Google Maps is a web mapping platform offered by Google, which allows users to take a look at satellite imagery, aerial photography, street maps, and even 360° interactive panoramic views of streets. It is also used to track real-time traffic conditions and plan routes when travelling by foot, car, or public transportation.

The online platform was co-invented by Australian software engineer, Noel Gordon.

Since it was launched in 2005, it has taken millions of satellite and aerial photos that have all been stitched together to create Google Earth observation data.

But not all gathered information is ordinary. Hidden among the millions of Google images are some weird, incredible, and downright unexplainable photos.

So, here is a list of some of the coolest and strangest Google images that have been found:

Mysterious ‘pyramids’

Photo credit: Google Earth via Live Science.
​

This image from Google Earth shows what some say is an unexcavated ‘pyramid’ in Egypt.

In the past five years, dozens of anomalies in Egypt have been detected using Google Earth. However, it is still unknown whether they’re natural or artificial structures.

Desert Breath

Photo credit: Google Earth via Live Science.
​

This giant spiral design can be found in the desolate Egyptian desert, not far from the shores of the Red Sea.

Though it looks like an ‘alien message’ or an ‘ancient monument’, it is actually an art installation called Desert Breath, made by Greek artists Danae Stratou, Alexandra Stratou, and Stella Constantinides in March 2007.

The million square foot (100,000 square meters) artwork was meant to celebrate "the desert as a state of mind, a landscape of the mind.”

Kazakhstan Pentagram

Photo credit: Google Maps via Live Science.
​

There’s a sizeable mysterious pentagram in an isolated corner of Kazakhstan, measuring roughly 1,200 feet (366 meters) in diameter, etched into Earth's surface.

For years it’s been linked with occult movements, with many online comments saying it was used for devil worship, nefarious religious sects, or denizens of the underworld.

However, it turned out the pentagram is the outline of a park made in the form of a star, marked by roadways that are now lined with trees.

​

The ‘boneyard’

Photo credit: Google via Live Science.
​

Dubbed as the ‘boneyard’, the Davis Monthan Air Force Base in Tucson, Arizona, is the largest aeroplane graveyard in the world.

The 2,600-acre cemetery of steel is closed to the general public. Still, Google Earth provides a high-resolution glimpse of what's inside: virtually every plane the military has flown since World War II in various stages of decay.

Vulcan’s Throne

Photo credit: Google Earth via Live Science.
​

This image shows an odd polka-dot pattern near the cinder cone volcano on the Grand Canyon’s north rim, also known as Vulcan’s Throne.

The pattern is observed to be due to the movements of red harvester ants, pesky critters that can create nesting mounds spanning some 47 inches (120 centimetres) across and are typically surrounded by bare ground up to 108 square feet (10 square meters).

Gobi desert

Photo credit: Google Earth via Live Science.
​

An array of mysterious structures and patterns are etched deep into the surface of China's Gobi Desert.

The intricate grid of perfectly straight lines that weave back and forth is most likely a Yagi antenna array, a device used for weather tracking and other atmospheric research.

However, experts believe that this is a secret military base, and the structures are used for a variety of purposes, including weapons testing, spy satellite calibration, and testing of radar instrumentation.

Sudanese ‘lips’

Photo credit: Google via Live Science.
​

Located on a hill formation located in Gharb, Darfur, in Sudan at coordinates 12°22'13.32"N, 23°19'20.18"E, the landlocked ‘lips’ is believed to be formed from the contrast between different colours of sand.

Phantom island

Photo credit: Google via Live Science.
​

In 2012, a group of researchers discovered an island the size of Manhattan in the South Pacific off the coast of Australia.

The island was believed to be 24 kilometres long and five kilometres wide. It had popped up on various maps and even showed up as a black polygon-shaped island on Google Earth. But when scientists sailed there in November 2012, they found open water instead of solid ground.

You won’t find it on Google Maps today. Instead, it was replaced by a faint outline of what looks like a long, thin island with no landmass in sight.

Blood-red lake

Photo credit: Google via Live Science.
​

At coordinates 33.396157° N, 44.486926° E, a lake situated outside Sadr City in Iraq unexplainably turned blood red.

So far, there has been no official explanation for the mysterious phenomenon.

Atacama Giant

Photo from news.com.au.
​

There’s an anthropomorphic figure etched into the ground on Cerro Unitas in the Atacama Desert, Chile.

Dubbed as the ‘Atacama Giant’, the figure was used as an early astronomical calendar for determining the day, season, and crop cycle.

