Street View transports you through time

Google's Street View service now allows users to scroll back through time to see how certain views appeared in the past.

Since its launch in 2007, Street View has allowed people to see images taken by special camera cars on roads and paths around their country.

These images are updated as and when the cars pass through a covered area again.

From today users will be able to scroll back through historic images taken from any point.

In a post on the official Google blog, the product manager of Google Street View, Vinay Shet, said: "If you have ever dreamt of being a time-traveller like Doc Brown, now's your chance.

"Starting today, you can travel to the past to see how a place has changed over the years by exploring Street View imagery in Google Maps for desktop.

"We've gathered historical imagery from past Street View collections dating back to 2007 to create this digital time capsule of the world.

"Now with Street View you can see a [recent] landmark's growth from the ground up, like the Freedom Tower in New York City or the 2014 World Cup Stadium in Fortaleza, Brazil.

"This new feature can also serve as a digital timeline of recent history, like the reconstruction after the 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Japan.

"You can even experience different seasons and see what it would be like to cruise Italian roadways in both summer and winter," Shet said.