The Google Maps and Google Earth data has recently been updated with photos of New Orleans taken on August 31st at 10am and showing the extent of the damage to the city and flooding that was brought by Hurricane Katrina.

The most striking image is the extent of the damage to the Superdome, click on ‘Satellite’ to see the “before” shot. Here’s one of the breaches in the levee which has flooded the city, including Highway 610 where you can see the abandoned cars. There’s boats scattered all over the place from this harbour and light planes that have been thrown around at the Lakefront Airport.

Google hope that the imagery will be used in the development of relief websites but if seeing the damage has moved you enough to want to help then the Red Cross are looking for donations and volunteers.

Thanks: Luke Sleeman

The absolutely huge Prophet Mosque in Medina makes the city the second holiest city of Islam, after Mecca. The mosque has the Shrine of the Prophet Muhammad in the middle, also known as the Dome of the Prophet, and ten giant minarets around the edges.

Due to constant expansion over the years the mosque enclosure is one hundred times bigger than the first mosque built by the Prophet and can accommodate more than half a million worshippers. The thumbnail below is zoom level three!

Thanks: Frank Castle

The Map is back after a long holiday in the sun, and he appears to have grown wider. Must have been all those burgers and beers.

Reader ‘William’ found these two ‘parachute training towers‘ at Ft. Benning in Georgia. I did a few Google searches but couldn’t get a conclusive answer on what exactly these parachute training towers are or who uses them. I’m guessing they’re the army’s idea of base jumping?

The United Center was built in 1994 to replace the Chicago Stadium and is home to the Chicago Blackhawks and the Chicago Bulls. It’s apparently the largest arena in the United States.

Thanks: Adrian Holovaty & Dana Olson