Astronomy on Drugs

Mdog writes: "CNN has a really cool story on a "golden galaxy" recently discovered by the Hubble telescope. It has a purple halo, dude! Largish yummy pic."

Re:Isn't that a false colour image?

[SIGFPE]

Check out the original images that went into this composite here here [nasa.gov]
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Interesting

[SIGFPE]

It looks like obtaining true-colour images can be a tricky process involving multiple exposures using different filters. It would be interesting to know exactly how many steps the space photos we see go through before we reach us. We have to take a lot on trust!
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Isn't that a false colour image?

[SIGFPE]

So those colours are merely what some operator with an image processing package chose to make them to make UV and IR visible.

Anyway, more info and a 2K (!!!) res image here [stsci.edu]

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Homer

[FreeMath]

Mmmmmmmmmm.... Celestial Dounut.....

Re:Isn't that a false colour image?

[MulluskO]

I guess this is true for all the photos if galaxies that we are shown. Horsehead nebula, whatever, I seem to remember all of them in more than one color. Does anyone know where to find un-colored images? I'd guess that they're either white or invisible.

Maybe they would... would.. would look like wood [eatel.net]!

I found this "true color" image [noao.edu] of the horsehead. It looks cool without any enhancements.

Re:Isn't that a false colour image?

[capt.Hij]

How about looking through a telescope? :-)

Seriously, occasionally magazines such as Sky and Telescope have articles or discussions on this issue and have comparison photo's. Many astronomical instruments are capable of examining a spectrum different from the human eye so there is always an issue of how to present these things especially to non-professionals.

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