The photos appeared in my Friendfeed stream a short time ago and the were absolutely amazing ... so, a little quick research to find out what was going on.
A few accounts had already been posted to the web about the latest NASA photos. Theweren't entirely accurate. I decided to write this not only to make clear what was actually happening, but to bring it to my readers as well.
It is going to be a great show. ....and maybe a little bit of 'history redefined by partnering'.
The Internet Archive (aka Wayback Machine) has partnered with NASA to bring to the extraordinary collection of web-based space images over the years to one place on the Internet. www.nasaimages.org.
The site is live now and it is definately worth checking out.
To go where no man (or woman) has gone before ? ....
The joint press release is below.
David E. Steitz
Headquarters, Washington July 24, 2008
202-358-1730
david.steitz@nasa.gov
Paul Hickman
Internet Archive
415-462-1509, 415-561-6767
paul@archive.org
RELEASE: 08-173
NASA AND INTERNET ARCHIVE LAUNCH CENTRALIZED RESOURCE FOR IMAGES
WASHINGTON -- NASA and Internet Archive, a non-profit digital library based in San Francisco, made available the most comprehensive compilation ever of NASA's vast collection of photographs, historic film and video Thursday. Located at www.nasaimages.org, the Internet site combines for the first time 21 major NASA imagery collections into a single, searchable online resource. A link to the Web site will appear on the www.nasa.gov
The Web site launch is the first step in a five-year partnership that will add millions of images and thousands of hours of video and audio content, with enhanced search and viewing capabilities, and new user features on a continuing basis. Over time, integration of www.nasaimages.org with www.nasa.gov will become more seamless and comprehensive.
"This partnership with Internet Archive enables NASA to provide the American public with access to its vast collection of imagery from one searchable source, unlocking a new treasure trove of discoveries for students, historians, enthusiasts and researchers," said NASA Deputy Administrator Shana Dale. "This new resource also will enable the agency to digitize and preserve historical content now not available on the Internet for future generations."
Through a competitive process, NASA selected Internet Archive to manage the NASA Images Web site under a non-exclusive Space Act agreement, signed in July 2007. The five-year project is at no cost to the taxpayer and the images are free to the public.
"NASA's media is an incredibly important and valuable national asset. It is a tremendous honor for the Internet Archive to be NASA's partner in this project," says Brewster Kahle, founder of Internet Archive. "We are excited to mark this first step in a long-term collaboration to create a rich and growing public resource."
The content of the Web site covers all the diverse activities of America's space program, including imagery from the Apollo moon missions, Hubble Space Telescope views of the universe and experimental aircraft past and present. Keyword searching is available with easy-to-use resources for teachers and students.
Internet Archive is developing the NASA Images project using software donated by Luna Imaging Inc. of Los Angeles and with the generous support of the Kahle-Austin Foundation of San Francisco.
For more information about NASA and agency programs, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov
For more information about Internet Archive, visit:
http://www.archive.org