Called Google Body Browser, the hi-tech 3D application has been hailed as a breakthrough in the study of anatomy that could revolutionise our understanding of the human body and even fast-track medical research.

The gadget, yet to be officially released, lets you explore the human body in much the same way you can navigate the world on Google Earth.

Individual anatomic layers (skin, muscles, bones, etc.) can be selected or deselected for viewing, but can also be made semi-transparent on an individual level. Labels can be displayed, and all anatomy is fully searchable.

Since the Google Body Browser is based on WebGL, there is no need for plugins such as Flash or Java. Instead, you only need a supported browser to enable the demo – in this case, that happens to be the Dev release of Chrome 9, or the latest Firefox 4 beta.

Check out the the Google Body Browser for yourself.