Putting Satellite Imagery to Better Use

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Besides the emotional images of dead bodies and homeless and injured earthquake victims, some of the most shocking images in the aftermath of last week's earthquake have come in the form of Google's satellite images, like the two here, showing Port-au-Prince before and after the quake. On Planetizen, Nate Berg examines how helpful the images have been in bringing the extent of the damage home, and wonders what other applications urban satellite imagery could help:

Using satellite imagery for disaster relief offers what many aid organizations see as a great benefit. But while the disaster relief effort is undoubtedly useful, the vast amount of satellite imagery also represents a huge potential for tracking and understanding urban changes in non-disaster situations.

Other possibilities include watching the slow growth of sprawl at the edges of a city, or mapping where a city needs more parks. Read the whole piece here. And go here to read more about how you can help Haiti, if you haven't already.