Google EarthÂ’s hisÂtorÂiÂcal imagery feaÂture now includes aerÂiÂal footage of the afterÂmath of World War II, allowÂing users to comÂpreÂhend the extent of post-war destrucÂtion by comÂparÂing phoÂtos of cities as they are today to those of bombed out cities immeÂdiÂateÂly after the war.
Here’s WarÂsaw in 1935, devÂasÂtatÂed in 1943, and restored today. You can click here to see the picÂtures in a bigÂger size.
For more imagery, includÂing picÂtures of Stuttgart, Naples and Lyon, see the Google Earth blog.
Wes Alwan lives in Boston, MassÂaÂchuÂsetts, where he works as a writer and researcher and attends the InstiÂtute for the Study of PsyÂchoÂanalyÂsis and CulÂture. He also parÂticÂiÂpates in The ParÂtialÂly ExamÂined Life, a podÂcast conÂsistÂing of inforÂmal disÂcusÂsions about philoÂsophÂiÂcal texts by three phiÂlosÂoÂphy gradÂuÂate school dropouts.