PhD student Curtis Melvin uses Google Maps to uncover North Korea's secrets

PhD student Curtis Melvin uses Google Maps to uncover North Korea's secrets

www.gadling.com

Using knowledge gleaned from his own trips to North Korea, as well as tips from many others who have visited, Curtis and his crew of civilian spies have managed to plot into Google Maps previously unknown sites in North Korea such as secret prison camps, vast burial mounds, and missile storage facilities. His interactive project, called "North Korea Uncovered," has literally thousands of entries and is the most exhaustive map of North Korea to date.

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This is pretty cool.

I was wondering the same thing the other day when there was a thread about how North Korea was gone from Google Maps.

This was true, the "Map" portion, was blank inside the countries boarders except the words "North Korea".

However, if you clicked on terrain or Satellite maps, they worked.

I stared looking at the Satellite views and realized, you could zoom in about as far as you can in the US in North Korean cities.

This struck me as strange as the pictures are taken from a low flying plane, and I didn't think NK would allow a low flying plane to take pictures for Google maps.

I did however notice that not many streets or towns which had names displayed.

These guys took it even farther, they labeled everything NK doesn't want you to see or know about.

This is big, if we find that those are burial mounds, I think the US or UN might try to "free" the people of NK.

What are you thoughts?


www.gadling.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

Originally posted by breakingdradles
I stared looking at the Satellite views and realized, you could zoom in about as far as you can in the US in North Korean cities.

This struck me as strange as the pictures are taken from a low flying plane, and I didn't think NK would allow a low flying plane to take pictures for Google maps.

That is a very good point, very observant good catch

I've got no real idea about that but I have just been zooming around some buildings in NK and you are right, I can't always fully zoom in, but I can easily see buildings and loads of other detail.

That is odd, NK would of definatly taken down any aircraft snooping around - maybe the sats are better than they let on

reply to post by Now_Then


Heh, I was doing the same thing yesterday... Thought about scanning the supposed location of the nuke tests to lookfor craters...

BTW, your avatar is *really* distracting.. had a hard time concentrating on what I was reading...

I was able to find a concentration camp in the DPRK via Google Earth. Creepy stuff.

I think if we ever discover the full nature of life in North Korea, we will be utterly horrified at what we see. The books of Bradbury and Orwell and a movie called THX-1138 will cease to be fiction. They will be reality.

reply to post by Now_Then


It is no secret that satellites can easily spot houses, cars or other small details.
I am pretty sure those supposed students know nothing that spy agencies don't know.

PS : please remove your avatar, I can't concentrate on the content of your posts

Does anyone know what the yellow "propaganda" markers are on the map? Each one is a long row of objects of the same size and shape. Any clues?

reply to post by sc2099


Can you give a lat long for it? I'm curious.

Originally posted by sc2099
Does anyone know what the yellow "propaganda" markers are on the map? Each one is a long row of objects of the same size and shape. Any clues?

lol, in a thread about north korea
I read your post and saw the quotation marks in yellow instead of propoganda

I thought I saw "yellow" propoganda

I thought you had made derogatory remark
haha

Originally posted by rogerstigers
Heh, I was doing the same thing yesterday... Thought about scanning the supposed location of the nuke tests to lookfor craters...

I am almost 100% positive the nuke test was underground - there would be no crater.

North Korea's Underground Nuke Test

Underground tests still leave craters. It simply helps contain the radiation. When the blast goes off it swells the ground then when the ground rebounds it normally leaves a crater. more of a sinkhole but you get my point.

Using google earth 5. there are many underground facilities to be seen, as well as an understaning of just how well they are dug in in that country. there is barely a hill in the whole land that does not have sam sites on it or bunkers built into it.

Good find breakingdradles. You have succeeded in creating yet another thing for me to spend hours and hours looking at on Google Earth.

reply to post by Iamonlyhuman


LOL,

That's what I did last night!

I couldn't believe I was "spying" on North Korea!!!

I felt like such a patriot