NoelC
D S L R Bliss
Premium,MVM
join:2003-09-03
Florida
| The Hubble Space Telescope and Me (long) Hi folks,
I have been asked to demonstrate my astroimage processing skills to the ESO folks who process Hubble Space Telescope data into images. Specifically, they've asked me to find an object that's already been photographed and is in the Hubble raw data database, but that's never been made into a full color image before (scientists take images for scientific study without ever making them into pictures as we know them). If they like what they see I'm hoping they'll offer me the opportunity to join their team.
I found one: Globular Cluster NGC 6441
It's a distant globular in Scorpius, and it's scientifically interesting in that it seems to contain one of the very few planetary nebulae found in a glob (faintly visible just to the right of the core), as well as an xray source / pulsar / possible black hole. These interesting things have been studied using the Hubble, but no one's ever attempted to create a full-color visible spectrum image from the various Hubble exposures before now. I assembled this mosaic from several dozen Hubble exposures taken through a variety of wide and narrow-band filters and using several different cameras.
This image begins to show off the amazing resolution of the Hubble Space Telescope. Keep in mind this image covers an area of the sky less than a quarter the size of the moon. And you should know that there are some Hubble exposures, for example of the central core, that are of a significantly higher resolution than shown here, as taken by the Advanced Camera for Surveys. However, I used the overall lower resolution of the Wide Field Planetary Camera II with which the entire cluster has been imaged.
Most Earth-based images show this cluster as just a blob. Here's a Google image search revealing existing NGC 6441 images online: Click here.
Without further ado, I give you NGC 6441 like you've never seen it before. I guarantee it!
Time spent processing: 5 hours.
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As I wanted to continue practicing and learning about Hubble data, I chose to process another Hubble acquisition, this time a galaxy: NGC 5866, sometimes also known as Messier 102.
It turns out the Hubble Heritage Project has recently shot some long exposures through wideband red, green, and blue filters with the express intent of releasing a nice image to the public. They took 3 single images with the Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS). Red:Green:Blue exposure times were 65:47:37 minutes over a period of 4 HST orbits. You can see their version at these sites:
»www.spacetelescope.org/images/ht···24a.html
»hubblesite.org/newscenter/newsde···/image/a
Theirs is a truly spectacular image, but I wanted to see whether I could improve any on the image processing they did, as I spotted a fair number of defects in the full-sized image, albeit minor ones. I'd love to know whether you think I did manage any visual improvement. Note that I didn't crop as much off the left and bottom as they did.
I loved seeing all the distant background galaxies.
After opening the 600+ megabytes of FITS files from the Hubble database, stretching (brightening) the linear data, and normalizing the color channels, things I did to this image were:
• Cropping to a rectangular field of view
• Hot pixel removal (mostly with the healing brush)
• Alignment of the color channels within 1/4 pixel
• Noise reduction
• Sharpening
• Darkening of the diffraction flares around the stars
• Removal of several "doughnut" artifacts from the brightest two stars at the top, assumedly from the refractive optics added to the HST to fix the initial mirror problem
• Noise reduction in several bands across the image that appear to be the result of imperfect silicon fabrication.
• Contrast enhancement
• Increase of color saturation
Time spent processing: 5 hours.
-Noel | |
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 RowanDu
Premium
join:2005-09-27
Munster, ON | Re: The Hubble Space Telescope and Me (long) Oh wow man. Thank you so so much for shareing these here with us.
IS it safe to show friends and family?
Like these are hubble shots so is it ok for me to show em off? | |
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NoelC
D S L R Bliss
Premium,MVM
join:2003-09-03
Florida
| The data is in the public domain, and I'm not adding any restrictions to my processed versions here.
Now, if you were to find a way to make money with them there may be some restrictions; you'll have to check with the Hubble web site, and I'll want a Viper if you make a million bucks. 
-Noel | |
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 | Brian in MD
Premium
join:2003-05-10
Maryland, US | Re: The Hubble Space Telescope and Me (long) Noel, thanks for sharing this (and all of your wonderful images) with us!
You definitely deserve a spot with their team - I'll say good luck, but judging from everything we've seen here, you won't need luck! | |
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RowanDu
Premium
join:2005-09-27
Munster, ON | Thanks so much Noel.
