The Pacific Ocean as seen from space. The most famous photographs of the earth from space
Our planet is beautiful and amazing. Perhaps, with the development of space tourism, the secret dream of many people to see the earth from space will come true. Today, you can admire the breathtaking, magnificent panoramas of the Earth in photographs.
We present a selection of ten of the most famous images globe from NASA.
"Blue marble"
A widely known and widespread image of our stunning planet until 2002. The birth of this photograph was the result of long and painstaking work. From a compilation of footage from months of research into the movement of oceans, clouds, and drifting ice, scientists have created a mosaic of amazing colors.
“Blue Marble” is recognized as a universal treasure and even now is considered the most detailed and detailed image of the globe. 
An image taken from a record distance (about 6 billion kilometers) using the Voyajer 1 space probe. This spacecraft managed to transmit to NASA about 60 frames from the very depths of the solar system, including the “Pale Blue Dot”, where the globe looks tiny (0.12 pixels) with a bluish speck of dust on a brown stripe.
The “Pale Blue Dot” was destined to become the very first “portrait” of the Earth against the endless backdrop of outer space. 
Another world-famous photo - amazing A view of the Earth taken by the American crew of Apollo 11 during the historic mission: the 1969 Moon landing.
Then three astronauts, led by Neil Armstrong, successfully completed the task - they landed on the lunar surface and returned home safely, having managed to leave this legendary image for history. 
A photo unexpected for human perception: two luminous crescents on a completely black background of the universe. On the bluish crescent of the Earth you can see the contours eastern Asia, western waters Pacific Ocean and white areas of the Arctic. The image was transmitted in September 1977 by the Voyager 1 interplanetary probe. In this photograph, our planet is captured at a distance of more than 11 million kilometers. 
The crew of Apollo 11 took two more famous photographs, in which the Earth's Terminator (from the Latin terminare - to stop) is visible with a rounded line - the light dividing line separating the illuminated (light) part of the celestial body from the unlit (dark) part, circling the planet twice per day - at sunset and sunrise. On the North and South Pole this phenomenon is observed quite rarely. 
Thanks to this photograph, humanity was able to see what our home looks like from another planet. The globe from the surface of Mars appears as a planetary disk flickering above the horizon. 
This image was the first to capture the landscape of the far side of the Moon using Swedish Hasselblad equipment. This event occurred in April 1972, when dark side The crew of Apollo 16 descended onto the Earth's satellite, with John Young as expedition commander. 
This photograph has a scandalous reputation: many experts believe that the picture was not taken on the Moon at all, but in a specially equipped studio that simulates the lunar surface. Many question the very fact of astronauts being on the Moon. 
Every day new real photos of Space appear on the website portal. Astronauts effortlessly capture majestic views of space and planets that appeal to millions of people.
Most often, high-quality photos of Space are provided by aerospace space agency NASA, making incredible views of stars available to the public, various phenomena in outer space and planets, including the Earth. Surely you have repeatedly seen photographs from the Hubble telescope, which allow you to see what was previously not accessible to the human eye.
Never-before-seen nebulae and distant galaxies, nascent stars cannot but surprise with their diversity, attracting the attention of romantics and ordinary people. Fabulous landscapes of gas clouds and star dust reveal mysterious phenomena.
the site offers its visitors the best photographs taken from an orbital telescope, which constantly reveals the secrets of the Cosmos. We are very lucky because astronauts always surprise us with new real photos Space.
Every year the Hubble team releases incredible photo, to mark the anniversary of the launch of the space telescope, which falls on April 24, 1990.
Many people believe that thanks to the Hubble telescope in orbit, we get high-quality images of distant objects in the Universe. The pictures are really very high quality and high resolution. But what the telescope produces are black and white photos. Where do all these mesmerizing colors come from then? Almost all this beauty appears as a result of processing photographs with a graphics editor. Moreover, this takes quite a lot of time.
Real photos of Space in high quality
Only a few are given the opportunity to go into space. So we should be grateful to NASA, astronauts and the European Space Agency for regularly delighting us with new images. Previously, we could only see something like this in Hollywood films. We present photos of objects outside the solar system: star clusters (globular and open clusters) and distant galaxies.
