Google’s Street View has provided 360-degree views of locations around the globe since 2007. Street View cameras have been deployed on boats, underwater and now, Raffia, a 10-year old camel.
Writing for The National, Lindsay Carroll reports on Raffia’s walk in the desert around the Liwa Oasis carrying a specialized camera.
“With every environment and every location, we try to customise the capture and how we do it for that part of the environment.
“In the case of Liwa we fashioned it in a way so that it goes on a camel so that it can capture imagery in the best, most authentic and least damaging way,” said Joyce Baz, spokeswoman for Google in the Middle East and North Africa.
The Liwa Desert – North East panoramic footage can be seen here.
Google hopes to bring Street View to more countries in the region, she said, as well as more locations in the UAE. They are in the process of capturing Dubai, said Ms Baz. “Ideally, we want to capture all of the UAE,” she said.
The company hoped to bring Street View to other countries in the region as well, said Ms Baz.
“We want obviously all countries, because there is so much history and culture and heritage,” she said.
“I think it’s just a matter of time before we move to the other countries in the Middle East.”
No word, yet, on Raffia’s future in the film industry.
