Transform Your Devices with Catfood Earth: The Living Planet on Your Screens
I wanted to share a nice Windows and Android screensaver/ background that I have been using for a few years. Ever wished you could gaze at Earth from space, watching the subtle dance of day and night, the shifting clouds, and even real-time events unfold? Now you can, right on your Android phone or tablet, and your Windows desktop, with Catfood Earth created by Robert Ellison.
Catfood Earth offers a sophisticated, subtle effect that truly brings our planet to life on your screen, updating throughout the day to reflect real-world conditions.
Experience Earth in Motion
Catfood Earth uses stunning NASA Blue Marble Next Generation satellite images as its base, ensuring a visually rich and accurate representation of our planet. (In my case I am using my generated global geo composites created on my sat system) These images are updated monthly, so you’ll actually see the seasons change with the evolving ice cover and vegetation.
But the magic doesn’t stop there. Every five minutes (it is configurable as well), the wallpaper precisely updates the terminator – the line between day and night. Watch as night gently rolls across your screen, seamlessly blending with illuminated city lights, just as you’d see from orbit. To complete this breathtaking view, current global cloud cover is downloaded from SSEC every three hours, giving you a dynamic, realistic depiction of Earth’s atmosphere.
Smart and Customizable
Catfood Earth is designed to be smart and power-efficient. It automatically centers the image on your current location using your device’s last known fix, saving battery. If you prefer, you can also set a manual or random center, and even choose to display your current location directly on the wallpaper. I have mine set to use the global geo composites that I create using received data from my satellite station.
Beyond the Horizon: Layers of Data
What truly sets Catfood Earth apart are its customizable layers, allowing you to personalize your view of Earth.
- Day & Night Maps: Choose from NASA’s Blue Marble images, interpolated daily for subtle seasonal changes, or a less colorful map that pairs perfectly with other data layers. The integrated city lights offer a captivating nighttime panorama.
- Clouds: Powered by data from the Space Science and Engineering Center at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, these subtle cloud overlays are updated hourly for a truly dynamic sky.
- Time Zones & Political Borders: Visualize global time zones (based on the IANA database) and political borders with configurable colors and transparency.
- Places: A fantastic feature for keeping tabs on loved ones or colleagues across the globe, this layer allows you to pinpoint locations with their local time. Catfood Earth comes with a default list of major cities, but you can customize it to your heart’s content.
- Earthquakes: Stay informed with real-time earthquake data from the USGS. You can filter by magnitude (2.5+), set the display duration (up to 24 hours), and customize colors and transparency.
- Volcanoes: See currently active volcanoes around the world, with data from the Smithsonian Institution’s Global Volcanism Program.
- Weather Radar (US Only): For users in the US, this layer displays current weather radar from the National Weather Service, allowing you to select specific radar stations.
Create Animations with Render Images in Catfood Earth
Want to make time-lapse animations of Earth? The Render Images feature in Catfood Earth is your go-to tool!
This powerful feature lets you generate a sequence of JPEG images based on your current Earth settings. It’s perfect for visualizing changes over time, especially with computed layers like day/night cycles and time zones.
Here’s how it works:
- Set your start date and time (UTC): Define when your animation begins.
- Choose your time increment: Decide how much time passes between each frame.
- Specify the number of frames: Determine the total length of your animation.
- Select image size: Choose the dimensions for your output images.
- Pick an output folder: Designate where your JPEG sequence will be saved.
Once you’ve configured these settings, Catfood Earth will automatically generate a series of high-quality JPEG images, ready for you to compile into an animation!
Important Note: While Render Images excels with computed layers, it’s not ideal for live data like clouds or earthquakes, as these elements are constantly changing and won’t produce consistent animation frames.
From Desktop to Mobile and Back Again
Catfood Earth has a rich history, first released for Windows desktop in 2003 and fully remastered for 4K resolution in version 4. The Android version is specifically optimized for smaller screens and minimal power consumption, ensuring a smooth experience on the go. Whether you’re at your desk or out and about, Catfood Earth brings the same stunning, dynamic view of our planet to your fingertips.
Ready to see our incredible planet come alive on your Android device or Windows desktop? Explore Catfood Earth and customize your view of the world!
