Hubble Space Telescope

I've always been fascinated by the pictures produced by the Hubble Space Telescope. Thus, for tonight's post, I went in search of some information about it. Ever wonder about those brilliant colors? (Information copied from the HubbleSite, behind the pictures.)

Taking color pictures with the Hubble Space Telescope is much more complex than taking color pictures with a traditional camera. For one thing, Hubble doesn't use color film — in fact, it doesn't use film at all. Rather, its cameras record light from the universe with special electronic detectors. These detectors produce images of the cosmos not in color, but in shades of black and white.

Finished color images are actually combinations of two or more black-and-white exposures to which color has been added during image processing.

The colors in Hubble images, which are assigned for various reasons, aren't always what we'd see if we were able to visit the imaged objects in a spacecraft. We often use color as a tool, whether it is to enhance an object's detail or to visualize what ordinarily could never be seen by the human eye.

Go to the link if you're a science geek like me and would like to learn more! Or just explore their site. They have tons of facts about the telescope, history, picture albums, wallpaper, a newscenter, and even an interactive exploration of some of the more famous images. A good (educational) time waster!