First the Earth, now the Sky

Google's just added the Sky to Google Earth, using images from various sources, including the Hubble. Sadly it doesn't just switch on - you'll need to download a new version of the application first.



There's some fantastic imagery there, and it's well worth exploring the bundled KML files. I rather enjoyed the "User's Guide to Galaxies"...

If you want to use Google's new embeddable maps on LJ...

...you can't.

While LJ lets most media sites that use an OBJECT tag to embed in an entries HTML, Google is using an IFRAME to host its maps. As part of its defence against cross-site scripting attacks LJ blocks IFRAMEs from any entry HTML.

So no Google Maps for you...

(also no Popfly, nor Google Mashups, nor - the list goes on...)

Rethinking Google Sky...

...it's a great tool, but it's about to wipe out a small niche of the software industry, without Google even noticing. So much for "Do no evil".

The result, a rant at our IT PRO blog:

Google's latest version of its Earth mapping tool adds a significant new feature; Sky. It's a great tool, you can scroll around the heavens, zooming in for detailed Hubble shots of the most beautiful astronomical objects, and all for free...

That's great for us, but a terrible thing for all the small software houses and software developers who've invested their lives in developing planetarium software. Astronomical applications have been a profitable niche for a large number of companies, and sophisticated sky explorers have been developed over a number of years. Now, overnight, that market has been blown away.

Read more here.