Microsoft introduced the World Wide Telescope at the TED Conference. Robert Scoble said it made him cry tears of joy the first time he saw it, and again yesterday at  TED.

Roy Gould, Harvard professor at the Center for Astrophysics introduced the WWT to the TED conference. He called it transformative, and gave three reasons why he is excited about it;

1. “It enables you to experience the universe. . . . [It] lets you navigate through the universe to where you want to go.”
2. “You can tour the universe with astronomers as your guides. . . . people who are passionate about the various nooks and crannies of the universe.”
3. “You can create your own tours. You can share them with friends. You can create them with friends. . . . each of us is going to understand the universe in our own way. We're going to have a personal universe.”

The WWT software will be available for free download later this Spring. The Microsoft  World Wide Telescope site is up now.

Here is a short 6 minute video of Gould's presentation and demo of the telescope. The images are spectacular, definitely worth watching the video.