Australian ‘UFO’

Photo credit: Google via Live Science.
​

In Australia, a strange triangle dotted with bright lights appeared in the middle of a field.

The “UFO” was first discovered in 2007 and was believed to have been caught hovering above the Earth.

However, other Google Earth users said it might be a signal tower from a nearby remote-controlled wind farm.

Kazakhstan ‘swastika’ symbol

Photo credit: Google via Live Science.
​

Across northern Kazakhstan in Central Asia, more than 50 geoglyphs were discovered by scientists, including this one shaped like a swastika.

The geoglyphs seemed to date back 2,000 years and were believed to have been built at the beginning of Kazakhstan’s Iron Age.

At the time, swastikas were not uncommon across Europe and Asia and were not affiliated with any political beliefs.

Azraq Oasis wheels

Photo credit: Google Earth via Live Science.
​

The so-called Azraq Oasis Wheels are wheel-shaped geometric structures that date back some 8,500 years and stretch from Syria to Saudi Arabia.

The wheels vary in their design, with some showing spokes that radiate from the centre, others with just one or two bars rather than spokes. Some seemed to be positioned in a way that aligns with sunrise on the winter solstice.

Island in a lake, on an island in a lake, on an island

Photo credit: Google Earth via Live Science.
​

This Google Earth image is the Taal Lake, a freshwater caldera lake in the Philippines.

It is located within the island of Luzon, on Volcano Island, which has Crater Lake, which contains its own small island called Vulcan Point.

For years, this phenomenon was thought to be the largest of its kind, as seen on Google Earth. However, the world's largest "island, in a lake, on an island, in a lake, on an island" is a four-acre strip of land in Canada. No human has ever actually set foot there.

HAMAD

Photo credit: Google Earth via Live Science.
​

Hamad bin Hamdan al Nahyan, a billionaire Sheikh and member of Abu Dhabi's ruling family, has had his name engraved into the sandy surface of an island he owns in the Persian Gulf.

The letters HAMAD may be the world’s largest at half a mile tall and 2 miles long altogether. They’re even visible from space!

​

 

[Dot]

One word....AMAZING!

 

[deecreighton1]

Bizarre images caught by Google Maps are almost too hard to believe they’re real​

Google Maps is a web mapping platform offered by Google, which allows users to take a look at satellite imagery, aerial photography, street maps, and even 360° interactive panoramic views of streets. It is also used to track real-time traffic conditions and plan routes when travelling by foot, car, or public transportation.

The online platform was co-invented by Australian software engineer, Noel Gordon.

Since it was launched in 2005, it has taken millions of satellite and aerial photos that have all been stitched together to create Google Earth observation data.

But not all gathered information is ordinary. Hidden among the millions of Google images are some weird, incredible, and downright unexplainable photos.

So, here is a list of some of the coolest and strangest Google images that have been found:

Mysterious ‘pyramids’

Photo credit: Google Earth via Live Science.
​

This image from Google Earth shows what some say is an unexcavated ‘pyramid’ in Egypt.

In the past five years, dozens of anomalies in Egypt have been detected using Google Earth. However, it is still unknown whether they’re natural or artificial structures.

Desert Breath

Photo credit: Google Earth via Live Science.
​

This giant spiral design can be found in the desolate Egyptian desert, not far from the shores of the Red Sea.

Though it looks like an ‘alien message’ or an ‘ancient monument’, it is actually an art installation called Desert Breath, made by Greek artists Danae Stratou, Alexandra Stratou, and Stella Constantinides in March 2007.

The million square foot (100,000 square meters) artwork was meant to celebrate "the desert as a state of mind, a landscape of the mind.”

Kazakhstan Pentagram

Photo credit: Google Maps via Live Science.
​

There’s a sizeable mysterious pentagram in an isolated corner of Kazakhstan, measuring roughly 1,200 feet (366 meters) in diameter, etched into Earth's surface.

For years it’s been linked with occult movements, with many online comments saying it was used for devil worship, nefarious religious sects, or denizens of the underworld.

However, it turned out the pentagram is the outline of a park made in the form of a star, marked by roadways that are now lined with trees.

​

The ‘boneyard’

Photo credit: Google via Live Science.
​

Dubbed as the ‘boneyard’, the Davis Monthan Air Force Base in Tucson, Arizona, is the largest aeroplane graveyard in the world.

The 2,600-acre cemetery of steel is closed to the general public. Still, Google Earth provides a high-resolution glimpse of what's inside: virtually every plane the military has flown since World War II in various stages of decay.

Vulcan’s Throne

Photo credit: Google Earth via Live Science.
​

This image shows an odd polka-dot pattern near the cinder cone volcano on the Grand Canyon’s north rim, also known as Vulcan’s Throne.

