# Astronomy question - about the most beautiful photograph ever taken **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 29, 2004, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/astronomy-question-about-the-most-beautiful-photograph-ever-taken/237182 "2004-03-29T22:50:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2004, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/astronomy-question-about-the-most-beautiful-photograph-ever-taken/237182/21 "2004-03-30T16:25:36Z")
That’s not beige, that’s “Champagne Gold!” ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2004, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/astronomy-question-about-the-most-beautiful-photograph-ever-taken/237182/22 "2004-03-30T20:54:49Z")
Galaxies (and other astronomical objects) do have color, but because of the way the human eye is sensitive to light, you usually need a very big telescope or a very long exposure to see it. That said, Hubble or any other scientific instrument is going to be taking images through very specific filters, to give useful information about the spectra of the objects it’s looking at. What you see in a Hubble image is invariably a false-color image constructed out of those filters. But they do usually choose false colors which will give some reasonable approximation to the true colors. And there is a Next Generation Space Telescope in the works, but it won’t do quite the same job as the Hubble. It’ll have more light-gathering power than Hubble, but its upper frequency limit will be lower, and I think it’ll also have lower resolution. And even if it could do everything Hubble could and as well, there’d still be value in keeping the Hubble, since there’s always a long waiting list for world-class instruments. ---
**Author:** ![Ross](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e274bd/32.png) [@Ross](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ross)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2004, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/astronomy-question-about-the-most-beautiful-photograph-ever-taken/237182/23 "2004-03-30T23:52:46Z")
> [@Tygr](#): > > _sigh_ > > Beautiful, yes… But also slightly saddening… so many of us ache to be able to reach out and touch those places. To travel closer and see what they are REALLY like… But all we can do is view them across a vast distance of Time and Space. Maybe God put you in the best place for a good view. Probably they’re rubbish to live on. At least you can breathe here. To be honest I used to feel exactly as you do, but my wife takes such sentiments as an indication that I don’t have enough to do. Hence my newfound pragmatism. It’s trite, but it’s easier to fit in between changing the baby and doing the washing up. ps: earth’s quite nice really, what’s left of it ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2004, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/astronomy-question-about-the-most-beautiful-photograph-ever-taken/237182/24 "2004-03-31T00:37:28Z")
> [@netscape 6](#): > > If you want I could email you a copy. Please do. ---
**Author:** ![KarlGauss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/karlgauss/32/3713_2.png) [@KarlGauss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGauss)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2004, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/astronomy-question-about-the-most-beautiful-photograph-ever-taken/237182/25 "2004-03-31T00:56:34Z")
[hijack of own thread] **Rick** and **Grey** : Can you access NASA, the JPL, _any_ NASA related site through Rogers? I can’t. Weird. [/hijack] ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2004, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/astronomy-question-about-the-most-beautiful-photograph-ever-taken/237182/26 "2004-03-31T00:59:18Z")
> [@KarlGauss](#): > > [hijack of own thread] > > **Rick** and **Grey** : Can you access NASA, the JPL, _any_ NASA related site through Rogers? I can’t. Weird. > > [/hijack] No. It’s as if they don’t exist. ---
**Author:** ![Yeticus\_Rex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/a698b9/32.png) [@Yeticus\_Rex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yeticus_Rex)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2004, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/astronomy-question-about-the-most-beautiful-photograph-ever-taken/237182/27 "2004-03-31T01:00:49Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Galaxies (and other astronomical objects) do have color, but because of the way the human eye is sensitive to light, you usually need a very big telescope or a very long exposure to see it. That said, Hubble or any other scientific instrument is going to be taking images through very specific filters, to give useful information about the spectra of the objects it’s looking at. What you see in a Hubble image is invariably a false-color image constructed out of those filters. But they do usually choose false colors which will give some reasonable approximation to the true colors. > > And there is a Next Generation Space Telescope in the works, but it won’t do quite the same job as the Hubble. It’ll have more light-gathering power than Hubble, but its upper frequency limit will be lower, and I think it’ll also have lower resolution. And even if it could do everything Hubble could and as well, there’d still be value in keeping the Hubble, since there’s always a long waiting list for world-class instruments. [hijack] “Straight Dope Science Advisory Board” So when did this happen? I hope they waived the $4.95 subscription fee for your services! [/hijack] ---
**Author:** ![MaxTheVool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9fc29f/32.png) [@MaxTheVool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MaxTheVool)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2004, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/astronomy-question-about-the-most-beautiful-photograph-ever-taken/237182/28 "2004-03-31T01:54:30Z")
[Shameless plug for my father’s project] Another project filling the void left by Hubble will be the newly-online **Spitzer Space Telescope** , which generates lovely images such as [this one](http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/Media/releases/ssc2004-02/ssc2004-02a.shtml). [/Shameless plug] ---
**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2004, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/astronomy-question-about-the-most-beautiful-photograph-ever-taken/237182/29 "2004-03-31T02:15:56Z")
[Shameless hijack of **MaxTheVool’s** plug for his father’s project] You’re related to [the famous Olympian ?](http://www.ncsu.edu/ligon/olympics/Spitz/MarkS.html) [/Shameless hijack of **MaxTheVool’s** plug for his father’s project] 😉 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/astronomy-question-about-the-most-beautiful-photograph-ever-taken/237182.md?page=1)