Real photos of Space from Earth
A telescope (astrograph) is used to photograph celestial objects. It is known that galaxies and nebulae have low brightness and require long exposures to photograph them.
And this is where the problems begin. Due to the rotation of the Earth around its axis, even with a slight increase in the telescope, the daily movement of the stars is noticeable, and if the device does not have a clock drive, then the stars will appear in the form of dashes in the photographs. However, not all so simple. Due to the inaccuracy of aligning the telescope to the celestial pole and errors in the clock drive, the stars, writing out a curve, slowly move across the field of view of the telescope, and point stars are not obtained in the photograph. In order to completely eliminate this effect, it is necessary to use guiding (an optical tube with a camera is placed on the top of the telescope, aimed at the guiding star). Such a tube is called a guide. Through the camera, the image is sent to a PC, where the image is analyzed. If a star moves in the guide’s field of view, the computer sends a signal to the telescope mount motors, thereby correcting its position. This is how you achieve pinpoint stars in the picture. Then a series of photographs are taken with a long shutter speed. But due to the thermal noise of the matrix, the photos are grainy and noisy. In addition, spots from dust particles on the matrix or optics may appear in the pictures. You can get rid of this effect using a caliber.
Real photos of the Earth from Space in high quality
The wealth of lights of night cities, the meanders of rivers, the harsh beauty of mountains, the mirrors of lakes looking from the depths of continents, the endless oceans and great amount sunrises and sunsets - all this was reflected in real photographs of the Earth taken from Space.
Enjoy a wonderful selection of photographs from the portal site taken from Space.
The biggest mystery for humanity is space. Outer space is represented to a greater extent by emptiness, and to a lesser extent by the presence of complex chemical elements and particles. Most of all there is hydrogen in space. Interstellar matter is also present and electromagnetic radiation. But outer space is not only cold and eternal darkness, it is an indescribable beauty and breathtaking place that surrounds our planet.
The portal site will show you the depths of outer space and all its beauty. We offer only reliable and useful information, we will show unforgettable high-quality photos of space taken by NASA astronauts. You will see for yourself the charm and incomprehensibility of the biggest mystery for humanity - space!
We have always been taught that everything has a beginning and an end. But that's not true! Space has no clear boundary. As you move away from the Earth, the atmosphere becomes rarefied and gradually gives way to outer space. It is not known exactly where the boundaries of space begin. There are a number of opinions from different scientists and astrophysicists, but no one has yet provided concrete facts. If the temperature had a constant structure, then the pressure would change according to the law - from 100 kPa at sea level to absolute zero. The International Aeronautical Station (IAS) established the altitude boundary between space and the atmosphere at 100 km. It was called the Karman line. The reason for marking this particular height was the fact: when pilots rise to this height, gravity ceases to influence the flying vehicle, and therefore it goes to “first cosmic speed,” that is, to the minimum speed for transition to a geocentric orbit.
American and Canadian astronomers measured the onset of exposure to cosmic particles and the limit of control of atmospheric winds. The result was recorded at the 118th kilometer, although NASA itself claims that the boundary of space is located at the 122nd kilometer. At this altitude, the shuttles switched from conventional maneuvering to aerodynamic maneuvering and, thus, “rested” on the atmosphere. During these studies, the astronauts kept a photographic record. On the website you can view these and other high-quality photos of space in detail.
Solar system. Photos of space in high quality
The solar system is represented by a number of planets and the brightest star - the sun. The space itself is called interplanetary space or vacuum. The vacuum of space is not absolute; it contains atoms and molecules. They were discovered using microwave spectroscopy. There are also gases, dust, plasma, various space debris and small meteors. All this can be seen in the photos taken by the astronauts. Producing a high-quality photo shoot in space is very simple. At space stations (for example, VRC) there are special “domes” - places with the maximum number of windows. Cameras are mounted in these places. The Hubble telescope and its more advanced analogues greatly helped in ground photography and space exploration. In the same way, astronomical observations can be made at almost all waves of the electromagnetic spectrum.
