First light for the Millennium Run Observatory

The famous Millennium Run (MR) simulations now appear in a completely new light: The Millennium Run Observatory (MRObs) project combines detailed predictions from cosmological simulations with a virtual observatory in order to produce synthetic astronomical observations. These virtual observations allow theorists and observers to analyse the purely theoretical data in exactly the same way as they would purely observational data. The team expects that the advantages offered by this approach will lead to a richer collaboration between theoretical and observational astronomers.