Microsoft's WorldWide Telescope updated with better views of Mars, night sky
By Donald Melanson 
posted July 12th 2010 7:34PM
posted July 12th 2010 7:34PM
We haven't heard a ton about Microsoft's WorldWide Telescope project since it launched in beta form back in 2008, but the company has been busy working with NASA to improve it since then, and it's now finally showing off the results. That includes a new true-color map of Mars complete with 3D renderings of the planet's surface, and a new and improved spherical view of the night sky that virtually eliminates the seams between images -- it's also, incidentally, the world's largest map of its type, and Microsoft says it would take 50,000 HDTVs to view at full size. Of course, it's still pretty impressive viewed one tiny speck at a time -- hit up the link below to download the Windows application or check out the web-based viewer.
Impressive one-upping of the Google Mars map, I like the 3D rendering.
Since when does mars belong to the world?
@Fredfrombelgium Since we couldn't find any Martians, nor any Protheans.
@HikaKao John Carter's going to be pissed!
@Fredfrombelgium
Who said it did?
GET YOUR ASS TO MARS!
Weirdly enough, the first thing I thought about when I saw that picture, was racing. That...um...ditch (?) made me think of some crazy out-in-space racing tournament.
@HikaKao Podracing. Looks like the course from Episode I
Just out of curiosity, why does Microsoft have this product? I don't really see how it stands to gain anything from it, nor any future potential that could get them money.
@achalddave
Uh umm, science? Education? Research? Companies learn (not just earn) by working on such projects, and also get their brand behind products that might have a social (not just monetary) impact. They could sneak in a new protocol, a new concept, or a new standard. Apple and Google are way ahead on this. Finally, Microsoft and Apple are weirdly but predictably switching their former 90's roles:
Microsoft - creativity, researcher, education
Apple - market leader, purely consumption-driven, the Man, the new (old) Microsoft
@shishi
I meant to say Microsoft and Google are way ahead...
@shishi I guess. Call me pessimistic, but it just seems too altruistic for a corporation.
@achalddave
It's difficult for anyone to imagine a company that actually does research and something called "science," in this Apple iWorld of ours.
@paul34 Well, not just Apple, but in general. Almost everything corporations do has some monetary self-interest in it for them. Donations? PR + tax cuts. Customer support? Again, PR. It's not quite often that companies do something without some kind of monetary motivation.
I'm not some, "capitalism is bad" person, but just my $0.02. Perhaps Microsoft hopes to eventually license this tech to people? I guess that would work. This doesn't seem to have much PR for msft, at least, I don't think.
@achalddave
In any "real" technology company that seeks to develop its own hardware/software/technologies in general, there's always a bit of a struggle with R&D and the other functions of the business. R&D rarely ever directly contributes back to the company, and as such, seems to be a drain on capital. Indeed, when cuts happen, R&D is the first to take a hit. It's a gamble as well because if a technology is created that cannot be capitalized on, that's essentially a loss. Drug companies are all too familiar with this, given the massive cost of developing a drug and the massive cost of having a failure.
Just about everything in this world is done for money, and that isn't necessarily a bad thing. It's given us our amazing modern world. Even in developing nations with poor work conditions and low pay, it's still a significantly better life than they would've ever had begging in the streets or slaving in a rice paddy field.
Perhaps Microsoft can capitalize on this somebody. Maybe not. But if they don't try, they could lose out big time.
@paul34 I'm not at all against almost everything being about money. I don't really care much. But what I'm saying is, when they first spent money on the thing, they must have had some idea in mind on how they would capitalize from it. That's what I want to know.
You blabbed, Quaid! You blabbed about Mars!
I DOWN'T KNOW ANEETING ABOUT MAWZ!!
Skynet almost ready
Or a jawa style transport unit.
WOW, thank you Microsoft and NASA! I'm happy :)
This is ... wow. Very cool.
MSFT is just wowing me lately!! Looks freaking great!
Resistance is Futile...
What that word "THE SLEEPING GIANT AWAKENS"
you could use that in Google Earth!
"the world's largest map of its type" pfft, you dont know that