In addition to telescopes and special instruments, photographing the depths of our solar system possible with the help of high-quality cameras. It is thanks to space photographs that all humanity can appreciate the beauty and grandeur of outer space, and our portal “site” will demonstrate it clearly in the form of high-quality photos of space. For the first time during the DigitizedSky project, the Omega Nebula was photographed, which was discovered back in 1775 by J. F. Chezot. And when astronauts used a panchromatic context camera while exploring Mars, they were able to photograph strange bumps that were unknown to date. Similarly, the nebula NGC 6357, which is located in the constellation Scorpius, was captured from the European Observatory.
Or maybe you've heard about famous photograph, which presented traces of the former presence of water on Mars? More recently, the Mars Express spacecraft demonstrated the real colors of the planet. Channels, craters and a valley became visible, in which, most likely, liquid water was once present. And these are not all photographs depicting the solar system and the mysteries of space.
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We are very lucky as the astronauts on the International Space Station continue to amaze us with new photos of our beautiful planet.
Very few lucky people get the chance to observe the Earth from space. So, we are sincerely grateful to the astronauts, NASA and the European Space Agency, and, in case any of them are reading this, we once again say our sincere “thank you” to you! After all, before similar species we could only observe in films created at Hollywood film studios. But these photos are real.
1. Maldives.
“We will open you to the sunny side of life” - this is the slogan that tour operators lure tourists to the Maldives. Well, from the porthole of the International space station they really look amazing. Well, let's order a cocktail with slices of fruit and an umbrella in a glass, and go to the hammock to just relax while watching the amazing sunset?
2. Pacific Ocean, Hawaii.
Aloha! We are approaching the Hawaiian Islands. The big island is visible very clearly. Kilauea is known as the "world's only road volcano." It now produces 250-650 thousand yards of lava per day. This amount is enough to fill a 32 km long two-lane highway.
3. Southern Lights, New Zealand.
Don't you think that the southern lights in this photo resemble a laser show - amazing and mesmerizing?
4. Night view of the east coast of Spain.
Before you is the eastern coast of Spain at night, the Balearic Sea appears as a dark blur. At the top left is the island of Mallorca. Looking at Barcelona at night, you remember that for someone one of their cherished desires is to go to this city for the Barcelona match against Real Madrid.
5. Mannam Volcano, Papua New Guinea.
Mannam, also known as the "Great Volcano", is only 10 km in diameter. Mannam is a stratovolcano formed from changing layers of ash, lava and rocks from previous eruptions. This is one of the most active active volcanoes Papua New Guinea, whose eruptions often cause deaths, including 13 deaths in December 1996, and four more in March 2007. In general, this photograph resembles an excellent set for some film like “Park Jurassic" or "King Kong".
6. International Space Station.
The ISS is located over the eastern coast of Argentina over the Gulf of San Matias. Looking at these photos can make you feel dizzy. Just imagine that you are up there, on board the International Space Station, looking at our planet upside down... - how is your vestibular system?
7. Beaver Lake in Arkansas, USA.
Beaver Lake is a man-made body of water in the Ozark Mountains located in northwest Arkansas, the birthplace of White River. Sometimes artificial reservoirs are wiped out by forest fires, but humanity continues to change the planet with amazing tenacity.
8. East Coast USA and the last ray of light on the horizon.
The US East Coast, New York and Long Island are at the bottom left. Do you want to see this panorama with your own eyes? What was the matter? Only $20 million...
9. Earth and stars.
So this is what the Milky Way looks like when the light of night cities does not obscure it. I would like to quote Dr. McCoy from the world famous Star Trek: “In this galaxy there is a mathematical probability of three million planets similar in type to Earth. And there are three million million galaxies in the universe like this one. And they probably contain at least one version of ourselves.”
10. Night clouds over Long Beach, California.
This is truly an amazing place - Long Beach. The place where you can meet the Queen Mary and the Aquarium of the Pacific. But the best thing to do here is to take a trip by sea, where you can watch the friendly gray whales. During migration, they swim close to the shore.
