Digitizing the planet

From NPR and KPLU Radio:

Most of us have digitized our financial records and music and photo collections. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg. On this month’s edition of The Digital Future, Strategic News Service publisher Mark Anderson tells us about efforts to digitize the Earth.

NASA’s open-source World Wind project is one example of a digital Earth. It creates a virtual planet using satellite imagery, aerial photography, topographic maps and other data.

Digital Earths are more than just fancy virtual globes, though. They can be used as a gateway to all of the information available about every spot on our planet.