Maps Mania

Routing for Vampires

One of the hardest tasks in navigation and wayfinding is calculating safe routes for vampires. The Damned have a number of unique routing requirements that demand more than just Google Maps in dark mode—chief among them, the need to avoid direct sunlight.The Department of Computer Science at the Eastern Switzerland University of Applied Sciences has developed a unique "vampire mode" that allows

http://googlemapsmania.blogspot.com/2025/07/routing-for-vampires.html

Has a Nuke Gone Off?

Not so very long ago - in the days before America became great again -  Has a Nuke Gone Off would have made a nice Friday Fun post. Now it doesn't seem quite so funny. Has a Nuke Gone Off is a simple website that does just thing - it monitors a home-built nuclear blast detector to tell you whether a nuclear bomb has exploded. I am happy to report that as of '2025-07-05 05:47:53' no

http://googlemapsmania.blogspot.com/2025/07/has-nuke-gone-off.html

The Map of the Internet

The Internet Infrastructure Map is an interactive visualization of the physical infrastructure of the global internet, built using data from TeleGeography and PeeringDB. It illustrates the growth of the internet over time, from the early days of subsea cable networks right up to the modern day.The map highlights two core components of the physical internet: undersea cables (represented

http://googlemapsmania.blogspot.com/2025/07/the-map-of-internet.html

Mapping the Revolutionary War

Esri’s Battles of the American Revolutionary War is an interactive StoryMap that visualizes the major battles of the Revolution. This digital tool offers a compelling, user-friendly experience that brings the war’s geography and timeline to life. At the heart of the Battles of the American Revolutionary War is its interactive map interface and timeline. Using these features you can view the

http://googlemapsmania.blogspot.com/2025/07/mapping-revolutionary-war.html

The Doomsday Glacier

Antarctica’s Thwaites Glacier took thousands of years to form, yet in just the past two decades, its grounding zone, the critical boundary where the glacier meets the seafloor, has receded by over eight miles.As the widest glacier in Antarctica, Thwaites spans an area comparable to the size of Florida. Its potential collapse could have catastrophic global consequences, significantly raising sea

http://googlemapsmania.blogspot.com/2025/07/the-doomsday-glacier.html

The Whole of Human History Mapped

The Wikidata History Map is an interactive tool that visualizes historical events from Wikidata on a dynamic world map. By leveraging the vast database of Wikidata the map allows users to explore events ranging from ancient battles and natural disasters to political summits and cultural milestones - providing a unique way to see how history unfolds across time and space. Each historical

http://googlemapsmania.blogspot.com/2025/07/the-whole-of-human-history-mapped.html

A Time Traveller's Guide to the Zoo

London Zoo is the world’s oldest scientific zoo. In 2028, it will celebrate its 200th anniversary - a milestone in a long and storied history that visitors can now explore through the Zoo’s Time Traveller’s Guide to London Zoo, a collection of vintage maps that even includes the original 1826 "Design for the Garden."The Time Traveller’s Guide to London Zoo offers a fascinating journey

http://googlemapsmania.blogspot.com/2025/06/a-time-travellers-guide-to-zoo.html

A City's Grief in One Street

Unless it has happened to you, I guess it is impossible to truly understand what it’s like to have your home destroyed. How, then, can news organizations convey the tragedy of such loss to a public that seems increasingly immune to the horrors of Israel’s atrocities in Gaza?In 2023, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) created an interactive 3D model of an apartment block in

http://googlemapsmania.blogspot.com/2025/06/a-citys-grief-in-one-street.html

Italian Map Rot

If Your Year of Birth Starts with "21"In a desperate attempt to cash in on a popular meme, I present to you: The Italian Brainrot Map.Yesterday, I asked ChatGPT to generate a list of country names in the style of Italian Brainrot characters. A few minutes later, I had those names injected into an interactive map.Trying to Justify Posting This:
Overall I'd say that ChatGPT's Italian Brainrot

http://googlemapsmania.blogspot.com/2025/06/italian-map-rot.html

Introducing ESA's Satellite Stories

The European Space Agency (ESA) has launched a new educational platform designed to explain the vital role that satellites and Earth observation play in advancing Earth science, combating climate change, and driving scientific research and technological innovation.Edukeo uses Lobelia’s Globe Story Engine and TeroMaps framework to create immersive, interactive stories. These stories are

http://googlemapsmania.blogspot.com/2025/06/introducing-esas-satellite-stories.html

Where Mamdani Beat Cuomo

The progressive Zohran Mamdani appears to have defeated Andrew Cuomo in the Democratic primary for New York City Mayor. The result may send shockwaves through the Democratic establishment, and other progressive candidates running in elections across the country will be keen to learn from Mamdani’s victory.Many potential Democratic nominees will no doubt be poring over The New York Times’ Most

http://googlemapsmania.blogspot.com/2025/06/where-mamdani-beat-cuomo.html

Red Dots for Dialysis Decline

A third of dialysis clinics in America fail to meet federal standards. This map from CBS News shows you where.The United States spends more on dialysis treatments than nearly any other country in the world. Yet despite this enormous financial outlay, it has the highest dialysis-related death rate among developed nations. A key reason for this disparity is that healthcare in the U.S. operates as

http://googlemapsmania.blogspot.com/2025/06/red-dots-for-dialysis-decline.html

Mapping the Cultural Impact of Gentrification

The National Community Reinvestment Coalition (NCRC) has released an interactive map which visualizes the gentrification of American cities over the last 50 years. Cities are constantly evolving. But behind many urban developments lies a deeper story of community transformation - one that often comes with a negative cost for the original residents. The Displaced by Design interactive map is a

