Images that we see
The images we see that come from Hubble or a
ground observatory that are so incredible to look
at, and so far away, are really altered images.
They are actual locations in space but they aren't
as colorful as they are depicted.
How it
works
High Powered Telescopes use a variety of
filters and instruments to separate out the
various wavelengths of light, including all the
ranges we can't see, such as ultraviolet and
infrared. Colors are assigned to different
wavelengths so that when an instrument picks up on
its wavelength it sees the image in it's assigned
color. When the telescope takes an actual picture
it comes out in black and white. The invisible
spectrums are seen by the instruments and form an
image with their assigned color in the picture. In
another instrument, that sees other wavelengths,
another version of that picture is taken where a
different image in this other wavelength is formed
of that same region. These images are then
overlapped and represent the different wavelengths
captured by the instruments of the telescope. This
can be done with multiple wavelengths and colors
to create an extremely vibrant image.
Pictures are also set to red, green, and
blue exposures to create images with nearly every
color the human eye can interpret.
hubblesite.org
has the complete walkthrough of how exactly colors
are added into celestial pictures.
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