WorldWide Telescope
Encyclopedia
The WorldWide Telescope is a computer program
created by Microsoft
that displays the astronomical sky as maps, the 3D Universe, visualised data sets and animations. It was announced at the TED Conference in Monterey, California
in February 2008. Users are able to pan around outer space and zoom as far into any one area as the data will allow. Images are taken from the Hubble Space Telescope
and approximately ten earth-bound telescopes. It is possible to view the sky in many wavelengths of light. The software utilizes Microsoft's Visual Experience Engine technologies to function.. The program runs under either a Microsoft Windows
or a web client based on Silverlight. The program is designed to scale from web browser to desktop to large multi-channel full dome digital planetarium.
The WWT project began in 2002, at Microsoft Research
and Johns Hopkins University
. Database researcher Jim Gray had developed a satellite Earth-images database (Terraserver
) and wanted to apply a similar technique to organizing the many disparate astronomical databases of sky images.
As of October 2008, WWT had "1.5 million active users."
to gamma
. There are also thousands of individual study images of various astronomical objects from space telescopes such as the Hubble Space Telescope
, the Spitzer Space Telescope
in infrared
, the Chandra X-ray Observatory
, COBE
, WMAP, ROSAT
, IRAS
, GALEX
as well as many other space and ground based telescopes. Sky mode also shows the Sun, Moon, planets, and their moons in their current positions.
, Microsoft Virtual Earth and Google Earth
. The Earth mode has a default data set with near global coverage and resolution down to sub-meter in high-population centers. Unlike most Earth viewers, WorldWide Telescope supports many different map projections including Mercator, Equirectangular and TOAST. There are also map layers for seasonal, night, streets, hybrid and science oriented MODIS imagery. The new layer manger can be used to add data visualization on the Earth or other planets.
, Mars
, Jupiter
, four of Jupiter's larger moons, and our own planet's Moon
. It also allows users to view a Mandelbrot set
.
panoramas, two panoramas inside building 99, and other gigapixel panoramas such as the ones available for HDView.
, occultation
, or astronomical alignment, and preview where the best spot might be to observe a future event. In this mode it is possible to zoom away from the Solar System, through the Milky Way, and out into the cosmos to see a hypothetical view of the entire known universe. Other bodies, spacecraft and orbital reference frames can be added and visualized in the Solar System Mode using the layer manager.
(AVM) can be loaded and registered to their location in the sky. Images without AVM can be shown on the sky but they user must align the images in the sky by moving, scaling and rotating the images until star patterns align. Once the images are aligned they can be saved to collections for later viewing and sharing. The layer manager can be used to add vector or image data to planet surfaces or in orbit.
the user can connect a computer-controlled telescope or an astronomical pointing device such as Meade's MySky, and then either control or follow it. The large selection of catalog objects and 1 arc-second-per-pixel imagery allow an astrophotographer to select and plan a photograph and find a suitable guide star using the multi-chip FOV indicator.
s. Pictures, objects and text can be added to the slides, and tours can have both background music and voice-overs with separate volume control. The layer manager can be used in conjunction with a tour to publish user data visualizations with annotations and animation. One of the tours featured was made by a six year old boy, while other tours are made by astrophysicists such as Dr. Alyssa A. Goodman
of the Harvard/Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics and Dr. Robert L. Hurt
of Caltech/JPL.
winner Jim Gray and JHU Astrophysicist and Co-Principal Investigator for the US National Virtual Observatory
, Alex Szalay in their paper titled "The WorldWide Telescope". The WorldWide Telescope program makes use of IVOA
standards for interoperating with data providers to provide its image, search and catalog data. Rather than concentrate all data into one database, the WorldWide Telescope sources its data from all over the web and the available content grows as more VO compliant data sources are placed on the web.
Full Dome
The WorldWide Telescope Windows client application supports both single and multi-channel full dome projection allowing it to power full dome digital planetarium systems. It is currently installed in several world-class planetariums where it runs on turn-key planetarium system. It can also be used to create a stand-alone planetarium by using the included tools for calibration, alignment and blending. This allows using consumer DLP projectors to create a projection system with resolution, performance and functionality comparable to high-end turnkey solutions, at a fraction of the cost. The University of Washington Pioneered this approach with the UW Planetarium.
WorldWide Telescope can also be used in single channel mode from a laptop using a mirror dome or fisheye projector to display on inflatable domes, or even on user constructed low-cost planetariums for which plans are available on their website.
