Google Earth Grids

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Google Earth Grids View

One of feature which available in Google Earth is Grids feature. The grids are imagination lines that divided earth in to some parts by Latitude and Longitudes lines. Grids that available in Google Earth Option are Decimal Degrees, Degrees Minute Second, Degrees Decimal Minutes and Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM). The first three Lat/Long are geographical measurement using Degrees based on the imagination lines that divided earth by its rounded form.

It divides earth surface to 360 degrees. Degrees divided to minutes and minutes divided to second measurement. One degree is 60 minutes and one minutes is 60 seconds. Meanwhile, the UTM is based on the imagination length of the earth surface, measured in Meter unit. Geographical Longitude divided earth to two zones, East and West which each have 180 degrees. Latitude also divided to two zones, North and South which each have 90 degrees. The grids are helpful to imagine the orientation of a location in the earth, in which part of the world a location is. It can be used to count the distance of two points in the earth and also the areas square in the grid. 

The grids features of Google Earth helped to open my sense for navigation and a courage to learn more and use it facilities. With the limited resources in that time, Google Earth was very useful for orientation purposes. Grids features commonly used for navigation. Flights and sailing are the most activities that usually plan the routes using navigation aids. Geologist using the grids to map the resources found in an exploration. Outdoor activities used to navigate to plan the route that wanted to travel.

Land based and flights activities used to use 3D navigation. A point marked for Latitude, Longitude and Height. Meanwhile, sailor use the same 3D navigation too, but a point marked for Latitude, Longitude and Depth. Grids feature in a navigation equipment use the same principles of grid feature in Google Earth. It should be checked for the main purpose use of a navigation equipment. A navigation equipment purposed for land and air activities usually mark the height as positive value and mark a depth as negative value. Contrary, a navigation equipment purposed for sailing, marked the height as negative and mark a depth as positive value. Some navigation equipment need to reset for the using purposes. Usually, before activate the navigation feature, there is an option to set the height and depth value.