Eartha, the World's Largest Rotating Globe
2 DeLorme Drive
Yarmouth, ME
A rotating, tilting model of Earth more than 41 feet across, spinning silently inside a glass atrium just off the highway, a Guinness record hiding in plain sight.
Eartha is exactly what its full name promises: the world's largest rotating globe, a scale model of the planet more than 41 feet in diameter that turns and tilts inside a three-story glass atrium in Yarmouth. Built by the Maine mapping company DeLorme and completed in 1998, it holds a Guinness World Record and is one of the most surprising sights in the state, a whole planet spinning silently in an office lobby just off the interstate.
The globe is modeled at a scale of about one to one million, and its surface shows the Earth's terrain, ocean depths, and land in remarkable detail, all rendered from satellite and mapping data. It rotates on a cantilevered arm and is tilted to match the real Earth's axis, so watching it turn is like seeing the planet from space, slowed down and brought indoors.
What Guests Love
- Standing beneath a three-story globe that slowly rotates and tilts like the real Earth
- The sheer scale, more than 41 feet in diameter, holding a Guinness World Record
- The accuracy of the terrain, oceans, and cloud-free continents at a huge scale
- A free, quick, genuinely jaw-dropping roadside stop
Worth Knowing
- Eartha is inside a working office building; check that the lobby is open to visitors before going
- Admission is free, and a viewing balcony lets you see the globe from different heights
- The visit is short, ideal as a break on a drive rather than a destination in itself
- It sits right off the highway near Freeport's outlets, easy to combine with other stops
Details
Yarmouth, ME
Learn about Eartha, the World's Largest Rotating Globe
A planet built to scale
Eartha was constructed at a scale of roughly one to one million, meaning one inch on the globe stands for about sixteen miles on the real Earth. At that scale the model works out to more than 41 feet across.
Its surface is assembled from hundreds of printed map panels that combine satellite imagery, ocean-floor data, and elevation, showing mountains, deserts, forests, and sea depths without the cover of clouds that usually hides the planet from view.
The globe is mounted on a diagonal arm and set at the same 23.5-degree tilt as the Earth's axis, and it both rotates on its axis and revolves, so over time it mimics the planet's real motions.
From a map company to a record
DeLorme was a Maine company famous for its detailed atlases and gazetteers, the thick books of topographic maps that generations of travelers kept in their cars. Eartha was built as the centerpiece of its headquarters and a showcase of its mapping data.
Completed in 1998 after years of engineering, the globe earned a Guinness World Record as the largest rotating and revolving globe, a title it still holds.
DeLorme was later acquired by Garmin, the navigation company, which continues to keep Eartha on display in the building's atrium, where it remains free to visit.
Seeing it in person
The globe fills a glass atrium, and a viewing balcony lets visitors look at it from the equator up toward the poles, changing the perspective as you climb.
Because the whole planet is laid out cloud-free at a consistent scale, it is a striking way to grasp the true size and shape of oceans, continents, and mountain ranges that maps usually distort.
The visit takes only a few minutes, which makes Eartha a perfect road-trip curiosity, an unexpected wonder tucked right off the highway between Portland and Freeport.
Season by season
Because Eartha is indoors, it is a reliable stop in any weather, particularly welcome on a rainy or snowy Maine day.
In summer and fall it pairs naturally with the nearby coast, Freeport's shops, and the Desert of Maine for a string of quirky and scenic stops.
Winter makes an indoor marvel like a giant spinning globe an easy and warm break between colder outdoor adventures, as long as the lobby is open to visitors.
Closest Boutels
The closest Boutel™ stays, so you can turn this stop into an overnight. Each is an independently owned, editorially selected place to stay.
Things to Do Near Yarmouth
Freeport and L.L.Bean
About 5 miles, a 10 minute drive
The outlet-shopping town anchored by the around-the-clock L.L.Bean flagship store.
Desert of Maine
About 6 miles, a 12 minute drive
A strange expanse of glacial silt in Freeport, a roadside attraction since 1925.
Portland Old Port
About 12 miles, a 18 minute drive
Portland's historic waterfront district of brick streets, restaurants, and shops.