The Virgo Cluster
  In the era of precision cosmology the Virgo cluster takes on a new role in
the cosmic distance scale. Its traditional role of testing the consistency of
secondary distance indicators is replaced by an ensemble of distance
measurements within the Local Supercluster united by a velocity field model
obtained from redshift survey based reconstruction. WMAP leads us to see the
Hubble Constant as one of six parameters in a standard model of cosmology with
considerable covariance between parameters. Independent experiments, such as
WMAP and the HST Key Project (and their successors) constrain these parameters.
