The Known Universe is an amazing video that takes you from the Himalayas to the far reaches of space, to experience the afterglow of Big Bang, constellations, planets, quasars, the Milky Way, our solar system, and more…

It is compiled from the Digital Universe Atlas, a four-dimensional map of the universe maintained by the American Museum of Natural History, so it is all astronomically accurate. It is mind-expanding and beautiful, especially viewed full-screen.

It is one of the treasures I’ve found during the past year on kottke.org, one of my favorite blogs. I stop by daily to see what Jason Kottke has found, and although I may pass several posts by, just scanning the titles opens my view until I hit BIG with the likes of The Known Universe.

So this is a shout-out:  Thanks a million Kottke!