How to See an Aerial View of Your Home or Business

3D View, Seattle Space Needle

Through a free online service, you can see an aerial view of your home, business, or any location you choose. This can be a fun learning experience for children to be able to see landmarks, like Hoover Dam or the Grand Canyon.

Difficulty:

Moderately Easy

Instructions

1. Click on Maps in Resources (below).

2. Click in the search box where the words, "business, category, and/or location" display.

3. Type in the address of the location you wish to view, and then click the search button (green box with white magnifying glass). For example, you could type in:

   1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC

4. Aerial Map

   When the map displays, you will see a blue menu of options. Running down on the blue menu are plus and minus signs to zoom in or out. The circle with the four directional arrows allows you to move the viewing location north, east, south, or west, or you can click the image and drag it different directions. Horizontally in the blue menu are options to view in 2 dimension (the default map), 3 dimension (to see perspective), with road names displayed (default), aerial, bird's eye, labels, and traffic. Depending on the location, not all horizontal features may be available.

5. To switch from map to an aerial view, click Aerial. The aerial view is looking straight down on your destination. For greater impact, click Bird's eye (if it's available for your destination).

6. With the 3D feature, you can rotate the image to see your destination from different directions.

7. The feature offers other options, like to view a selected location without typing in an address. For instance, in the search box, type in a location like, "Hoover Dam" or "Grand Canyon."

Resources

• Maps