For the first time since the start of the war in Russia, Google Earth has updated its satellite images of Mariupol. We discover a city destroyed by bombs.
To measure the evolution of a city over time and from a distance, Google Earth has proven to be one of the best tools in this area. Google’s satellite imagery service updated its images a few days ago, particularly for the city of Mariupol in Ukraine.
The Ukrainian port city thus shows itself in a new light after having been the scene of numerous bombardments during the Russian invasion of the country. Thick black smoke hangs over the top of some buildings, making it clear that the images were taken during the attacks. Google notably told HuffPost that the modification of images was recent but that some photos dated back several months or even years but could not be put due to technical constraints.
Craters by the dozens
By zooming in on the houses and buildings, we can also guess the craters caused by the bombs, in particular on the football fields, to the south-east of the city where dozens of impacts dot the lawns.
Images from the Mariupol theater, bombed on March 16, 2022, also show the scars of this attack in the city center. The ocher roof of the theater now leaves room for a void. Note that at the end of December 2022, the Russians had demolished the remaining ruins of the city’s theater, which means that these images date from before this period. On the forecourt of the demolished theatre, the presence of an inscription on the ground meaning “children” was also noted, in reference to the bomb shelter which had been created as a refuge for families.
Throughout the city, green spaces have thus evolved into reclaimed land. In the surrounding fields there is also the presence of bomb impacts. With the length scale available on Google Earth, the diameter of the impact can be estimated at around 70 meters.
According to Vadim Boïtchenko, the mayor of the besieged city, 90% of the city’s infrastructure was destroyed, 40% of which was deemed irrecoverable.
