DUBAI: His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, has launched a 360-degree street-view imagery project of the world’s tallest building, the Burj Khalifa.

The launch came as part of the “Street View Collections” project by Google, which aims to present global landmarks through its mapping applications which are accessible to more than 1 billion people around the world. The iconic Burj Khalifa will feature as a “Vertical City”, being the first skyscraper to be part of the project, according to a press release issued by the Government of Dubai Media Office.

Sheikh Mohammed praised the results of the project and the imagery collection that provides a stunning virtual tour of the Burj Khalifa to internet users around the world, providing them with an opportunity to visit this global landmark and experience the elegant details of the tower.

Shaikh Mohammad said, “Burj Khalifa is a landmark not only for the people of the UAE but for people from all over the world, and it is the right of everyone on this globe to get an opportunity to see and experience for themselves this global landmark. We do not look at Google as a commercial body but as a knowledge-based organisation that has played an active role in linking civilizations to people and cultures, and in the UAE we highly value the importance of such a role.”

Google has used the latest imaging systems to present 360-degree images of Burj Khalifa, which is the tallest building in the world. The virtual tour of Burj Khalifa can be experienced by visiting Google site maps at www.google.ae/streetview

This project is part of Google’s ongoing efforts to design a digital mirror of the real world, as well as to provide internet users with a realistic experience of the tallest building built by man. Burj Khalifa is the first skyscraper in the world which uses the new advanced technology within Google Maps and is also the highest point reached by the Trekkercamera, Google’s back-pack mounted street-view camera which is used to map places where the normal Google cars cannot go.

Detailed pictures of Burj Khalifa were taken over three days and will cover Downtown Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Boulevard, and The Dubai Fountain in addition to the entrances to the Burj and detailed pictures of the interior from the 43rd to 160th floors. Stunning external pictures were also taken from the 160th floor, providing an outstanding virtual experience.