Google joins search for the Loch Ness Monster with Street View cameras

LONDON: Google has joined the search for the mythical Loch Ness Monster by taking its Street View cameras across the famous Scottish loch.

The tech giant has mapped the surface of Loch Ness for Google's Street View, allowing armchair monster hunters to explore the area.

The maps will let people with internet connection search for Nessie from the comfort of their couch.

The company said the development was to mark the anniversary of the release of the Surgeon's Photograph - a 1934 hoax image claiming to show the monster in the misty waters of the lake, Sky News reported.

"Sail across the freshwater lake and take in its haunting beauty, made darker still by the peat particles found in its waters," a post on Google's official blog said.

"Let the Loch unlock the spirit of your imagination, where the rippling water, tricks of the light, and drifting logs bring the legend of Nessie to life," the blog post said.

It took Google around a week to take the photographs, with a diver being used to take the Street View Trekker camera under the waterline, before attaching it to a boat for the above-water shots.

Loch Ness is the largest Scottish loch by water volume, containing more fresh water than all the lakes of England and Wales combined.

According to Google, there are more searches for Loch Ness than the likes of Buckingham Palace.