11. Great Britain and Ireland at night.
These regions gave the world the authors of Romeo and Juliet (William Shakespeare), Pride and Prejudice (Jane Austen), Dracula (Bram Stoker) and Harry Potter (J. K. Rowling). The British Isles, where the royal wedding is now eagerly awaited, are simply amazing.
12. Launch of an automatic interorbital transport vehicle.
Arianespace and ESA launched an interorbital vehicle to the International Space Station. I wonder how far they were from each other?
13. Solar panels of the International Space Station.
The ISS solar panels are simply amazing. When the sun disappears below the horizon, the last sunlight Colors solar panels in amazing shades.
14. French Riviera at night.
The Cote d'Azur is not only super-expensive and super-popular, but also super-beauty, which is only emphasized by the reflection of the moon in the Mediterranean Sea. This may be the only place that can bear comparison with southern California.
15. Bright lights of Barcelona at night.
16. Supermoon.
On March 19, the inhabitants of planet Earth could observe a supermoon - a phenomenon during which full moon came as close to our planet as possible. The moon photographed from the International Space Station is simply beautiful, but in this photo it even looks a little scary.
17. Cape Cod, Massachusetts.
Cape Cod, which local residents Simply called Cape, it is an island and cape in eastern Massachusetts. The sun is reflected in the water surface of the Atlantic Ocean, turning it into living gold, shading the amazing cape.
18. Moscow at night
Moscow, a city of 11 million people, is not only the capital of Russia, but also the center of European culture. Russians are a passionate, proud, sexy and intelligent people, but at the same time sophisticated, intelligent, and with a wonderful sense of humor. And in this photograph we see the very heart of this superpower. And the heart is simply incredibly beautiful.
20. Sicily, Italy
Sicily is considered the birthplace of the mafia thanks to the series of films " Godfather" But in fact it is a beautiful and absolutely magical island, full of passionate people who love music and food, and live with desperate courage in the shadow of the ancient volcano Etna. In this photo it is difficult to make out what exactly is being reflected from Mediterranean Sea- sunlight or moonlight. Either way, the photo is amazing.
21. Lake Qadisiya on the Euphrates River owes its birth to the Haditha dam. From space she looks like she's ready to attack Chinese dragon. There are many amazing places in Iraq that, unfortunately, cannot be visited due to the ongoing military conflict that has been going on for many years. Perhaps someday we will be able to visit both there and other historical places.
22. Heart-shaped atoll, east of the Solomon Islands.
This atoll is especially loved by astronauts on the International Space Station. They sent this photo to Earth on Valentine's Day. Atoll is coral island, which partially or completely covers the lagoon. If you look closely, you can see that this atoll is actually the tip of an old volcano.
23. San Quentin Glacier, Chile.
The San Quentin Glacier is the largest glacier in Chile. Like many glaciers around the world, in the twentieth century, San Quentin began to gradually shrink in size and lose mass. What caused this: natural factors or the consequences of human actions? It’s hard to say; it’s easier to enjoy the beauty of the amazing glacier.
24. Crete, Greece and Türkiye
Beautiful clear photo of Hellas (Greece), Turkey and the island of Crete. Crete has a rich mythology associated mainly with the Greek gods, but also with the Minoan civilization. Crete in Greek mythology considered the birthplace of the god Zeus. Also here is the famous labyrinth of Knossos.
25. River Nile
Neil is the most long river in the world (6650 km), located in North Africa. At the bottom of the photo you can see the place where the Blue Nile and White Nile merge.
26. Buenos Aires, Argentina, La Plata
La Plata is an estuary, a flooded mouth of a river, formed at the confluence of the Uruguay and Paraná rivers at the border of Argentina and Uruguay. The photo resembles a picture with a silvery vein coming from big heart left.
27. Cyclone Diana off Mesero-east coast of Australia
In meteorology, a cyclone is an area of closed circular motion rotating in the same direction as the Earth. We've seen photographs of cyclones and hurricanes before, but if you look closely, in this photograph you can see the planet below. Look into the center of the “eye”.
28. Desert of Somalia.
This amazing red "coral" north of Bakaadwein, west of Kalabadhlmag is the Somali Desert. It's a strange feeling, isn't it? -It seems as if the Earth itself is bleeding. Amazing photo.
