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Amateur astronomers will soon be able to explore the universe from their home computer with Microsoft's WorldWide Telescope (WWT) software, which is being released later this month as a free download.
In a speech at a conference in Jakarta on Friday, Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates described WWT as "an observatory on your desktop." The free software allows home computer users to explore the galaxies using images taken by telescopes and spacecraft.
The software, developed by Microsoft Research Labs using the company's Visual Experience Engine, uses images and data from telescopes worldwide as well as from the Hubble orbiting telescope.
Mr Gates told news media that the software "takes very complex data gathered over many years from many telescopes" and makes it accessible to a desktop user.
The WWT project was designed to be ready for 2009, which is the 400th anniversary of Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei's first public observations of space, using a simple telescope.
According to news reports, the project holds information on more than 300 million stellar systems and some astronomers expect the project to have as much of an impact on the way humans view the universe as did the view conveyed by Galileo.
There will also be commentaries, such as downloadable podcasts from leading astronomers and researchers that expand on the images.
(c) NewsRoom 2008
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