Microsoft Live Labs Photosynth... capturing the image DNA in 3D

I learned about this amazing research project via a recent press release from Microsoft .. the technology is being used to create
3-D images of the space shuttle Endeavour and surrounding buildings at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida

With Photosynth you can:

- Walk or fly through a scene to see photos from any angle.
- Seamlessly zoom in or out of a photo whether it's megapixels or gigapixels in size.
- See where pictures were taken in relation to one another.
- Find similar photos to the one you're currently viewing.
- Send a collection - or a particular view of one - to a friend.

how it works:

Each photo is processed by computer vision algorithms to extract hundreds of distinctive features, like the corner of a window frame or a door handle. Photos that share features are then linked together in a web. When the same feature is found in multiple images, its 3D position can be calculated.

Imagine storing the image DNA. Photosynth could then show you other photos that have similar features to the one you're currently viewing. Imagine capturing a photo of the Statue of Liberty for example... you can then immediately access information about the feature via WiKipedia etc...

See Microsoft Live Labs - http://labs.live.com/photosynth/