NASA and Microsoft to Make Universe of Data Available to the Public

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http://www.worldwidetelescope.org

NASA and Microsoft to Make Universe of Data Available to the Public

WASHINGTON -- NASA and Microsoft Corp. announced Tuesday plans to make
planetary images and data available via the Internet under a Space Act
Agreement. Through this project, NASA and Microsoft jointly will
develop the technology and infrastructure necessary to make the most
interesting NASA content -- including high-resolution scientific
images and data from Mars and the moon -- explorable on WorldWide
Telescope, Microsoft's online virtual telescope for exploring the
universe.

"Making NASA's scientific and astronomical data more accessible to the
public is a high priority for NASA, especially given the new
administration's recent emphasis on open government and transparency,"
said Ed Weiler, associate administrator for NASA's Science Mission
Directorate in Washington.

Under the joint agreement, NASA's Ames Research Center in Moffett
Field, Calif., will process and host more than 100 terabytes of data,
enough to fill 20,000 DVDs. WorldWide Telescope will incorporate the
data later in 2009 and feature imagery from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance
Orbiter, known as MRO. Launched in August 2005, MRO has been examining
Mars with a high-resolution camera and five other instruments since
2006 and has returned more data than all other Mars missions combined.

"This collaboration between Microsoft and NASA will enable people
around the world to explore new images of the moon and Mars in a rich,
interactive environment through the WorldWide Telescope," said Tony
Hey, corporate vice president of Microsoft External Research in
Redmond, Wash. "WorldWide Telescope serves as a powerful tool for
computer science researchers, educators and students to explore space
and experience the excitement of computer science."

Also available will be images from a camera aboard NASA's Lunar
Reconnaissance Orbiter, or LRO, when publicly released starting this
fall. Scheduled to launch this May, LRO will spend at least a year in
a low, polar orbit approximately 30 miles above the lunar surface
collecting detailed information about the lunar environment.

"NASA is excited to collaborate with Microsoft to share its portfolio
of planetary images with students and lifelong learners," said S. Pete
Worden, director of Ames. "This is a compelling astronomical resource
and will help inspire our next generation of astronomers."

This agreement builds on a prior collaboration with Microsoft that
enabled NASA to develop 3-D interactive Microsoft Photosynth
collections of the space shuttle launch pad and other facilities at
NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The images featured on
Microsoft's WorldWide Telescope will supplement existing imagery and
data available on NASA's Web site, the Planetary Data System and other
sources.

The WorldWide Telescope is a Web 2.0 visualization environment that
functions as a virtual telescope, bringing together imagery from
ground- and space-based telescopes for a seamless, rich media guided
exploration of the universe. Through WorldWide Telescope and Microsoft
technology, people will be able to pan and zoom in on these images and
the most interesting locations on Mars and the moon without distorted
views at the poles.

Attracting millions of users since its release last spring, WorldWide
Telescope provides a base for teaching astronomy, scientific discovery
and computational science. Tours with narration, music, text and
graphics create interactive learning experiences that allow people to
search, explore and discover the universe in a new and unique manner.
Additional information and a free download of WorldWide Telescope can
be found at:


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