As Wired and FastCo just reported, we’ve pushed a huge update to MapBox Satellite today. Not only did we just launch our new Cloudless Atlas imagery for the entire world (down through zoom level 8), we also launched new aerial imagery for the entire US and EU down to zoom level 19. Everything is traceable in OpenStreetMap, and now any edits to OpenStreetMap show up on MapBox within 5 minutes. This tight feedback loop is letting us map the world in real time - all in the open.
Charlie Loyd walking though the processing algorithms used to map Cloudless Atlas.
“This is what the world looks like to an astronaut on a cloudless day: new technology lets you see satellite images of the Earth with a clarity you’ve never seen before, and reveals massive changes to our landscape that used to be hard to see.” - Ariel Schwartz, Senior Editor at FastCo
Explore your world, Cloud-free
Italy, with Tunisia to the south and the Balkans to the east
Angola and Zambia, with subtle but clear changes visible between different landscapes
The southern coast of South Africa, with the Cape of Good Hope in the southwest
Beaufort Sea and Amundsen Gulf, Canada, showing the varied natural colors of the tundra
Australia – red desert in the Outback and green forests in areas with more rain
Cloud-free Basemap Ready to be Customized
MapBox users with Basic-level accounts and higher can now apply MapBox’s rich customization and styling options to our new Cloudless Atlas layer to create custom cloud-free base maps, including our recently announced French and Spanish label names for MapBox Streets.