AERIAL & SATELLITE VIEWS

On this page we will make note of references, programs and on-line sites that provide access to aerial and/or satellite photographs of the Great War battle areas, either at the time of the event or as a modern day reference.

If you have identified other aerial map or view sites that you wish to have added to this page, please send the information to me for inclusion (i.e. see "Aerial Instructions").  You may also wish to prepare reviews on this topic or submit helpful hints for users of the sites.  If you have identified unique views that would make good examples of how to use the sites, send those along as well.

As you will see in the following, several members are using these resources with significant impact.  If you have created on-line maps and overlays, we would be pleased to add your listing.  At present we have the following:

France Yellow Pages

Thanks to the joint effort of Alain and Pascal, we have the web site link and "English Instructions" for using the France based On-Line Yellow Pages that give excellent quality aerial views.  Please see the Forum Posting for more details on this site and to make note of  any interesting sites that you have found that you want to share with other researchers.

For the detailed instructions please click here: France Yellow Page Instructions 

Here are some links to views that might interest Great War  Researchers.  We will add more as they become available. Note that the thumbnail photo is linked to the web site where the image is stored, as we can not link you directly back to the source file as it is a "Flash File", not a JPEG.

Belgium Aerial Views

This is the same concept using a map of Belgium, courtesy of a posting by Floyd on the same site.  We will try to get some translation as to what the tool menus say in English, as this is a little tougher to translate than the French.  I must assume it is Flemish?

I got the site to work by following Floyd's instructions to pick and town and just keep magnifying the view until the aerial view appears, as this is an aerial view overlaid with the map.  I found that if you pick one spot and just continue to "left click" that spot, the aerial view eventually appears.  Perhaps someone familiar with Belgium can advise us of some specific sites (post the jpegs) and we can make a summary table as we did for France.

France GeoPortal

Thanks to allang from Melbourne, Australia for this link.  Information has been posted on this service on the CEFSG Forum (see Geoportail) where the following was noted:

It is google earth type free software that will be in 3d in the next few months and boasts "down to 50+ cm" resolution soon. I found all the little towns on the maps and even the cemetery at Vis-en-artois when my Uncle Henry's grave site is located. It will be wonderful for students of battles in France.

Google Earth

The program is an excellent resource for a current day view of the battlefield areas, as well as many other interesting spots around the world.  The Google Earth program comes in 3 versions: free, US$20 upgrade (extra marking and GPS utilities) or the professional version at US$400 (3D viewing as seen on CNN).  The free version is more than adequate for the casual researcher.  Prepare to spend an hour or two "playing" at the site to see how you can change views and enter or remove components (buildings, roads, railways, volcanoes, etc.).  The Google Maps will match the Google Earth satellite photos, which makes it a very useful tool for doing overlays.  Note that not all areas are complete in high definition, which will be clear when you take your first tour.

If you have any problems using Google Earth or viewing the overlays, it may be a result of your computer settings.  For CEFSG user comments and assistance see these two forum topic posts:

The Aerial Reconnaissance Archives

Although this site is focused on WWII aerial photograph records, it is a valuable resource for aerial views of the same areas the WWI researcher will be reviewing.  However, most of these are more for military or strategic use and are not adjustable to alter the view.  Note as well that this is a "pay per view" service.

Anyone having other resources for web sites for aerial photographs of the period, or on-line programs to obtain aerial views of the battlefields, are invited to send in their links and we will update this list.