29. Chaco National Park in Paraguay.
The Chaco is a plain whose area is approximately one million square kilometers. It covers parts of Paraguay, Bolivia, Argentina and Brazil. The clouds along the edges turn the planet below into the scales of a huge lizard. Maybe Godzilla is hiding out there somewhere?
30. Los Glaciares National Park, Argentina.
Lake Argentino is located in the Patagonian province of Santa Cruz. This is the largest lake in Argentina, with an area of 1,466 square kilometers. But, if you look closely, you can see the outlines of a body. It looks as if someone fell from the sky and left a dent.
31. Santiago, Cape Verde.
Cape Verde is an archipelago of 10 islands located in the center of the Atlantic Ocean, 570 km off the coast of West Africa. It has the word “green” in its name, but even so, the area is a little dry. Santiago is the largest island in the archipelago and appears a bit flat in the southeast. The transcontinental slave trade made the city of Cidade Velha, located here, the second richest city in the Portuguese kingdom.
You can only see several countries at once from space. A stunning picture opens up to our eyes when viewing planet Earth from outer space in photographs and videos taken from a satellite. Particularly breathtaking images and views are obtained when shooting at night. The bright lights of the cities and the northern lights of some regions will not leave anyone indifferent. In this article we will look at the most interesting images from space.
Images taken in space not only provide scientists with the opportunity to study the surface of the earth, but also remind us mere mortals that we live on a relatively small pebble, which is actually very fragile.
The further away the satellites and spaceships are from our planet, the more colorful and amazing the views of the Earth in photos and videos are. So the space shuttle DSCOVR, located several million kilometers from Earth, sees the sunlit part of our planet.
Planet Earth. Sunny side From this wonderful angle, the ship often takes photographs of eclipses of the Moon, which runs like a shadow across the entire surface of the globe. Only when the shadow merges with the surface of the Earth are such masterpieces obtained.
Moon eclipse Earth Photos of the Earth from space
This image of planet Earth, taken in 1972 by the crew of the Apollo 17 lunar mission, is the most reproduced and popular in the history of astronautics.
Photo of the Earth taken in 1972 Although no one still knows the name of the astronaut who captured the sight of the wonderful marble model of the planet. One thing is known that the image was taken at a distance of 44 thousand kilometers from Earth.
Incredible wonders are revealed to astronauts at night. From above, they can see the different shades of city lights, as well as the deep blue of the endless oceans.
Astronauts against the backdrop of the Earth Many photographs of the earth are taken from the International Space Station, which are then published in various magazines. Those for whom static images of our Earth from space are not enough, as well as those who do not have a professional telescope at home, can observe on their own through a full-fledged telescope online.
The sponli.com online telescope will allow you to view the Earth from different angles
Have you long dreamed of seeing outer space with your own eyes using a telescope? Now you have this opportunity. To do this, you need a computer or laptop and a stable Internet connection. Follow the link http://web.sponli.com/scope-online-ru/ and you will be able to observe several objects in our solar system. On the right are photos of the Earth, Moon and other planets from space, which are updated every 5 minutes. On the left of the window are the observatory devices that allow you to take these pictures.
Online telescope sponli.com View from space thanks to Google
In Google maps, you can view 20 planets of the solar system and their satellites online, as well as the interior of the international space station. Each model of the planet is very detailed, you can distinguish each crater. The models were created using the latest data available to scientists today. To view, open https://google.com/maps/, click on the menu button in the top right corner and select "Satellite". If you see this moment approximation of the Earth, then use the mouse wheel to move our planet as far away as possible and a list will appear on the left. Stop your choice on any object.
Planets in Google.Maps A model of the planet you selected from the list will appear in front of you. You can move it, turn it over to the sunny or night side and examine each area. The planets are presented in sufficient detail for a general overview, but all of them cannot be considered in as much detail as our Earth. On each selected celestial body you can find the names of craters and depressions, all of which are displayed as they approach the surface of the planet.