Dr. Roy Gould of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics said:
A PC World review of the original beta concluded that WorldWide Telescope "has a few shortcomings" but "is a phenomenal resource for enthusiasts, students, and teachers." It also believed the product to be "far beyond Google's current offerings."
Prior to the cross platform web client release, at least one reviewer regretted the lack of support for non-Windows operating systems, the slow speed at which imagery loads, and the lack of KML support.
Computer program
A computer program is a sequence of instructions written to perform a specified task with a computer. A computer requires programs to function, typically executing the program's instructions in a central processor. The program has an executable form that the computer can use directly to execute...
created by Microsoft
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
that displays the astronomical sky as maps, the 3D Universe, visualised data sets and animations. It was announced at the TED Conference in Monterey, California
Monterey, California
The City of Monterey in Monterey County is located on Monterey Bay along the Pacific coast in Central California. Monterey lies at an elevation of 26 feet above sea level. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 27,810. Monterey is of historical importance because it was the capital of...
in February 2008. Users are able to pan around outer space and zoom as far into any one area as the data will allow. Images are taken from the Hubble Space Telescope
Hubble Space Telescope
The Hubble Space Telescope is a space telescope that was carried into orbit by a Space Shuttle in 1990 and remains in operation. A 2.4 meter aperture telescope in low Earth orbit, Hubble's four main instruments observe in the near ultraviolet, visible, and near infrared...
and approximately ten earth-bound telescopes. It is possible to view the sky in many wavelengths of light. The software utilizes Microsoft's Visual Experience Engine technologies to function.. The program runs under either a Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
or a web client based on Silverlight. The program is designed to scale from web browser to desktop to large multi-channel full dome digital planetarium.
The WWT project began in 2002, at Microsoft Research
Microsoft Research
Microsoft Research is the research division of Microsoft created in 1991 for developing various computer science ideas and integrating them into Microsoft products. It currently employs Turing Award winners C.A.R. Hoare, Butler Lampson, and Charles P...
and Johns Hopkins University
Johns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins University, commonly referred to as Johns Hopkins, JHU, or simply Hopkins, is a private research university based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States...
. Database researcher Jim Gray had developed a satellite Earth-images database (Terraserver
TerraServer
Terraserver refers to one of two databases for viewing geospatial imagery:* Terraserver.com, a commercial web site operated by TerraServer.com, Inc. of Raleigh, North Carolina....
) and wanted to apply a similar technique to organizing the many disparate astronomical databases of sky images.
As of October 2008, WWT had "1.5 million active users."
Modes
WorldWide Telescope has five main modes. These are Sky, Earth, Planets, Panoramas, and SolarSystem.Sky
Sky mode is the main feature of the software. It allows users to view high quality images of outer space with images from many space and Earth-based telescopes. Each image is shown at its actual position in the sky. There are over 200 full-sky images in spectral bands ranging from radioRadio astronomy
Radio astronomy is a subfield of astronomy that studies celestial objects at radio frequencies. The initial detection of radio waves from an astronomical object was made in the 1930s, when Karl Jansky observed radiation coming from the Milky Way. Subsequent observations have identified a number of...
to gamma
Gamma-ray astronomy
Gamma-ray astronomy is the astronomical study of the cosmos with gamma rays. Gamma-rays are the most energetic form of "light" that travel across the universe, and gamma-rays thus have the smallest wavelength of any wave in the electromagnetic spectrum.Gamma-rays are created by celestial events...
. There are also thousands of individual study images of various astronomical objects from space telescopes such as the Hubble Space Telescope
Hubble Space Telescope
The Hubble Space Telescope is a space telescope that was carried into orbit by a Space Shuttle in 1990 and remains in operation. A 2.4 meter aperture telescope in low Earth orbit, Hubble's four main instruments observe in the near ultraviolet, visible, and near infrared...
, the Spitzer Space Telescope
Spitzer Space Telescope
The Spitzer Space Telescope , formerly the Space Infrared Telescope Facility is an infrared space observatory launched in 2003...
in infrared
Infrared astronomy
Infrared astronomy is the branch of astronomy and astrophysics that studies astronomical objects visible in infrared radiation. The wavelength of infrared light ranges from 0.75 to 300 micrometers...
, the Chandra X-ray Observatory
Chandra X-ray Observatory
The Chandra X-ray Observatory is a satellite launched on STS-93 by NASA on July 23, 1999. It was named in honor of Indian-American physicist Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar who is known for determining the maximum mass for white dwarfs. "Chandra" also means "moon" or "luminous" in Sanskrit.Chandra...
