After 6 months of hard work, I'm finally ready to announce the biggest addition to this site since it was launched a few years ago.
The Galactic Plane Explorer allows you to explore the Milky Way in infrared, radio, microwave and hydrogen-alpha frequencies. There's even a fascinating composite view that shows the Milky Way in radio, infrared and hydrogen-alpha frequencies all at once.
Since much of our view of the Milky Way is blocked by dense dust clouds at visual frequencies, adding these images reveals a vast array of new nebulae and stars that even professional astronomers know little or nothing about.
Many of the images were collected using specialised equipment only a few years ago and have not been easily accessible. When you use the Galactic Plane Explorer you will be seeing objects that have only been seen before by a small group of professional astronomers. There is an enormous amount to discover!
I'll be using the Explorer myself to write a new detailed commentary on the galactic plane that should start appearing on this site later this year. I've also found many of the images to be strikingly beautiful, especially if you set the overlay to "None" and look at the composite or high resolution infrared frequencies.
Please tell me what you think. (You need to register using the link at the left to post comments. It only takes a minute.)