For the first time ever, 360 degree views will be able to appear on Google Street View. It will join other well-known and hard to capture sites around the world, such as the Grand Canyon and the South Pole. The River Thames is the first river in Europe and the UK to be mapped with Google’s Street View technology. It provides a 360-degree panoramic view to people around the world via the use of the popular tool, Google Maps. The announcement has already gained the attention of many Google Map users on a worldwide scale.

This announcement arrives after the Port of London Authority approached Google to map the river to offer a new perspective to Internet users throughout the globe. Being able to achieve this unique 360 degree view provides internet users with a more realistic image of what the River Thames is actually like from a 1st person perspective. In comparison to some of the traditional photos that have been provided of the River Thames in the past, Google Street View will show users exactly what this famed area looks like, making it ideal for those who are curious or even as an educational tool.

To achieve the 360 degree view, Google UK sent its Trekker camera down the river. The Trekker camera is a 40 pound backpack which features a 15-angle lens camera that is able to take 360-degree photographs every 2.5 seconds down the river. The camera was attached to the PLA’s hydrographic surveying vessel, Yantlet. It traveled almost 30 miles up the river and back from Woolwich to Richmond in order to ensure that it was able to capture every angle possible of the beautiful River Thames. Google first used the technology of the Trekker camera to capture the images of the Grand Canyon and then started capturing the canal network throughout the UK.