, COBE
COBE
The COsmic Background Explorer , also referred to as Explorer 66, was a satellite dedicated to cosmology. Its goals were to investigate the cosmic microwave background radiation of the universe and provide measurements that would help shape our understanding of the cosmos.This work provided...
, WMAP, ROSAT
ROSAT
ROSAT was a German Aerospace Center-led satellite X-ray telescope, with instruments built by Germany, the UK and the US...
, IRAS
IRAS
The Infrared Astronomical Satellite was the first-ever space-based observatory to perform a survey of the entire sky at infrared wavelengths....
, GALEX
GALEX
The Galaxy Evolution Explorer is an orbiting ultraviolet space telescope launched on April 28, 2003. A Pegasus rocket placed the craft into a nearly circular orbit at an altitude of and an inclination to the Earth's equator of 29 degrees....
as well as many other space and ground based telescopes. Sky mode also shows the Sun, Moon, planets, and their moons in their current positions.
Earth
Earth mode allows users to view a 3D model of the Earth, similar to NASA World WindNASA World Wind
World Wind is an open-source virtual globe developed by NASA and the open source community for use on personal computers. Old versions need Microsoft Windows but the more recent Java version, , is cross platform and provides a suite of . The World Wind Java version was awarded in November 2009...
, Microsoft Virtual Earth and Google Earth
Google Earth
Google Earth is a virtual globe, map and geographical information program that was originally called EarthViewer 3D, and was created by Keyhole, Inc, a Central Intelligence Agency funded company acquired by Google in 2004 . It maps the Earth by the superimposition of images obtained from satellite...
. The Earth mode has a default data set with near global coverage and resolution down to sub-meter in high-population centers. Unlike most Earth viewers, WorldWide Telescope supports many different map projections including Mercator, Equirectangular and TOAST. There are also map layers for seasonal, night, streets, hybrid and science oriented MODIS imagery. The new layer manger can be used to add data visualization on the Earth or other planets.
Planets
Planets mode currently allows users to view 3D models of eight celestial bodies: VenusVenus
Venus is the second planet from the Sun, orbiting it every 224.7 Earth days. The planet is named after Venus, the Roman goddess of love and beauty. After the Moon, it is the brightest natural object in the night sky, reaching an apparent magnitude of −4.6, bright enough to cast shadows...
, Mars
Mars
Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun in the Solar System. The planet is named after the Roman god of war, Mars. It is often described as the "Red Planet", as the iron oxide prevalent on its surface gives it a reddish appearance...
, Jupiter
Jupiter
Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the largest planet within the Solar System. It is a gas giant with mass one-thousandth that of the Sun but is two and a half times the mass of all the other planets in our Solar System combined. Jupiter is classified as a gas giant along with Saturn,...
, four of Jupiter's larger moons, and our own planet's Moon
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...
. It also allows users to view a Mandelbrot set
Mandelbrot set
The Mandelbrot set is a particular mathematical set of points, whose boundary generates a distinctive and easily recognisable two-dimensional fractal shape...
.
Panoramas
The Panorama mode allows users to view several Mars RoverMars Rover
A Mars rover is an automated motor vehicle which propels itself across the surface of the planet Mars after landing.Rovers have several advantages over stationary landers: they examine more territory, they can be directed to interesting features, they can place themselves in sunny positions to...
panoramas, two panoramas inside building 99, and other gigapixel panoramas such as the ones available for HDView.
SolarSystem
This mode displays the major solar system objects from the Sun to Pluto, and Jupiter's moons, orbits of all solar system moons, all 550,000+ minor planets all positioned with their correct scale, position and phase. The user can move forward and backward in time at various rates, or type in a time and date for which to view the positions of the planets, and can select viewing location. The program can show the Solar System the way it would look from any location at any time between 1AD and 4000AD. Using this tool a user can watch an eclipseEclipse
An eclipse is an astronomical event that occurs when an astronomical object is temporarily obscured, either by passing into the shadow of another body or by having another body pass between it and the viewer...
, occultation
Occultation
An occultation is an event that occurs when one object is hidden by another object that passes between it and the observer. The word is used in astronomy . It can also refer to any situation wherein an object in the foreground blocks from view an object in the background...
, or astronomical alignment, and preview where the best spot might be to observe a future event. In this mode it is possible to zoom away from the Solar System, through the Milky Way, and out into the cosmos to see a hypothetical view of the entire known universe. Other bodies, spacecraft and orbital reference frames can be added and visualized in the Solar System Mode using the layer manager.
