pacific Trash Vortex or North Pacific Garbage Patch. If you are curious to find out whether can you see the great garbage patch on Google Earth or not, read on. (See What is the Difference Between a Sea and Ocean?)
5. When was it Discovered?
In a paper published by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration viz NOAA in 1988, the patch was described. This paper was based on the research done by various researchers from Alaska who measured the neustonic plastic in the North Pacific Ocean. However, it is said that an oceanographer, Charles Moore, came across a large heap of plastic waste in the Pacific Ocean while he was returning through North Pacific Gyre and this is when people got to know about it.
6. Where is the Great Pacific Garbage Patch Located on Google Earth?
Can you see the great garbage patch on google earth? Well, it is not visible on Google Earth, at least not until some more technologies are discovered to scan it.
However, we will give you its accurate physical location. It occupies a stationary region in the North Pacific Gyre in the Horse latitudes (about 30° north and 30° south of the equator). The patch extends from 135° West to 155°West and 35°North to 42°North. It is divided into two areas, namely, the Eastern Garbage Patch and Western Garbage Patch.
- Eastern Garbage Patch extends from California to Hawaii
- Western Garbage Patch extends from Hawaii to Japan
7. What is the Location of Other Great 5 Garbage Patches?
Oceans are getting polluted for centuries, and it is a never-ending process. As a result, various patches have been developed in the biggest ocean of the earth, including its neighboring oceans. Before moving ahead to know whether can you see the great garbage patch on Google Earth, take a look at the list here mentioning the 5 Great Garbage Patches in the oceans of the world.
- The North Atlantic Gyre
- The South Atlantic Gyre
- The Indian Ocean Gyre
- The North Pacific Gyre
- The South Pacific Gyre
8. How was the Great Pacific Garbage Patch made?
Ocean and Marine pollutants that were gathered by oceanic currents were the reason for the formation of this patch. The rotational patterns of the Gyre are responsible for drawing waste materials from the coastal waters of the North Pacific, including North America and Japan. After the waste gets captured in the currents, it is driven by the winds, and it ultimately moves toward the center of the gyre. It is the place where waste is trapped. (See How is Relative Location Found?)
9. What is Included in the Layer of Microplastics?
As per The Ocean Cleanup project, which they carried out in 2018, there are plastics that are more than 50 years old and include items and fragments of items of plastic lighters, water bottles, pens, toothbrushes, plastic bags, cell phones, nurdles (plastic pellet pollution). Also, those toilet papers that get flushed out daily into the oceans were seen in the form of small fibers of wood pulp.
10. Can You See the Great Garbage Patch on Google Earth?
According to the researchers of the Ocean Cleanup project in 2018, the patch covers about 1.6 million square kilometers (620, 000 square miles) and contains about 129, 000 metric tons (50-142, 000 short tons) of plastic. So, with this data, can you see the great garbage patch on google earth? Well, the patch may seem very large, but it cannot be seen on Google Earth. If you are trying to locate it, this will be a waste of time. (See How to find North direction in room?)
11. Can You See the Great Pacific Garbage Patch on Satellite?
This time also the answer will be a no because the patch is widely dispersed and the upper water column of the patch is covered with finger-nail-sized particles and some even smaller than that, preferably microplastic. According to the United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the European Chemicals Agency, microplastic is any type of plastic that is less than 5 millimeters (0.20 inch) in length.
12. Can You See Underwater on Google Earth?
It may not be possible with Google Earth but with the improvised technology, it has become possible to view underwater locations on Google Maps. You have to select the ocean view locations on the Google Maps Ocean View Website. Then you can see the available underwater locations on the right-hand side panel of the screen. Must read How to find House Facing Direction in Google Maps?
13. Which Other Places are Not Visible on Google Earth?
Besides knowing whether can you see the great garbage patch on Google Earth and the reason behind it, note that there are some more places that you cannot see on Google Earth. There are several other locations that are not visible, or visible but only as an outline, bizarre mapping, etc. on Google Earth. The reason behind this can be technological limitations, security purposes, or authority not granted. Well, whatever the case may be, here is the list of such 19 places:
- Ramstein Air Force Base, Germany
- High-Frequency Active Auroral Research Program (HAARP site), Gakona, Alaska
- Babylon, Iraq
- House of Gazprom CEO Alexey Miller, Russia
- Keowee Dam, South Carolina
- Volkel Air Base, Netherlands
- Baker Lake, Nunavut
- Szazhalombatta Oil Refinery, Hungary
- 2207 Seymour Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio, United States
- Colonel Sanders’s Face, Every KFC
- Army Logistics Command Headquarters Building, Taiwan
- Valencia City, Philippines
- Severnaya Zemlya, Russian Arctic
- The Faroe Islands (World War II military base), North Atlantic Ocean
- Gabčíkovo Power Plant, Gabčíkovo, Slovakia
- Chekhov, Near Moscow, Russia
- Marcoule Nuclear Site, Chusclan, France
- North Korea
- Indian Point Power Plant, New York, USA
So, today you got to know whether can you see the great garbage patch on google earth or not. And the answer goes the same when you wonder whether can you see the Great Pacific Garbage Patch on satellite. Where is the Great Pacific Garbage Patch located on Google Earth? The answer is about its latitudinal and longitudinal location, and not lie on Google Earth. (See What are Amazon Routes Built based on?)
