Why Do Hubble Photos Have Black Squares?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion centers on the presence of black squares in images taken by the Hubble Space Telescope, exploring potential reasons for these omissions in the photographs. The scope includes technical explanations related to imaging processes and post-processing techniques.

Discussion Character

  • Technical explanation, Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants suggest that black squares may indicate bright foreground objects that interfere with data processing.
  • One participant explains that the Hubble's "Wide-Field Planetary Camera 2" uses an array of CCD chips, which can create a "stairstep" pattern in mosaic images due to differences in optics and color balance.
  • Another participant speculates that post-processing issues, such as color layering and oversaturation, could lead to the removal of certain areas in the images to maintain clarity.
  • A later reply confirms that the missing pixels are gaps in the mosaic overlay, supporting the idea of the images being composite in nature.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express various hypotheses regarding the black squares, with some agreeing on the mosaic nature of the images while others propose alternative explanations. The discussion remains unresolved with multiple competing views.

Contextual Notes

Some assumptions about the imaging process and post-processing techniques are not fully explored, and the discussion does not clarify the extent to which each proposed reason contributes to the observed phenomenon.

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Maybe there's a bright foreground object there that would ruin the processing of the data?
 
The majority of the photos you see from the Hubble Space Telescope, like this one, were taken with the "Wide-Field Planetary Camera 2," which is composed of four independent CCD chips laid out in an array. One of the CCDs has a different optics package to increase its resolution, so, when used together to form a mosaic image, a "stairstep" pattern results. If you look closely at this image, you'll see the slightly different color balance from the "PC" CCD versus the other three, larger, "WFC" CCDs.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wide_Field_and_Planetary_Camera_2

- Warren
 
isnt it obvious...

alien saucer! and The MAN is covering it up!

just kidding. :confused:

Hurkyl explained one reason why this could be.

The other might be post-processing problems.

you should be aware that these pictures are slowly layered into colour.

personally with photoshop I've seen quite a few times problems when i tried this. I would layer the colours and the last steps the colours would over saturate and it would then make it very blurry. so to save the colour picture u need to remove the blur, and by that u need to remove the affecting light source.
 
Hurkyl explained one reason why this could be.
I was speculating. chroot posted the answer already.
 
Chroot is correct. The published photos are mosaic images. The missing pixels are merely gaps in the overlay.
 

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