Local user content
WorldWide Telescope was designed as a professional research environment and as such it facilitates viewing of user data. Virtually all of the data types and visualizations in WorldWide telescope can be run using supplied user data either locally or over the network. Any of the above viewing modes allow the user to browse and load equirectangular, fisheye or dome master images to be viewed as planet surfaces, sky images or panoramas. Images with Astronomy Visualization MetadataAstronomy Visualization Metadata
Astronomy Visualization Metadata is a standard for tagging digital astronomical images stored in formats such as JPEG, GIF, PNG and TIFF. The AVM standard extends the concept of Extensible Metadata Platform headers to include useful astronomical information about the subject of the image as well...
(AVM) can be loaded and registered to their location in the sky. Images without AVM can be shown on the sky but they user must align the images in the sky by moving, scaling and rotating the images until star patterns align. Once the images are aligned they can be saved to collections for later viewing and sharing. The layer manager can be used to add vector or image data to planet surfaces or in orbit.
Layer Manager
Introduced in the Aphelion release, the Layer Manager allows management of relative reference frames allowing data and images to be places on Earth, the planets, moons, the sky or anywhere else in the universe. Data can be loaded from files, linked live with Microsoft Excel, or pasted in from other applications. Layers support 3d points and [Well-known_text Well Known Text](WKT) geometry, shape files, 3ds models, orbital elements, image layers and more. Time series data can be viewed to see smoothly animated events over time. Reference frames can contain orbital information allowing 3d models or other data to be plotted at their correct location over time.Use for amateur astronomy
The program allows the selection of a telescope and camera and can preview the field of view against the sky. Using ASCOMASCOM (standard)
ASCOM is an open initiative to provide a standard interface to a range of astronomy equipment including mounts, focusers and imaging devices in a Microsoft Windows environment....
the user can connect a computer-controlled telescope or an astronomical pointing device such as Meade's MySky, and then either control or follow it. The large selection of catalog objects and 1 arc-second-per-pixel imagery allow an astrophotographer to select and plan a photograph and find a suitable guide star using the multi-chip FOV indicator.
Tours
WorldWide Telescope contains a multimedia authoring environment that allows users or educators to create tours with a simple slide-based paradigm. The slides can have a begin and end camera position allowing for easy Ken Burns EffectKen Burns Effect
The Ken Burns effect is a popular name for a type of panning and zooming effect used in video production from still imagery.The name derives from extensive use of the technique by American documentarian Ken Burns...
s. Pictures, objects and text can be added to the slides, and tours can have both background music and voice-overs with separate volume control. The layer manager can be used in conjunction with a tour to publish user data visualizations with annotations and animation. One of the tours featured was made by a six year old boy, while other tours are made by astrophysicists such as Dr. Alyssa A. Goodman
Alyssa A. Goodman
Alyssa Ann Goodman is Professor of Astronomy at Harvard University, a Research Associate of the Smithsonian Institution, and the Founding Director of the Harvard Initiative in Innovative Computing. Goodman and her research group at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in Cambridge,...
of the Harvard/Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics and Dr. Robert L. Hurt
Robert L. Hurt
Robert L. Hurt is a member of the Infrared Processing and Analysis Center at the California Institute of Technology. He holds a Ph.D. in Physics from University of California, Los Angeles....
of Caltech/JPL.
Communities
Communities are a way of allowing organizations and communities to add their own images, tours, catalogs and research materials to the WorldWide Telescope interface. The concept is similar to subscribing to a RSS feed except the contents are astronomical metadata.Virtual Observatory
The WorldWide Telescope was designed to be the embodiment of a rich Virtual Observatory Client envisioned by Turing AwardTuring Award
The Turing Award, in full The ACM A.M. Turing Award, is an annual award given by the Association for Computing Machinery to "an individual selected for contributions of a technical nature made to the computing community. The contributions should be of lasting and major technical importance to the...
winner Jim Gray and JHU Astrophysicist and Co-Principal Investigator for the US National Virtual Observatory
National Virtual Observatory
The US National Virtual Observatory was conceived to allow scientists to access data from multiple astronomical observatories, including ground and space-based facilities, through a single portal. Currently, the National Science Foundation funds the information technology research that created...
, Alex Szalay in their paper titled "The WorldWide Telescope". The WorldWide Telescope program makes use of IVOA
IVOA
The International Virtual Observatory Alliance or IVOA is a worldwide scientific organisation formed in June 2002. Its mission is to facilitate international coordination and collaboration necessary for enabling global and integrated access to data gathered by astronomical observatories. An...
standards for interoperating with data providers to provide its image, search and catalog data. Rather than concentrate all data into one database, the WorldWide Telescope sources its data from all over the web and the available content grows as more VO compliant data sources are placed on the web.