By choosing the International Space Station, you will be able to see all the interior details with your own eyes. Even the inscriptions on the boxes and wires are visible here. And from the windows you can see the blue and white areas of our native land. Using the mouse buttons, you can move the camera to any point inside the space station. To “walk” further through the station, use the mouse wheel, scrolling it forward to get closer to the desired object. This representation of the station was achieved by combining photos and videos taken earlier. To view our planet Earth from space, select “Globe” from the list.
August 16th, 2016
Photos from space published on the websites of NASA and other space agencies often attract the attention of those who doubt their authenticity - critics find traces of editing, retouching or color manipulation in the images. This has been the case since the birth of the “moon conspiracy,” and now photographs taken not only by Americans, but also by Europeans, Japanese, and Indians have come under suspicion. Together with the N+1 portal, we are looking into why space images are processed at all and whether, despite this, they can be considered authentic.
In order to correctly assess the quality of space images that we see on the Internet, it is necessary to take into account two important factors. One of them is related to the nature of interaction between agencies and general public, the other is dictated by physical laws.
Public relations
Space images are one of the most effective means popularizing the work of research missions in near and deep space. However, not all footage is immediately available to the media.
Images received from space can be divided into three groups: “raw”, scientific and public. Raw, or original, files from spacecraft are sometimes available to everyone, and sometimes not. For example, images taken by the Mars rovers Curiosity and Opportunity or Saturn's moon Cassini are released in near real time, so anyone can see them at the same time as scientists studying Mars or Saturn. Raw photographs of the Earth from the ISS are uploaded to a separate NASA server. Astronauts flood them with thousands, and no one has time to pre-process them. The only thing that is added to them on Earth is a geographic reference to make searching easier.
Usually, public footage that is attached to press releases from NASA and other space agencies is criticized for retouching - after all, they are the ones that catch the eye of Internet users in the first place. And if you want, you can find a lot of things there. And color manipulation:
Photo of the landing platform of the Spirit rover in visible light and capturing near-infrared light.
(c) NASA/JPL/Cornell
And overlaying several images:
Earth sunrise over the lunar Compton Crater.
And copy-paste:
Fragment of Blue Marble 2001
(c) NASA/Robert Simmon/MODIS/USGS EROS
And even direct retouching, with erasing some image fragments:
Highlighted shotApollo 17 GPN-2000-001137.
(c) NASA
NASA’s motivation in the case of all these manipulations is so simple that not everyone is ready to believe it: it’s more beautiful.
But it’s true, the bottomless blackness of space looks more impressive when it’s not interfered with by debris on the lens and charged particles on the film. A color frame is indeed more attractive than a black and white one. A panorama from photographs is better than individual frames. It is important that in the case of NASA it is almost always possible to find the original footage and compare one with the other. For example, the original version (AS17-134-20384) and the “print” version (GPN-2000-001137) of this image from Apollo 17, which is cited as almost the main evidence of retouching of lunar photographs:
Comparison of frames AS17-134-20384 and GPN-2000-001137
(c) NASA
Or find the rover’s “selfie stick,” which “disappeared” when creating its self-portrait:
Curiosity images from January 14, 2015, Sol 868
(c) NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
Physics of Digital Photography
Typically, those who criticize space agencies for manipulating color, using filters, or publishing black-and-white photographs “in this digital age” do not take into account the physical processes of obtaining digital images. They believe that if a smartphone or camera immediately produces color frames, then a spacecraft should be even more capable of doing this, and they have no idea what complex operations are needed to immediately get a color image onto the screen.
Let us explain the theory of digital photography: the matrix of a digital camera is, in fact, a solar battery. There is light - there is current, no light - no current. Only the matrix is not a single battery, but many small batteries - pixels, from each of which the current output is separately read. Optics focuses light onto a photomatrix, and electronics reads the intensity of energy released by each pixel. From the data obtained, an image is constructed in shades of gray - from zero current in the dark to maximum in the light, that is, the output is black and white. To make it colored, you need to apply color filters. It turns out, oddly enough, that color filters are present in every smartphone and every digital camera from the nearest store! (For some, this information is trivial, but, according to the author’s experience, for many it will be news.) In the case of conventional photographic equipment, alternating red, green and blue filters are used, which are alternately applied to individual pixels of the matrix - this is the so-called Bayer filter .
