From Search Wars to Star Wars

Want to explore the mysteries of deep space from your desktop? Google can help you. And soon, so can Microsoft.

Normally my digital peregrinations take me to destinations like Facebook, YouTube and BOINGBOING.net. But lately I’ve been spending time in the Crab Nebula, Cassiopeia A and the Sombrero Galaxy. These addictive celestial visits come courtesy of two remarkable interactive astronomy programs from a pair of companies that would love to vaporize each other—Google and Microsoft. When superpower countries like the United States and the former Soviet Union contemplated moving their conflicts to outer space, there was justifiable fear and dread. But a similar escalation by software superpowers may turn out to be a boon for all.

Last summer Google integrated an astronomy component into its Google Earth program, and last month made the program accessible straight from the Web. Later this spring Microsoft will release ...