Under the arrangement, the telescope will also incorporate new moon images from NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter that's launching in May.

"Making NASA's scientific and astronomical data more accessible to the public is a high priority for NASA, especially given the new administration's recent emphasis on open government and transparency," Ed Weller, associate administrator for NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington, said in the release.

Microsoft external research VP Tony Hey said the collaboration "will enable people around the world to explore new images of the Moon and Mars in a rich, interactive environment through the WorldWide Telescope."

Ames director S. Pete Worden said the project is "a compelling astronomical resource and will help inspire our next generation of astronomers."

(I've got to agree: The morning after I loaded WorldWide Telescope onto the touchscreen Eee Top I've been testing, my third-grader bypassed the TV and spent more than an hour tapping her way through space.)

NASA has already used Microsoft technology to build 3-D Photosynth image collections of the space shuttle launch pad and other facilitie at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the release said.

NASA's also developing tools to add more images, including historic imagery of the planets, into formats that can be easily browsed via the Web.