Brilliant March comet visible on home computers

Business Wire, March 21, 1996

SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 21, 1996-- When the newly discovered Comet Hyakutake passes by the Earth in what is expected to be a dazzling light display on March 26, stargazers will be able to hitch a virtual ride on their home computers.

Using First Light, a multimedia CD-ROM space exploration program from Virtual Reality Laboratories, Inc., armchair astronomers can view Hyakutake's orbit from above or below the solar system and to position the comet in the sky at any location on Earth for any date. Users can then print out celestial maps for the chosen date and time to help them find the real thing in the sky away from city lights.

First Light also will track Comet Hale Bopp, another brilliant new comet which will reach maximum visibility in April 1997. Both comets can be accessed through a special comet button on the program. Comet Hyakutake was discovered earlier this year by amateur astronomer Yuji Hyakutake of Japan. The discovery was astonishing because it was made using nothing more than a sophisticated pair of binoculars and because it was Hyakutake's second discovery in only five weeks -- a fraction of the time usually needed for a comet discovery. It is expected to pass less than 10 million miles from Earth, which could make it the brightest comet since Comet Halley in 1986, outshining all but the brightest half-dozen stars. Hyakutake is projected to reach maximum brightness during its approach on March 26, when it will be visible all night from the Northern Hemisphere.

Comet Hale-Bopp was discovered accidentally by Alan Hale last July while still far away in space. Because it was bright enough to find much further away than most comets, it is expected to one of the largest and brightest comets of this century, with a diameter of 50 miles across and a tail nearly 40 times the width of the full moon at its brightest point. It should be clearly visible in the early morning skies for the Northern Hemisphere in April 1997.

First Light is a full-featured desktop planetarium that lets users hover above the planets in a virtual spaceship, land on Mars and ride everything from Halley's Comet to the Voyager spacecraft in animated flybys through the skies. It includes digitized NASA photographs of the planets' surfaces, video clips of space walks and interesting astronomical phenomena, plus complete information on subjects ranging from nebulae to pulsars.

First Light's street price is $44.95 and is available through VRLI at 800/829-8754 or 805/781-2250. Screen shots are available at http://www.vrli.com.

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CONTACT: S&S Public Relations, Northbrook

Allison Clark, 800/287-2279

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