Chuck Bednar for redOrbit.com – @BednarChuck
When you have a powerful tool like Google Street View, you could use it to virtually explore the wonders of the world or visit landmarks from the comfort of your own home. Or you could do something truly important with it – like search for the Loch Ness Monster.
Thanks to the Mountain View, California-based tech giant, monster hunters no longer need to travel to Scotland to look for the creature affectionately known as Nessie, as Google officials announced in a Monday blog post that they recently mounted street view cameras to a boat and set out (along with some divers) in search of the legendary creature.
“Wherever you stand on the Nessie debate, the legend lives on – even in the digital era,” Street View Special Collections Program Manager Sven Tresp wrote, noting that there are more Google searches for Loch Ness than there are for Buckingham Palace or other UK institutions.
Search giant goes searching for a giant
As CNET explained, several people have claimed to have found the monster over the years, and many still believe it exists, especially after imbibing “10 pints of Scottish ale.” Nonetheless, the search giant set out on a search of its own, including one particular image that has garnered a lot of attention as it depicts a tantalizingly unidentified object off in the distance.
Labeled “Bird, log or monster?” the image caption notes that “many natural phenomenon” have contributed to Nessie sightings over the years, including boat wakes, otters, trees and even light reflections in the waters of the loch. “These visual cues, combined with the power of suggestion, contribute to the perpetuation of the Loch Ness monster myth,” it added.
Google’s sudden interest in the Loch Ness monster “coincides with the publication of a photo 81 years ago, one that startled anyone who saw it,” CNET explained. That photo “surely looked like a long-necked animal peering out of the loch,” but wound up being “a frightful hoax.”
You may not find Nessie, but check out that view!
In addition to allowing amateur monster hunters to seek out the legendary creature from the friendly confines of their living room, the Street View expedition also provides a stunning tour of Loch Ness and the areas surrounding its location in the Highlands of Scotland, near Inverness.
“Sail across the freshwater lake and take in its haunting beauty, made darker still by the peat particles found in its waters,” Tresp wrote. “Let the Loch unlock the spirit of your imagination, where the rippling water, tricks of the light, and drifting logs bring the legend of Nessie to life.”
“Although it’s neither the largest Scottish loch by surface area nor depth, it is the largest by volume… [and] at almost 800 feet deep, there’s an entire world below the surface, giving rise to the Nessie legend,” he added. “As we celebrate Loch Ness… we hope you can enjoy some of the most history-laden and breathtaking imagery the highlands have to offer.”
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