The pattern is observed to be due to the movements of red harvester ants, pesky critters that can create nesting mounds spanning some 47 inches (120 centimetres) across and are typically surrounded by bare ground up to 108 square feet (10 square meters).

Gobi desert

Photo credit: Google Earth via Live Science.
​

An array of mysterious structures and patterns are etched deep into the surface of China's Gobi Desert.

The intricate grid of perfectly straight lines that weave back and forth is most likely a Yagi antenna array, a device used for weather tracking and other atmospheric research.

However, experts believe that this is a secret military base, and the structures are used for a variety of purposes, including weapons testing, spy satellite calibration, and testing of radar instrumentation.

Sudanese ‘lips’

Photo credit: Google via Live Science.
​

Located on a hill formation located in Gharb, Darfur, in Sudan at coordinates 12°22'13.32"N, 23°19'20.18"E, the landlocked ‘lips’ is believed to be formed from the contrast between different colours of sand.

Phantom island

Photo credit: Google via Live Science.
​

In 2012, a group of researchers discovered an island the size of Manhattan in the South Pacific off the coast of Australia.

The island was believed to be 24 kilometres long and five kilometres wide. It had popped up on various maps and even showed up as a black polygon-shaped island on Google Earth. But when scientists sailed there in November 2012, they found open water instead of solid ground.

You won’t find it on Google Maps today. Instead, it was replaced by a faint outline of what looks like a long, thin island with no landmass in sight.

Blood-red lake

Photo credit: Google via Live Science.
​

At coordinates 33.396157° N, 44.486926° E, a lake situated outside Sadr City in Iraq unexplainably turned blood red.

So far, there has been no official explanation for the mysterious phenomenon.

Atacama Giant

Photo from news.com.au.
​

There’s an anthropomorphic figure etched into the ground on Cerro Unitas in the Atacama Desert, Chile.

Dubbed as the ‘Atacama Giant’, the figure was used as an early astronomical calendar for determining the day, season, and crop cycle.

Australian ‘UFO’

Photo credit: Google via Live Science.
​

In Australia, a strange triangle dotted with bright lights appeared in the middle of a field.

The “UFO” was first discovered in 2007 and was believed to have been caught hovering above the Earth.

However, other Google Earth users said it might be a signal tower from a nearby remote-controlled wind farm.

Kazakhstan ‘swastika’ symbol

Photo credit: Google via Live Science.
​

Across northern Kazakhstan in Central Asia, more than 50 geoglyphs were discovered by scientists, including this one shaped like a swastika.

The geoglyphs seemed to date back 2,000 years and were believed to have been built at the beginning of Kazakhstan’s Iron Age.

At the time, swastikas were not uncommon across Europe and Asia and were not affiliated with any political beliefs.

Azraq Oasis wheels

Photo credit: Google Earth via Live Science.
​

The so-called Azraq Oasis Wheels are wheel-shaped geometric structures that date back some 8,500 years and stretch from Syria to Saudi Arabia.

The wheels vary in their design, with some showing spokes that radiate from the centre, others with just one or two bars rather than spokes. Some seemed to be positioned in a way that aligns with sunrise on the winter solstice.

Island in a lake, on an island in a lake, on an island

Photo credit: Google Earth via Live Science.
​

This Google Earth image is the Taal Lake, a freshwater caldera lake in the Philippines.

It is located within the island of Luzon, on Volcano Island, which has Crater Lake, which contains its own small island called Vulcan Point.

For years, this phenomenon was thought to be the largest of its kind, as seen on Google Earth. However, the world's largest "island, in a lake, on an island, in a lake, on an island" is a four-acre strip of land in Canada. No human has ever actually set foot there.

HAMAD

Photo credit: Google Earth via Live Science.
​

Hamad bin Hamdan al Nahyan, a billionaire Sheikh and member of Abu Dhabi's ruling family, has had his name engraved into the sandy surface of an island he owns in the Persian Gulf.

The letters HAMAD may be the world’s largest at half a mile tall and 2 miles long altogether. They’re even visible from space!

​

Wow how good are these pictures....

 

[Mindygirl12022]

These are amazing, thanks for these. I'd like to get a good look at the 'pyramid' they took a picture of. It looks as if it has a crack from top to bottom at first look.

 

[Isabell]

Most of the photos are blank. Am I doing something wrong?

 

[Rabbit]

Thanks that was amazing to see some of these design in the earth from thousands of year ago.

 

[Isabell]

Now I can see them! WOW!!!