Full DomeFulldomeFulldome refers to immersive dome-based video projection environments. The dome, horizontal or tilted, is filled with real-time or pre-rendered computer animations, live capture images, or composited environments....
Planetarium Support
The WorldWide Telescope Windows client application supports both single and multi-channel full dome projection allowing it to power full dome digital planetarium systems. It is currently installed in several world-class planetariums where it runs on turn-key planetarium system. It can also be used to create a stand-alone planetarium by using the included tools for calibration, alignment and blending. This allows using consumer DLP projectors to create a projection system with resolution, performance and functionality comparable to high-end turnkey solutions, at a fraction of the cost. The University of Washington Pioneered this approach with the UW Planetarium. WorldWide Telescope can also be used in single channel mode from a laptop using a mirror dome or fisheye projector to display on inflatable domes, or even on user constructed low-cost planetariums for which plans are available on their website.
Reception
WorldWide Telescope was praised before its announcement in a post by blogger Robert Scoble, who said the demo had made him cry. He later called it "the most fabulous thing I’ve seen Microsoft do in years."Dr. Roy Gould of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics said:
- "The WorldWide Telescope takes the best images from the greatest telescopes on Earth ... and in space ... and assembles them into a seamless, holistic view of the universe. This new resource will change the way we do astronomy ... the way we teach astronomy ... and, most importantly, I think it's going to change the way we see ourselves in the universe,"..."The creators of the WorldWide Telescope have now given us a way to have a dialogue with our universe."
A PC World review of the original beta concluded that WorldWide Telescope "has a few shortcomings" but "is a phenomenal resource for enthusiasts, students, and teachers." It also believed the product to be "far beyond Google's current offerings."
Prior to the cross platform web client release, at least one reviewer regretted the lack of support for non-Windows operating systems, the slow speed at which imagery loads, and the lack of KML support.
Awards
- 365: AIGA Annual Design Competitions 29, experience design category
- I.D. Magazine 2009 Annual Design Review, Best of Category: Interactive
See also
- Aladin Sky AtlasAladin Sky AtlasAladin is an interactive software sky atlas allowing the user to visualize digitized astronomical images, superimpose entries from astronomical catalogues or databases, and interactively access related data and information from the SIMBAD database, the VizieR service and other archives for all...
- CelestiaCelestiaCelestia is a 3D astronomy program created by Chris Laurel. The program is based on the Hipparcos Catalogue and allows users to travel through an extensive universe, modeled after reality, at any speed, in any direction and at any time in history...
- Digital Universe AtlasDigital Universe AtlasDigital Universe Atlas or Digital Universe is a free open source software planetarium application, available under the terms of the Illinois Open Source License, and running on Linux, Windows, Mac OS X , AmigaOS 4, and IRIX....
- Google SkyGoogle SkyGoogle Sky is a feature for Google's Google Earth and an online sky/outer space viewer at www.google.com/sky. It was created on August 27, 2007...
- KStarsKStarsKStars is a planetarium program using the KDE Platform for Unix-like computer operating systems. It provides an accurate graphical representation of the night sky, from any location on Earth, at any date and time...
- RedShiftRedShift (planetarium software)Redshift is planetarium software created by Maris Multimedia. It runs on PC with Microsoft Windows and iPad.- Description :Redshift is a group of educational planetarium and astronomy software packages that allow the user to observe the sky from a range of dates, print off data based on the...
- SKY-MAP.ORGSKY-MAP.ORGSKY-MAP.ORG is a wiki and interactive sky map that covers more than half a billion celestial objects. Users can view the whole star sky at once and zoom in to view areas in greater detail. WikiSky includes many stars, galaxies, constellations, and planets but is still in development...
- Starry NightStarry Night (planetarium software)Starry Night is commercial planetarium software, available for Mac OS X, Microsoft Windows and for the iphone. Starry Night focuses heavily on providing attractive, realistic imagery, although recent versions have also increasingly targeted the amateur astronomy community with features like...
- Stellarium
- Universe SandboxUniverse SandboxUniverse Sandbox is an interactive space gravity simulator. Using Universe Sandbox, one can see the effects of gravity on objects in the universe and run scale simulations of our Solar System, various galaxies or other simulations, while at the same time, interacting and maintaining control over...