http://googlemapsmania.blogspot.com/2025/06/mapping-cultural-impact-of.html

Google's AI Hurricane Predictor

Google has launched a new interactive map, Weather Lab: Cyclones, which shows AI-generated tropical cyclone forecasts and allows you to compare how different AI forecast models perform in comparison to  traditional physics-based models.If you’ve ever wondered how different forecasting models "see" a storm before it hits, or how accurate those predictions really are, Weather Lab:

http://googlemapsmania.blogspot.com/2025/06/googles-ai-hurricane-predictor.html

Paving Paradise for the Ultra Rich

Say Goodbye to Your Outdoor LifeThe Wilderness Society has identified over 250 million acres of public land that Republicans are preparing to sell under new legislation. If the SENR Bill passes, then you can expect to spend a lot more time indoors.Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act has already been dubbed a “Reverse Robin Hood Bill.” The legislation contains a range of measures explicitly

http://googlemapsmania.blogspot.com/2025/06/paving-paradise-for-ultra-rich.html

Insurers Retreating From Climate-Risk Zones

For many Americans, one of the consequences of climate change is higher insurance premiums. In Homeowners Insurance in an Era of Climate Change, the Brookings Institution maps U.S. Treasury Federal Insurance Office data to show where home insurance is becoming more costly and harder to obtain for millions of Americans.One way this is happening is through non-renewals of homeowners insurance. A

http://googlemapsmania.blogspot.com/2025/06/insurers-retreating-from-climate-risk.html

The Reforestation Interactive Map

The Nature Conservancy has released a new interactive map identifying 195 million hectares around the world where forest cover could be restored."Reforesting these areas could capture 2.2 billion tonnes of CO₂ per year, equivalent to removing 481 million passenger vehicles driven for one year."Click on a country on the Reforestation Hub map to see how much land could be reforested, how many

http://googlemapsmania.blogspot.com/2025/06/the-reforestation-interactive-map.html

When Ocean Currents Collapse

AMOC Collapse VisualizationA new study suggests that global warming could paradoxically plunge Europe into dramatic cooling, leading to severe winter cold spells, more intense storms, and reduced rainfall. Average winter temperatures could plunge, sea ice could spread as far south as the British Isles, and nearly half the year could see temperatures below freezing.The Atlantic Meridional

http://googlemapsmania.blogspot.com/2025/06/when-ocean-currents-collapse.html

When is the sun directly overhead?

The longest day of the year occurs this coming Saturday. In the Northern Hemisphere, the summer solstice is on June 21st. This is the day when the subsolar point - the location on Earth where the Sun is directly overhead at solar noon - reaches its northernmost position, directly above the Tropic of Cancer.
The subsolar point moves north and south throughout the year as the Earth orbits the

http://googlemapsmania.blogspot.com/2025/06/when-is-sun-directly-overhead.html

Prosecuting Crimes Against Humanity

The Universal Jurisdiction Interactive Map (UJIM), developed by TRIAL International, is a comprehensive and accessible digital tool designed to track and display criminal cases related to serious international crimes such as genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity, torture, enforced disappearances, and the crime of aggression.Universal Jurisdiction is a legal principle that allows states

http://googlemapsmania.blogspot.com/2025/06/prosecuting-crimes-against-humanity.html

800K Galaxies - 1 Map

The newly unveiled COSMOS-Web is the largest, most detailed map of the universe ever created. The map plots nearly 800,000 galaxies, and almost spans the entire 13.8-billion-year history of the cosmos.The map is the result of a multinational collaboration led by astrophysicists at UC Santa Barbara and the Rochester Institute of Technology - using data collected by the James Webb Space Telescope.

http://googlemapsmania.blogspot.com/2025/06/the-newly-unveiled-cosmos-web-is.html

Discover the Toxin Polluters Near You

ToxOnline is an interactive map that allows you to see which facilities are releasing toxins in your area. Simply enter your address into the map to instantly discover where and how toxic chemicals are being released near your home.The map displays markers for all facilities reporting toxic releases and includes a heat map showing the average toxic release in the searched area. By clicking

http://googlemapsmania.blogspot.com/2025/06/discover-toxin-polluters-near-you.html

The Real-Time 15 City Map

The concept of the '15 Minute City' aims to make urban living more livable and sustainable by ensuring that all essential individual needs can be met without reliance on a car or public transport. It's a very simple idea: ideally, an individual's essential needs should be accessible within a short travel distance.Such a simple concept deserves a suitably simple-to-understand map. CThood

http://googlemapsmania.blogspot.com/2025/06/the-real-time-15-city-map.html

Like Google My Maps but Better

Tasmap is a powerful platform that allows anyone to create personalized, interactive maps - like Google My Maps, but better!To help you build your own custom maps, Tasmap includes built-in AI support. This means you can get started quickly by simply telling Tasmap what you want to include on your map.For example, I gave Tasmap the following prompt:Help me create a map of filming locations in Los

http://googlemapsmania.blogspot.com/2025/06/like-google-my-maps-but-better.html

EthnoGuessr

EthnoGuessr is a geography-based guessing game inspired by GeoGuessr, but instead of identifying real-world locations from street views, players are shown composite facial images representing average features of various ethnic groups. The facial averages (sourced from anthropological website Human Phenotypes) serve as clues. Players must guess the historical geographic origin of the

http://googlemapsmania.blogspot.com/2025/06/ethnoguessr.html