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80th Anniversary of Los Glaciares National Park



Argentina’s stunning Los Glaciares National Park was established on May 11, 1937. Although the park is only 80 years old, its biggest attractions have been shaping the landscape for millennia.

The park’s northern boundary is a cluster of soaring, sharp-toothed peaks, including the forbidding Mt. Fitz Roy. Dominating the southern stretch is the awe-inspiring Perito Moreno Glacier, a towering wall of ice grinding a path through the Patagonian Andes. Its terminus, where the glacier flows into Argentina’s largest freshwater lake, is 5 km wide at an average height of 74 m above the lake’s surface.

As the powdery blue glacier advances, the ice often gives way with a resounding crack, plunging into the chilly lake and calving enormous icebergs. This dramatic icefall makes it one of the park’s most popular tourist attractions. Visitors can also hike across the rippled surface of the glacier.

Los Glaciares National Park was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1981, as an area of outstanding natural beauty and an important example of the geological processes of glaciation.

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Por Intalapalit’s 107th Birthday



Tireless Thai writer Por Intalapalit was born on this date in 1910. Famous for Sam Kler (or SamGler), a novel series that spanned more than 1,000 books, Intalapalit was nothing short of prolific.

Popular in the 1960s and 1970s, Sam Kler ("The Three Buddies") revolved around the comic adventures and antics of three main characters: Pol, Nikorn, and Kim-nguan (with the later addition of the scientist Dr. Direk). Together the pals sparred in boxing matches, trekked through jungles, wrangled with monsters, and encountered UFOs. Several of the stories were also developed into well-known TV shows and movies, including Sam Kler Jer Long Hon, a Cold War-themed film starring legendary Thai actor Mitr Chaibancha.

Today's Doodle was inspired by Por Intalapalit’s beloved characters and colorful, mod-era book covers.

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Mother's Day 2017

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115th Anniversary of the Antikythera Mechanism's Discovery



On this date in 1902, Greek archaeologist Valerios Stais sifted through some artifacts from a shipwreck at Antikythera. The wrecked Roman cargo ship was discovered two years earlier, but Stais was the first to notice an intriguing bit of bronze among the treasures. It looked like it might be a gear or wheel. That corroded chunk of metal turned out to be part of the Antikythera Mechanism, an ancient analog astronomical computer.

The Antikythera Mechanism tracked planetary positions, predicted lunar and solar eclipses, and even signaled the next Olympic Games. It was probably also used for mapping and navigation. A dial on the front combines zodiacal and solar calendars, while dials on the back capture celestial cycles. Computer models based on 3-D tomography have revealed more than 30 sophisticated gears, housed in a wooden and bronze case the size of a shoebox.

The mechanism was initially dated around 85 BC, but recent studies suggest it may be even older (circa 150 BC). The crank-powered device was way ahead of its time -- its components are as intricate as those of some 18th-century clocks.

Historians continue to ponder the Antikythera Mechanism's purpose and inner workings, and visitors to the National Archaeological Museum of Greece marvel at its delicate complexity. Today's Doodle illustrates how a rusty remnant can open up a skyful of knowledge and inspiration.

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Richard Oakes’ 75th Birthday



Throughout the 1960s and 70s, Richard Oakes made a stand for the rights of American Indians. Over his time as an activist, he fought peacefully for freedom, justice, and the right of American Indians to have control over their lands.

Oakes grew up on the Mohawk Indian reservation in Akwesasne, on the Canadian / New York border. When he was 18, he moved to San Francisco, and enrolled in San Francisco State University shortly after. There, his passion for empowerment through education led him to play an integral role in creating one of the first American Indian studies programs in the nation.

Oakes went on to be a champion for social justice in his community. His most powerful protest happened in 1969 when he led a group of activists occupying Alcatraz Island. The aim was not only to set up a community, complete with a university, museum and cultural center, but also for the government to acknowledge the rights of American Indians to claim the out-of-use federal land as their own.

Although Richard didn't succeed in gaining the deeds to Alcatraz for his people, he brought their issues into the media spotlight and made a substantial impact on the treatment of American Indians in the US. He also went on to assist the Pit River Tribe in their claim for land in Northern California.

Today's Doodle recognizes places that were important in his life's story and mission, depicting the Akwesasne reservation, Alcatraz Island, and Pit River.

Here's to Richard Oakes, for his unwavering dedication to his community and social justice.

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Hibari Misora’s 80th Birthday



In 1945, 8-year-old Hibari Misora sang before an audience at a concert hall in Yokohama. So went the debut of a long and storied musical career spanning nearly 45 years, 1,200 recorded songs, and 80 million records sold worldwide.

