Microsoft’s World Wide Telescope is rumored to be one of the greatest applications to hit the desktop in many years. It brought popular blogger Robert Scoble to tears, and was a big hit at the elite TED conference in California.

Only one problem - World Wide Telescope is not available yet to any but a select few.

Enter Google’s launch today of their astronomy application, Google Sky, which according to Google “…. turns your browser into a virtual telescope that can zoom and pan across the entire cosmos”.

In what almost seems like a slap in the face to Microsoft’s slow deployment of their much hyped application Google heaps on the hype at their blog about Google Sky:

All of this is accessible from any web browser, on any operating system, with no extra download required. And since staring up at the cosmos is an experience shared across the globe, we decided to make Google Sky truly worldwide, with 26 localized language editions (this marks our first Maps product to support right-to-left languages). Just visit sky.google.com to get started.

First, kudos to Google and to Microsoft for tackling projects like this that have at best marginal revenue potential. This is software and technology at its finest, providing teachers as well as students of all ages with exciting tools and experiences.

You almost have to feel sorry for Microsoft though, as *once again* Google has brought a beautiful new application to us faster and probably with an easier to use interface than Microsoft will have.

But in the meantime enjoy your star trek at http://sky.google.com!

Microsoft WorldWide Telescope!