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Exploration from afar

Using his imagination and a computer program, an Admiral Farragut Academy sixth-grader explores the globe.

By RITA FARLOW
Published November 13, 2005

It all started with the Great Pyramids of Egypt, which led to the Imperial Palace in Tokyo, which led to the Pacific Ocean.

"I just want to know about the world and different areas of the world. It has a lot to do with learning about the culture of a people - their background, their economy," said Michael Milord, of North Redington Beach.

The 12-year-old with an interest in geography viewed the pyramids and the palace on Google Earth, a computer program that uses satellite imagery and 3D data to transmit pictures of the earth. As he zoomed out over the Pacific Ocean, the sixth-grader at Admiral Farragut Academy noticed something unusual: a geographic formation in the shape of a hand clasped like a fist.

"I was just searching around and I didn't quite notice it until I wanted to look at the whole, entire globe. I called Dad over and asked him, "What do you see?"'

Michael's father, Georges Milord, saw the shape too.

Frank Muller-Karger from the University of South Florida College of Marine Science said that Michael should be commended for using his imagination to explore the Earth. The formation Michael noticed is the Mariana Basin, which includes the Marianas Trench, Marianas Trough and the Kyushu-Palau Ridge, Muller-Karger said via e-mail.

"I am sure nobody has seen the similarity between Michael's fist and this huge system of submarine ridges, mountains and deep trenches," he said.

Muller-Karger said that only a fraction of the ocean floor has been mapped, which is made possible by satellites "sensitive to gravity changes across the ocean floor."

The Google Earth program allows users to view major geographic features and many man-made structures, such as buildings and roadways.

"You can visit any place you want. If you leave (the program up) for awhile, you can actually see the exact pattern. It looks like a picture," Michael said.

Milord introduced his son to the program after a family friend sent an aerial view of his home. Father and son got on the computer and pulled up a photo of their own house.

"You can even see my car in the driveway," Milord said.

Michael, who can quickly point out most any country on a globe, has long been interested in geography. But he also can explain in detail the workings of the human heart and has already read the works of Aristotle and Socrates. He likes to sing, paint and play basketball, and has musical tastes ranging from jazz to hip-hop. Milord said he encourages Michael to seek a broad understanding of the world around him.

"This is not all there is. There is a great world out there, great culture out there. Let's try to understand it," Milord said.

[Last modified November 13, 2005, 03:00:43]