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Google Earth Now Knows and Shows All About The Oceans

If Google's corporate mission is to organize all the information in the universe, then apparently the task for Google Earth is to map and tag the universe itself. All of it. In the recent past, Google engineers have gone beyond mere, ordinary continents and mapped both outer space and the planet's oceans. Until this month, though, the default installation of Google Earth mostly had you zooming aimlessly around the seas. While this setup was fun and occasionally led to some comedy, at the beginning Google Ocean just didn't have the layers and layers of information that are attached to landmasses.

Google spent the last year working to change all that, and today we now have hundreds of informational placemarks spread across 20 layers. There's also a specific Ocean layer, created in large part with the help of Sylvia Earle’s Mission Blue Foundation, that alone has hundreds of posts. As of this month that layer has reached critical mass, and from now on will be included by default in Google Earth.

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Get Back Into the Water with Disney's 'Oceans'

Disney Nature's Oceans opened in theaters yesterday in honor of Earth Day. The movie, which is narrated by Pierce Brosnan, dives deep into the oceans to give an unprecedented look at the mysteries below the water's surface.

For most of us, a deep ocean expedition is out of the question since they are few and far between and are usually reserved for scientists and academics. Not to mention, they're pretty pricey; some pay up to $25,000 for an expedition into the deep. But the next best thing, Deep Sea Diving, is totally doable.

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Movie Set Travel: Ocean's Thirteen

The gang's all here, again, in this week's pick: Ocean's Thirteen. Danny Ocean (that's George Clooney to you) rounds up the old boys once again for a third heist after a casino owner (Pacino) double-crosses one of the original eleven.

The tagline's almost too perfect: "What are the odds of getting even? 13 to one." It should be more along the lines of "What are the odds that anyone in this movie actually needs the money they're being paid to be in it?" Zero. But it's sorta nice to see them all rounded up for the perennial showing.

Anyways, as this was shot entirely in both LA and Vegas, we felt we needed to offer you some fun ocean-themed, high roller type things to do instead of just telling you about the Bellagio.

Where To Eat:
Ithaa Undersea Restaurant, Maldives
Check into this Hilton and enjoy dinner at Ithaa, 16 feet below sea level where you'll dine on er, reef fish and lobster. At $200-250 a head for the fixed menu, you have to be a high roller to hit it up, but we hear getting one of the few available tables is well worth it.

Where To Sleep:
9 Beaches, Bermuda
Forgo a flight to Tahiti and head somewhere closer to the U.S. for your over-water bungalow experience. 9 Beaches has 84 private cabanas on stilts right at the water's edge. All have 2' x 4' plexiglass floor sections to watch the sea life from your room. Walls and roofs are made of soft-sided sailcloth (just like the kind on boats) so are flexible and yielding to the wind.

Where To Get the Facts:
Millstein Hall of Ocean Life, AMNH, New York
Next time you're on dry land head to the American Museum of Natural History's mammoth, blue Hall of Ocean Life. A replica of a blue whale (built in 1969) gracefully adorns the main room, and you'll find all the educational dioramas you can ask for, as well as tons of information on conservation and reef protection. Oh, and a ton of 5-7 year olds marveling at the fish.

Related Stories:
· Movie Set Travel [Jaunted]
· Ocean's 13: Lame Movie, Cool Hotel [HotelChatter]