For victims, news about home can come online
Douglas Hillman, a disc jockey and dance instructor who lives near Chicago, created some 80 overlays. He said he was fascinated by Google Earth and also interested in “the results of a natural disaster, in the way people react to it, and also in the technology used to cover it.”
As for methodology, Hillman says he downloads an aerial image from the NOAA Web site to his computer, then tweaks it with tools in the Google Earth software until it lines up as closely as possible with the existing satellite image.
“This is not an entirely precise process, as the pictures are taken from slightly different angles, so it’s not exact,” he said. But it is close enough to pinpoint houses, even cars.
Doug Hillman is also a local swing dancer here in Chicago, and is currently whipping my ass in fantasy baseball.