Where'd We Park the Lunar Lander?

It's a real thrill to "fly" from home using Google Earth's satellite photo composites, see the earth as a swirly blue marble, and then plunge back into the cradle of gravity once more, whether it's the Grand Canyon, the pyramids of Egypt or simply your friend's house on the other side of town. Now the (not so) evil geniuses at 1600 Amphitheater Parkway in Mountain View, Calif., are at it again.

This time — according to a convincing rumor published by The Register — Google is getting ready to launch a 3-D version of Google Moon. What we do know is that Google has announced plans to make a special announcement from Washington, D.C., on the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 11 lunar landing "about the newest addition to Google Earth."

Granted, the nifty program currently is limited to just one section of the moon and chronicles the six Apollo landings that took place between 1963 and 1972. But now the Internet and tech giant is getting a fresh batch of source material from NASA, whose Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter is busy snapping new high-resolution photos of the gray rock, as The Register explains:

"The orbiting probe will also be able to provide a 3-D map of the moon's surface which could be used to complement the aging overhead shots that Google Moon currently offers."

Sounds cool. I'm also excited about the prospects for Google Mars, which may be a reality — and include turn-by-turn hovercraft directions — in another 100 years or so.