• Google takes its Street View cameras to four of the world's Seven Summits
• The Seven Summits are the tallest peaks on each of the Earth's continents
• Comes after service was in January expanded to include the Grand Canyon

By Damien Gayle

PUBLISHED: 05:37 EST, 19 March 2013 | UPDATED: 06:31 EST, 19 March 2013

Now you can scale the most majestic mountains on Earth - and all you need is an internet connection.

Google has now taken its Street View cameras to some of the world's highest peaks, including Mount Everest.

From today, armchair mountaineers can take an online tour of four of the Earth's Seven Summits - the highest mountains on each of the world's continents - on the online ads giant's Maps product.

Scroll down for a virtual tour of Everest

Everest base camp, Nepal: Google has expanded its online maps product to include virtual tours of four of the Seven Summits, the highest peaks on each of the Earth's continents

The virtual adventures take internet users up Aconcagua in Argentina, Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, Mount Elbrus in Russia and as far as Everest base camp in Nepal.

'These mountains belong to the group of peaks known as the Seven Summits—the highest mountain on each of the seven continents,'  wrote Dan Fredinburg on Google's official blog.

'While there's nothing quite like standing on the mountain, with Google Maps you can instantly transport yourself to the top of these peaks and enjoy the sights without all of the avalanches, rock slides, crevasses, and dangers from altitude and weather that mountaineers face.'

Plaza Argentina base camp at Aconcagua: Would-be mountaineers who don't wish to risk life and limb can now check out the breathtaking scenery of the world's highest mountains from the comfort of their computers

The new additions come after the company in January expanded the usually urban Street View service to cover the trails of the Grand Canyon.

But unlike those pictures, which were captured using the company's innovative back pack-mounted Trekker camera system, the new imagery was collected with a simple tripod and digital camera with a fisheye lens.

Google has used a rosette of cameras to photograph thousands of cities and towns in dozens of countries for its Street View feature.

The company has already have taken users to narrow cobblestone alleys in Spain using a tricycle, inside the Smithsonian with a push cart and to British Columbia's snow-covered slopes by snowmobile.

Lava point, Mount Kilimanjaro, Tanzania: The new additions come after the company in January expanded the usually urban Street View service to cover the trails of the Grand Canyon

Googler Dan Fredinburg and friend Mike Miner in clouds above Everest Base Camp: The new imagery was collected with a simple tripod and digital camera with a fisheye lens, rather than Google's Trekker system

The project began in 2007, with five U.S. cities mapped out with 5MP cameras mounted on Google's now-famous Street View cars.

Since then its cars, now equipped with 75MP cameras, have driven more than 5million unique miles of road across every continent.

Google Street View now covers more than 3,000 cities across 45 countries - and even a slice of Antarctica complete with the southern continent's resident penguins.

Now take Google's virtual tour of the Everest base camp in Nepal

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