Seriously I feel honoured that you chose to share this with us. | |
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bobrk
You kids get offa my lawn
Premium
join:2000-02-02
San Jose, CA | Great shots, thanks for posting. I love seeing those little stars in the picture and, after looking more closely, realizing that they're galaxies! | |
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Bryon
R.I.P. Bassman442
Premium
join:2001-07-23
Speedway, IN
clubs: | Congratulations! It's great to see that you're getting credit for your skills. | |
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boatct
Premium
join:2005-03-14 | It was only a matter of time...
World class work, as usual. | |
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Wyattx17
Wyatt
Premium
join:2004-04-21
Stockton, CA
1 edit | You're the Man! I hope you land the project and pursue what you have always dreamed of!
This is out of this world's work!!! | |
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snipper_cr
join:2002-01-22
Wheaton, IL
clubs:
| Its pictures like this that STS-125 better happen. This will be the shuttle mission to service the hubble so it can operate for a few more years. Its worth the risk and needs to be done. You did an amazing job!
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Serenity Day - June 23rd 2006. You Can't Stop the Signal | |
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rdavs
Premium
join:2002-11-21
Tucson, AZ | Wow Noel I'm so proud of you! What an honor to be asked to even look at Hubble raw data, no less process it! I so hope you are asked to join their team...you must be walking on air!
Congrats buddy! | |
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Scummer
Premium
join:2002-03-13
Munster, IN
| Wow.. this is just stunning how many galaxies you can actually see in the picture of NGC5866.
Incredible... absolutely incredible!
I think I can throw my ETX-90 into the trash can now. | |
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Graves
Premium
join:2001-03-06 | Space is secksy | |
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justin
Australian
join:1999-05-28
Brooklyn, NY
Host:
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Console Tech
| said by NoelC  :Theirs is a truly spectacular image, but I wanted to see whether I could improve any on the image processing they did, as I spotted a fair number of defects in the full-sized image, albeit minor ones. I'd love to know whether you think I did manage any visual improvement. Note that I didn't crop as much off the left and bottom as they did. Congratulations!
I compared the two images, although I let the browser squash them both to fit the screen so I'm not sure what damage that did.
Yours does look to have a smoother graduation of the cloud as it fades into space whereas the nasa one looks more pixellated in that region, but "space" around the image does not look pure black in yours. You also lost some of the (don't know the technical word) clarity of the criss-cross lens effects on the two stars you included.
Honestly I can't tell which I prefer but perhaps you can post a stitched image with the two images at the same size, placed side by side? this would eliminate any JPG compression differences too.. | |
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vapochilled
Premium
join:2004-11-23
Macungie, PA | you truly bring an element of education to every picture you post, I wish you the very best of luck in joining the team as you clearly have a passion for astro-photography. | |
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PunkGod
join:2003-02-02 | I have no words. But I do have one.
DAMN!  | |
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Jeffrey
too dark too early
Premium
join:2002-12-24
Dix Hills,NY
clubs:
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·magicjack.com
| NoelC I don't know who the heck you really are, but this website is lucky to have you. I've been watching your photos for a while, and then when you posted that full-moon shot a few weeks ago, I think everyone that is on this site heard of you, especially with those 50,000+ hits.
I have a growing interest in photography, and I've always had an interest in the Universe, and your photos are really amazing. Mind-boggling really, I have very few words to describe what you post, other than simply unbelievable.
If these people don't put you on their team, I'll petition them personally to change their mind. Your posts here are a gift to this site. And that's it, I mean I have nothing left to say. I'm speechless. Have a good one.;)
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"When you get lost in your imaginatory vagueness, your forsight becomes a nimble vagrant."
[Ramblings] [Gallery] | |
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Hayward
K A R - 1 2 0 C
Premium
join:2000-07-13
Key West, FL
1 edit | Hey Noel, with stuff you have done with a puny little earth bound telescope...(like the moon color shot of late) and that's what you want to do, they would be stupid to not take you on...(unless maybe they feel threatened?) by what you have done with so much less than the Hubble.
And reproduced small here...did you actually get to work on any FULL SIZED/REZ Hubble images?
Edit: And now that I have looked at the links, the second particularly, small looks better than the original x-large image by a long shot.
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»haywardm.com (Hayward's Key West)
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