In a deal that is drenched in symbolism, Google has signed an agreement with the Nasa Ames research centre to build a new corporate campus on its grounds in the heart of Silicon Valley.

The agreement is huge for Google: the company is moving into the birth chamber of Silicon Valley. The Ames Research Centre is based on the naval airbase Moffett Field. That also happens to house a hangar (left of the "a" on the map below) that was once used for the construction of Zeppelins.

Following the crash of the Hindenburg the factory was closed. But the technologists that worked there are said to have been instrumental in providing the early work force for Silicon Valley companies.

The new campus also is just stone's throw away Google's current dwelling.

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Tags: google, ames, nasa, mountain view, silicon valley

30 Sep 2005