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I will point out that the H/S/O palette given above isn't the only one. Otherwise, we have difficulty seeing the structure that is there and indicated by different elemental densities in the nebulae. The colors in astrophotography are specific remappings of frequencies into other frequencies so that our eyes are capable of perceiving the subtle differences between different emissions from elements. You will note that the true color image is dominated by red - which is the Hydrogen alpha, and Sulfur-II lines (which show up as reds, greens and yellows in the false color). Hubble’s 25th Anniversary Honored with New Hi Definition Photo of Pillars of Creation in the Eagle Nebula:Īnd false color from wikimedia commons (the pallet that of the Hubble) What you have is (in the Hubble palette):Īn example of this for true color from John Nassr at Stardust Observatory at Coming to Life Again…. The classic color mapping for Hubble is described in Flase-color astrophotography explained. Remember, CCD detectors usually don't see the same things that humans do, and Hubble can see outside the visible spectrum. Some of the reasons for using artificial colors include showcasing elements whose emission lines are out of the visible spectrum, and showing features that are too dim at visible wavelengths. NASA goes into a litte detail about the process here, as well as some of the rationale behind choosing some colors. Without those different elements, Hubble can capture images with much more detail.Īs an interesting aside, the Wide Field Camera 3 sees in wavelengths other than visible light, as do the Cosmic Origins Spectrograph and the Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph. Why are the original images in black and white? Because if Hubble's eye saw in color, the light detector would have to have red, green and blue elements crammed into the same area, taking away crucial resolving capability. (The same process occurs in digital SLRs, except that in your camera, it's automatic.) The Hubble imaging team combines those three images into one, in a Technicolor process pioneered in the 1930s. But each image is captured using three different filters: red, green and blue. The raw Hubble images, as beamed down from the telescope itself, are black and white.