The Milky Way in 3D
(v1-The Sun's Neighborhood)
Welcome to a new view of the Milky Way... in 3D!
With community input, milkyway3d.org will serve as a hub for the interconnected set of outreach, education, and research resources that allow astronomers to map out and understand the three-dimensional structure of the Milky Way (especially near the Sun).
The project includes new software development, approaches to data sharing, and scientific research questions propelling our collaboration forward. In fact, MilkyWay3D's tech is so innovative, that it's the "demonstration project" for LIVE-Astro, the astronomy portion of the "Linkable, Interactive, Visualization, & Exploration" or "LIVE" Environments project.
All data sets and software collected, connected, and created will be available to all--including educators and learners!r
Debut in Pasadena
The first time the MilkyWay3D.org was presented to the astronomy research community was a the Surveying the Milky Way: The Universe in Our Own Backyard, in the poster shown here, and in talks by Science PI Catherine Zucker and Harvard graduate student Theo O'Neill.
"As seen on TV" (or at least in an Apple Promo)! In late 2023, the Milky Way 3D imagery was featured (21 sec in) in this Apple launch of the M3 Macs.
(Note references to WorldWide Telescope & glue in the video description.)