The Bayer filter consists of half green pixels, and red and blue each occupy one quarter of the area.
(c) Wikimedia
We repeat here: navigation cameras produce black and white images because such files weigh less, and also because color is simply not needed there. Scientific cameras allow us to extract more information about space than the human eye can perceive, and therefore they use a wider range of color filters:
Matrix and filter drum of the OSIRIS instrument on Rosetta
(c) MPS
Using a filter for near-infrared light, which is invisible to the eye, instead of red, resulted in Mars appearing red in many of the images that made it into the media. Explanation about infrared range Not everything was reprinted, which gave rise to a separate discussion, which we also discussed in the material “What color is Mars.”
However, the Curiosity rover has a Bayer filter, which allows it to shoot in colors that are familiar to our eyes, although a separate set of color filters is also included with the camera.
(c) NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
The use of individual filters is more convenient in terms of selecting the light ranges in which you want to look at the object. But if this object moves quickly, then its position changes in pictures in different ranges. In the Elektro-L footage, this was noticeable in the fast clouds, which managed to move in a matter of seconds while the satellite was changing the filter. On Mars, a similar thing happened when filming sunsets at the Spirit and Opportunity rover - they do not have a Bayer filter:
Sunset taken by Spirit on Sol 489. Overlay of images taken with 753,535 and 432 nanometer filters.
(c) NASA/JPL/Cornell
On Saturn, Cassini has similar difficulties:
Saturn's moons Titan (behind) and Rhea (front) in Cassini images
(c) NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute
At the Lagrange point, DSCOVR faces the same situation:
Transit of the Moon across the Earth's disk in a DSCOVR image on July 16, 2015.
(c) NASA/NOAA
To get out of this shooting beautiful photo, suitable for distribution in the media, you have to work in an image editor.
There is another physical factor that not everyone knows about - black and white photographs have more high resolution and clarity compared to color. These are so-called panchromatic images, which include all the light information entering the camera, without cutting off any parts of it with filters. Therefore, many “long-range” satellite cameras shoot only in panchrome, which for us means black and white footage. Such a LORRI camera is installed on New Horizons, and a NAC camera is installed on the LRO lunar satellite. Yes, in fact, all telescopes shoot in panchrome, unless special filters are used. (“NASA is hiding the true color of the Moon” is where it came from.)
A multispectral “color” camera, equipped with filters and having a much lower resolution, can be attached to a panchromatic one. At the same time, its color photographs can be superimposed on panchromatic ones, as a result of which we obtain high-resolution color photographs.
Pluto in panchromatic and multispectral images from New Horizons
(c) NASA/JHU APL/Southwest Research Institute
This method is often used when photographing the Earth. If you know about this, you can see in some frames a typical halo that leaves a blurred color frame:
Composite image of the Earth from the WorldView-2 satellite
(c)DigitalGlobe
It was through this overlay that the very impressive frame of the Earth above the Moon was created, which is given above as an example of overlaying different images:
(c) NASA/Goddard/Arizona State University
Additional processing
Often you have to resort to the tools of graphic editors when you need to clean up a frame before publishing. Ideas about the perfection of space technology are not always justified, which is why debris on space cameras is common. For example, the MAHLI camera on the Curiosity rover is simply crap, there’s no other way to put it:
Photo of Curiosity by the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) on Sol 1401
(c) NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
A speck in the STEREO-B solar telescope gave rise to a separate myth about an alien space station constantly flying above north pole Sun:
(c) NASA/GSFC/JHU APL
Even in space, it is not uncommon for charged particles to leave their traces on the matrix in the form of individual dots or stripes. The longer the shutter speed, the more traces remain; “snow” appears on the frames, which does not look very presentable in the media, so they also try to clear it off (read: “photoshop” it) before publication:
(c) NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute
Therefore, we can say: yes, NASA photoshops images from space. ESA photoshops. Roscosmos photoshops. ISRO photoshops. JAXA photoshops... Only the Zambian National Space Agency does not photoshop. So if someone is not satisfied with NASA images, then you can always use their space images without any signs of processing.