Over the decades, Misora became a beloved figure of modern Japanese pop culture, acting in more than 150 movies while continuing her extensive musical pursuits. Her status as a cultural icon has inspired museums, monuments, tributes, movies, and other homages to her life and work.

Though today’s Doodle depicts Misora in her most well-known costume, the Doodler considered an early draft that highlighted her career from start to finish, through album covers and movie posters. The final Doodle shows Misora donning her phoenix wings to showcase her larger-than-life personality.

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Dragon Boat Festival 2017



The Dragon Boat Festival has been held in honor of revered Chinese poet Qu Yuan (circa 339–278 B.C.E.) for over 2,000 years. People celebrate this traditional holiday by eating sticky dumplings called zongzi, and of course by racing dragon boats! The vessels are sometimes built to resemble an actual dragon with a head and tail, just like in today's Doodle, though they can also look like regular narrow rowing boats. Another tradition from ancient times is wearing embroidered pouches full of fragrant herbs and incense, in the hopes they will protect against bad luck.



Happy Dragon Boat Festival!

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Celebrating Zaha Hadid



Today’s Doodle honors architect Zaha Hadid, who captured the world's attention and shattered glass ceilings (in addition to designing some) by becoming the first woman to win the Pritzker Architecture Prize on this day in 2004. She was also the first woman awarded the Royal Gold Medal by the Royal Institute of British Architects.

Born in Iraq in 1950, Hadid learned about abstract art and architecture at the Architectural Association in London. There, she found inspiration in unconventional forms. Before computers made her designs easier to put on paper, Hadid's studio was known to use the photocopier in creative ways to bend lines and create new shapes. The type in today's Doodle finds inspiration in Hadid's energetic sketches, which explored both form and function.

Hadid broke new ground on modern architecture using the surrounding landscape for building inspiration. The straight lines and sharp angles of the Vitra Fire Station in Germany were inspired by nearby vineyards and farmland, while the roof of the London Aquatic Centre forms the shape of a wave. You can see the London Aquatic Centre and some of Hadid's other impressive work in Google Earth's interactive exhibit.

The Heydar Aliyev Center, pictured in today's doodle, sets itself in contrast to the block-like structures that surround it in Baku, Azerbaijan. At the same time, this cultural center takes inspiration from historic Islamic designs found in calligraphy and geometric patterns to create something entirely new. The building takes an open form to invite the public into its space. The center has played host to modern art by Andy Warhol and Tony Cragg, and world-class performances from Kitaro and Alessandro Safina.

In her early work, Hadid visualized her projects through paintings that resembled abstract modernist art. She famously said, "There are 360 degrees, so why stick to one?" You can explore some of these early concepts - including via virtual reality - on the Google Cultural Institute.

Today we celebrate Dame Zaha Hadid's contributions over her lifetime to the world of architecture. Thank you, Dame Zaha Hadid, for all you've done to bring people together in the service of art and culture!

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ICC Champions Trophy 2017 Begins!



Ah, summer: the sound of leather on willow, and the spectacle of cricket ... cricket! As the tournament begins in the Oval cricket ground, something buzzes outside. A team of crickets sans tickets have set up their own wickets for a game of pest cricket! As they face their archrivals, the snails, it’s sure to be a match for the centuries. Don’t be fooled by their sluggish looks — these fielders can be fast on their feet!

To celebrate the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy, we’re inviting everyone to tap/click and take a swing at our pocket-size game!

We know that cricket is loved worldwide, so we wanted to make sure our Doodle works for everyone, including those on slower mobile networks. We kept the file size fly-sized, and the result is our smallest interactive Doodle ever — even snail networks can load it in seconds.

Whether you're enjoying the tournament at a snail’s pace or bowling faster than the beat of a hummingbird's wings, here's hoping you hit it out of the park this summer!

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Doodle 4 Google 2017 — Canada Winner



In this year’s Doodle 4 Google contest, more than 12,000 students from across Canada submitted doodles around the theme “What I see for Canada’s future is…”. Young artists imagined a country where robots could cure disease, others dreamed of living on Mars, while some saw a world united by nature.

Following a very close public vote where Canadians voted more than 465,000 times, four incredibly talented grade group winners were revealed at the Art Gallery of Ontario. Of those four masterpieces, 11th-grader Jana Sofia Panem’s Doodle, "A Bright Future" was selected as the national winner!

In her energetic doodle, Jana sees that “wind power will be an alternative energy source for Canada's future. I believe we will have enough energy to generate power for our everyday lives such as electricity, transportation, and the internet. This transformation will greatly benefit our future generation as it will help to maximize preserving our vital nature and maintain a clean environment.”

Thank you to all the finalists for sharing your creativity with us. And a hearty congratulations to Jana Sofia!