Google Earth has just released a new layer, and within it, there are three different parts.  Each comes courtesy of NASA, and they’re called Astronaut Photography of Earth, Satellite Imagery, and Earth City Lights.

Numedeon, Inc., creators of Whyville the educational virtual world for children and young teenagers, has created a site for NASA

Google and NASA Ames Research Center have signed a “Space Act Agreement” to pool their collective technological expertise to address issues ranging from large-scale data management and massively distributed computing, to human-computer interfaces.

While Google has not reported completion of their fabled ‘space elevator’, they have made it easier to explore the Red Planet through a specially crafted version of Google Maps.

George Deutsch joined the US space agency via a White House appointment, and tried to get a staffer at NASA to add the word “theory” to every instance of Big Bang on NASA’s web sites.

Just when you thought Google couldn’t get any more jaw-dropping with its latest explorations, you realize with a sudden and exasperated “omigod” that this is bigger-much bigger than we imagined. Google, NASA, and MIT are going to change the world…again.

Some interesting things on the blogs today (I am linking here to Memeorandum): Om Malik touched off a firestorm of comment …

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) announced on Thursday they would be taking on Google as a roommate at the Ames Research Center. The two entities intend to collaborate on a number of “technology-focused research-and-development activities.”

NASA’s Ames Research Center at Moffett Field, CA, will host Google CEO Eric Schmidt for a 7:30 pm ET news conference.

As we wait for the space shuttle to return safely to earth – delayed until Tuesday, according to a BBC News report …

Legislation in the House and Senate concerning NASA’s policy measures will be followed by its budget.

The U.S. House of Representatives passed a crucial portion of President Bush’s legacy with the endorsement of the budget for NASA in a solid 383-15 vote. It’s nice to see one American dream kept alive.

The airline has been testing a NASA-developed automated turbulence reporting system on over 80 aircraft.

More frustration plagues NASA as engineers drudge through the fuel sensor problems, which have delayed the shuttle launch well over a week. While delays have occurred frequently for various missions throughout the shuttle program’s history, the eyes of the world remain on Cape Kennedy for the first launch since Columbia.

Steve Rubel is leaving Microsoft’s Windows for Apple. “I fear that by the time Longhorn comes out (next year?) you will be less relevant than before.

Lockheed Martin and a team of Boeing and Northrop Grumman each receive $28 million USD contracts to develop designs for the Crew Exploration Vehicle.

The space shuttle Discovery has one day remaining in its countdown to lift off, the first shuttle flight in over two years.

With only two days left before the STS 114 Space Shuttle’s Discovery’s return to space, excitement continues to build at NASA as the shuttle’s astronauts and all the crew involved go through final preparations for launch. The countdown has begun.

When you’re kid, you inevitable look up and ask the same questions. Why is the moon made of cheese? Why is that light moving across the sky? Why is the sky blue? What else is up there? Well son, we’re workin’ on it. So says NASA and the Discovery astronauts.

I see it in the stars. Someone’s going to be laughed out of court-and soon. A Russian astrologer has filed suit against NASA claiming the impactor probe the space agency used to blow a football field sized crater into a speeding comet has “distorted” her horoscope.

Deep Impact attempted its cosmic haymaker into Tempel-1 early on Monday, July 4th with resounding success and even though the impactor was only the size of a coffee table, it did propel the comet into history.