Zoom Earth
Satellite imagery refreshed through the day, with storm tracks, wildfire hotspots and rainfall radar layered over the top of it.
Opens in a new tab. We do not control this site and it may have changed since we catalogued it.
How to get the most from it
Zoom Earth sits in Live Earth Maps under Wander, filed as instant.
- Just open it. It pays off within seconds, with nothing to read first.
- It works on a phone or a desktop, so open it on whatever is nearest.
- It works with the sound off, so it is fine on a train or in a quiet office.
- No account needed — you can start without signing up.
- Go in expecting something beautiful and useful.
About this category: Live data drawn on a map: storms, earthquakes, lightning, shipping, wildlife. Open one and the planet stops being an abstraction.
Good for
- A five-second distraction
- Looking at something lovely
- Getting something practical done
- A quiet break at your desk
- Killing time on your phone
- Trying it with zero commitment
Zoom Earth: quick answers
Is Zoom Earth free?
Yes. Zoom Earth is free to use and needs no account.
Do I need an account to use Zoom Earth?
No. You can use Zoom Earth without signing up for anything.
Does Zoom Earth work on a phone?
Yes. Zoom Earth works on phones as well as desktop browsers.
Is Zoom Earth safe for work?
Yes, we file it as safe for work. It also works muted.
How long does Zoom Earth take?
We file it as "Instant": Good within five seconds of loading.
More in Live Earth Maps
All 14 in Live Earth MapsA rotating globe with every wind current on Earth drawn as moving lines, and layers underneath for ocean currents, particulates and the jet stream.
- <1 min
The carbon intensity of the grid across most of the world, coloured by how clean each country's electricity happens to be at this minute.
- <1 min
Industrial fishing vessel tracks worldwide, rebuilt from satellite signals, showing exactly where the world's fleets have been working.
- 10 min
- Desktop
Satellite-derived tree cover loss for anywhere on Earth, week by week, with alerts you can zoom in on until you are looking at one hillside.
- 10 min
- Desktop
Same mood: beautiful
All beautiful sitesThe sequel quilt, darker and stranger than the first, still folding into itself with no end and no explanation.
- 2 min
Fly out through a mapped model of our stellar neighbourhood until the Sun is one unremarkable dot among thousands.
- <1 min
- Desktop
The largest archive of 360 panoramas anywhere, pinned to a world map and free to browse, covering plenty of places no Street View car reached.
- 10 min
- Desktop
Grant Sanderson's maths lessons, plus the written versions of the animations that made linear algebra look like geometry.
- 10 min
- Sound on
Keep exploring
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