New 360-degree spherical panoramic images of Yushan (玉山), Taiwan’s highest peak at 3,952m, were yesterday uploaded as part of the Google Taiwan Street View function, the company said.
Using a Google Cardboard headset, Internet users can now get a 3D virtual reality (VR) view of Yushan and the surrounding mountains, the search engine provider said.
Google Cardboard is a VR and augmented reality (AR) platform developed by Google for use with a head mount for a mobile phone.
Photo: CNA
The company said it provides full support for the use of Google Cardboard VR in Street View, which allows people to virtually explore scenic locations, such as Yushan, that they might otherwise never get to visit.
This year marks the 10th anniversary of Google Taiwan’s operations and the eighth anniversary of Google Street View in Taiwan, Google Greater China and Southeast Asia Street View program manager Cynthia Wei (魏薌君) said.
The street view team embarked on the Yushan mission in September last year and visited the mountain twice to get the images.
The completion of the Yushan project is a landmark for the service, Wei said.
Using online maps and images of Yushan provided by the virtual reality app, people wanting to hike Taiwan’s highest peak can map their route online, Wei said.
The updated app also allows people to go on immersive virtual journeys to other scenic sites in Taiwan using a smartphone and Google Cardboard.
So far, more than 600 sites in Taiwan have been added to the app.
In 2013, Google launched the Trekker Loan Program that enables various organizations to borrow Google’s Trekker photographic equipment and take 360-degree photographs at hard-to-reach locations around the world.
Google has added imagery from a variety of locations using the program.
Several Taiwan-based organizations have taken part in the program, including the Forestry Bureau’s Luodong Forest District Office and National Taiwan University’s Graduate Institute of Building and Planning.
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