Update: India’s “Google Earth,” Bhuvan, is Out
Update: Here’s a review from Media Nama. Bottom line: Our short, politically-correct verdict is that “it’s a start”, and it’s definitely not a myth. The non-politically correct verdict is a lot harsher, particularly given how difficult it was to review this product…” Here’s another from Content Sutra with essentially the same message: there is work to be done to enhance it.
—- original post 8/13/09——-
The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) app (actually Skyline’s TerraExplorer) runs inside Internet Explorer on Windows only. (register, though I had trouble reaching this and other ISRO sites this morning). Bhuvan means “Earth” in Sanskrit.
Features are akin to Google Earth, (comparison of data) but with Indian data sources including Resourcesat-1, Cartosat-1 and Cartosat-2. Early reports find it buggy, but there is great pride in launching the app near Indian independence day.
“Bhuvan, an ambitious project of ISRO was started to take Indian images and thematic information in multiple spatial resolutions to people through a web portal through easy access to information on basic natural resources in the geospatial domain. Bhuvan showcases Indian images by the superimposition of IRS satellite imageries on 3D globe. The degree of resolution showcased is based on the points of interest and popularity, but most of the Indian terrain is covered upto at least 5.8 meters of resolution with the least spatial resolution being 55 meters from AWifs Sensor.”
