Verne: The Himalayas is an app that invites you to explore Google Maps’ 3D imagery of the Himalayas alongside a 500 foot Yeti named Verne. As Verne, you can run up Mt. Everest in seconds, skate across icy lakes, chase yaks, discover bits of information, ride a jetpack, play Himalayan instruments, and more.

For years, Google Maps has been adding 3D imagery from all over the world – New York City, the Grand Canyon, Mont Blanc, and more. A few of us started wondering if this 3D imagery could make learning about the world a bit more fun for kids. We started playing with quick prototypes using Google Maps 3D data in a whole new way.

Our idea became a new, experimental app called Verne: The Himalayas. It invites you to explore the Himalayas as a 500 foot Yeti named Verne. It allowed us to show how Google Maps data can be utilized to build cool new applications, and also release something fun and unique for everyone to explore.