Big Picture, Big Data: Swiss Unveil VR Software of Universe

Hadrien Gurnel, software engineer at EPFL's Laboratory for Experimental Museology (eM+), explores with a virtual reality helmet in St-Sulpice near Lausanne, Switzerland, on Oct. 12, 2021. Laurent Gillieron/Keystone via AP

LAUSANNE, Switzerland—The final frontier has rarely seemed closer than this—at least virtually.

Researchers at one of Switzerland’s top universities are releasing open-source beta software on Tuesday that allows for virtual visits through the cosmos including up to the International Space Station, past the Moon, Saturn or exoplanets, over galaxies, and well beyond.