Everyone likes to rag on Microsoft. Especially the European Union. However, sometimes they do deliver as a company. This development looks like it has tremendous potential. Now, I haven’t actually used it, but the intertubes are buzzing with talk of Microsoft’s World Wide Telescope.
“World” Telescope?
What’s so awesome about the WWTelescope is that it seamlessly binds together terabytes worth of data collected from Hubble and various other observatories into one coherent search-able “universe” in an application. Rather than viewing static images, you can actually browse galaxies and our own solar system with accurate image data.
The head of Harvard’s observatory back then [1920’s] argued that the Milky Way Galaxy was the entire universe. Harvard was wrong big time.
With Microsoft’s tool the average user can zoom in on black holes and view astronomic phenomena through all of the spectra of light. Not only can you travel on your own to distant nebulae, but tours built into the data introduce the user to even the most remote yet beautiful images humanity has collected over the last 30 years.
When can I get it?
Soon–this spring, for free! You can watch a video with a bit of the features here. The labor that has gone into this project is incredible, and I can’t wait to experience the universe from the comfort of my chair. Wonder if it shows dark matter?
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