The Act of Union, passed in 1707, created a political union between the Kingdoms of Scotland and England, meaning that Scotland was directly governed from London for 292 years. In 1997 a referendum of the Scottish people approved the re-establishment of a directly-elected Scottish Parliament. Matters such as education, health and prisons, which used to be dealt with by the Parliament at Westminster, are now decided in Scotland.

The first elections to the Scottish Parliament were held in 1999, the same year that construction began on the building that would be the parliament’s future home.

Designed by the late Enric Miralles, the Parliamentary complex is actually a campus of several buildings, reflecting different architectural styles, with a total floor area of 31,000 square metres.

From this aerial vantage point we can clearly see some of the more striking features of the buildings, such as the 30-metre-long elliptical debating chamber (which contains no supporting columns thanks to a roof fabricated in part by Scottish oil industry welders), as well as the stunning leaf-shaped roof-lights on the Garden lobby and their supporting internal structural lattice of solid oak struts.

As well as being a strikingly adventurous government building, the Parliament also sets new standards in environmental sustainability. A minimum of 80% of the electricity purchased for the building is required to come from renewable sources, and from above we can clearly see the solar panels set into the roof of the Canongate building. These solar panels are used for heating water in the complex, of course this can lead to overheating in the summer, so the building employs a computerised management system which senses the temperature in different parts of the Parliament, and automatically opens windows to keep the building cool.

The Scottish Parliament Building is open to visitors all year round, and you can read more about its often highly controversial history at WIkipedia.

Today marks the launch of London’s new Channel Tunnel¹ rail link, High Speed 1 – which from now on terminates here at the “Cathedral of the railways”, St Pancras railway station.

The station actually comprises two of the most celebrated structures of the Victorian era. In our first thumnbail we can see the clock tower of St Pancras Chambers (formerly the Midland Grand Hotel), which remains one of the most impressive examples of Victorian gothic architecture anywhere in Britain.

The Midland Grand Hotel closed in 1935, and the building was used as offices until the 60s, when only a public campaign saved it from being knocked down. The building became vacant in the 1980s², and since 2005 it’s been under renovation, and will soon once again be a hotel.

The Barlow Trainshed, designed by William Henry Barlow and completed in 1868, was the largest single-span structure built up to that time. The single span roof is 74 metres across, and was actually employed purely to make maximum use of the space without obstructions.

The trainshed has received a full renovation in preparation for its new role as the London terminus of High Speed 1, and we can see the work in progress in Google’s images.

Here’s more about St Pancras at Wikipedia. Thanks to Radio 2.

Near the city of Liverpool, UK, an articluated lorry appears to have taken the roundabout a bit too fast, and toppled over onto the side of the road.

Whatever it was the trailer was carrying is now splattered across the verge. Any ideas for what the contents were?

Also see our previous related entries Truck crash and Trucks pulling trucks.

Thanks: quercus63

Miniature parks and model villages are sort of like a pre-internet 3D Google Earth, allowing you to view a representation of a village or city sights from above.

So it’s no surprise that on visiting my local park, Bekonscot Model Village in Buckinghamshire, I was more excited than a 5-year-old let loose in a sweetshop. As I stomped around the 1930s English villages I wondered if I could see the park on Google Earth?

Sadly, the resolution of Bekonscot in Google Earth just isn’t high enough to make out any of the lilliputian houses, trains or airplanes. However, I discovered the village is a founding member of the International Association of Miniature Parks, and many of the other member parks have great resolution.

So, today we are going to explore International Miniature Parks, where we’ll see the best sights on the globe, just smaller and more fuzzy!

Mini Europe

Mini Europe is located in Belgium but features sights from the whole of the European Union including Big Ben, Mount Vesuvius, the Berlin Wall (complete with falling action) and the Eiffel tower (pictured in the thumbnail).

Miniatürk

Miniatürk is a miniature Turkey in the city of Istanbul. In the thumbnail is the miniature version of Atatürk Olympic Stadium.

Minimundus

Minimundus in Austria claims to offer the “most beautiful buildings of all 5 continents”. St Peter’s Square is easy to spot and the Opera house is also in there somewhere.

Still in Minimundus, The CN Tower’s height is being challenged by its neighbour the Eiffel tower, despite being almost twice the size in real life!

Rügen Park

At just 926 km² Rügen (Germany’s largest island) is only 2/3 the size of London, but if that’s just too much area for you to cover you can instead explore the tiny Rügen island at Rügen Park, located on the island of Rügen.

As an added bonus, to the west of the park you will find everywhere else, including the great pyramids, the Whitehouse and, pictured in the centre of the thumbnail, a pre-sinking Titanic.

Sardegna in Miniatura

Another miniature island within itself is Sardegna in Miniatura, which reproduces the Italian island of Sardinia.

Swiss Miniatur

Swiss Miniatur aims to “summarise Switzerland” in miniature form. Clearest in the Google Earth image is the Swiss Alps, located in the north-east of the park.

Italia in Miniatura

Back to Italy, Italia in Miniatura is located on a man-made island in the shape of Italy (of course), and features the country’s most famous landmarks. Look to the north of the mini-country and again you can just about make out the white peaks of the Alps.

Despite being a mini-Italy, they also have special section for a mini Eiffel tower. The resolution is too poor to make it out, but you’ve probably seen it enough already!

The rest…

For completeness, the other members of the International Association of Miniature Parks not featured today are the low-resolution Mini Israel, Miniatuur Walcheren, Pueblo Chico, Klein Erzgebirge, Miniature World, Catalunya in Miniatura, Pirenarium, and the previously featured excellent resolution Madurodam.

Further information on all the parks is available on the group website and Wikipedia has a large list of miniature parks which features many more.

Ok, so this is hardly a crop-circle, but whoever has created this giant drawing of a pair of doves in a field in Somerset, England, certainly shows dedication and creative flair. B+.

Note: Actually I appear to have been mistaken about the latest Google Earth image update having reached Google maps – as this sight no longer appears on Earth, and is therefore due to disappear from Google maps any day now.

Thanks to Bydand.