Dr. Naphtali Rishe and Martha Gutierrez of the High-Performance Database Research Center at Florida International University recently introduced the Center's TerraFly project to a U.S. congressional delegation. Said Representative Carrie Meek of the House Appropriations Committee (D-Florida), "I hope for great commercial potential for this technology."

TerraFly technology has also been presented to other leaders of local, state, federal, and foreign governments, including Spanish Prime Minister José Maria Aznar.

TerraFly is a new Internet-based technology that makes it possible for users to "fly over" vast land areas using only an ordinary Web browser. By using high-resolution imagery collected by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and other sources, users can experience an overhead view of almost any location in the United States at a one-meter resolution-without the expense of standard GIS application software. The project, which is funded by NASA, the National Science Foundation, and IBM, can be accessed on the Web at http://www.terrafly.com.