Last week Microsoft silently released an astronomy application called WorldWide Telescope, and I've had the pleasure of playing with it this past few days.

World Wide Telescope uses Microsoft's mind-blowing Photosynth technology to recreate the Universe (the Universe as far as the Hubble and other telescopes have afforded us to see) by seamlessly stitching together the best photos taken by space telescopes to create an amazing map that you and I can navigate with ease.

There are nicely presented guided tours complete with video narration or you can browse freely among the Universe using the search tool and navigation controls. Any part of the Universe you interact with has a detailed explanation. The interface is easily among the most intuitive and graceful I have ever used. Just look at the screen shots after the article (which you can hit for full sized versions).

The program clearly has amazing educational potential and I can see it becoming a standard foray into classrooms in the future. Don't misunderstand though. This is not or Celestia (an amazing program in its own right), World Wide Telescope is so much more.

If you want a demonstration and better explanation, I recommend watching this 7 minute TED presentation below. Once you're ready to try it out you can download it here.