Pixel blooming in Google Earth
 

I happened upon these two rather impressive blown highlights in Google
Earth, at:

150°59'49.49"E 33°49'0.68"S

(and a hundred metres or so north of that) and and just wondering... Is
this common in Google's sat shots? Anyone seen others?

Didn't the goddam astronaut check his histogram before posting?

It actually begs another set of questions...
My scanner frequently blooms just like those shots if I'm scanning highly
reflective items, but my digital cameras don't bleed in a linear fashion
like that - just a big white patch.

Is Google using a huge flatbed scanner in its satellites?

--
Jeff R.

Pixel blooming in Google Earth
 

Jeff R. wrote:
I happened upon these two rather impressive blown highlights in Google
Earth, at:

150°59'49.49"E 33°49'0.68"S

(and a hundred metres or so north of that) and and just wondering...
Is this common in Google's sat shots? Anyone seen others?

Didn't the goddam astronaut check his histogram before posting?

It actually begs another set of questions...
My scanner frequently blooms just like those shots if I'm scanning
highly reflective items, but my digital cameras don't bleed in a
linear fashion like that - just a big white patch.

Is Google using a huge flatbed scanner in its satellites?

Detail that close in GE is from aerial photos/scanners, not satellites.
Control of blooming is a function of the CCD design in the camera. I'm
surprised that a scanner has blooming caused by the same type of sensor
defect, as most scanners use a line sensor and not an area sensor. More
likely that the reflections from your object are behaving unlike
reflections from paper, and therefore being mis-interpreted.

David

Pixel blooming in Google Earth
 

"Jeff R." wrote in message
...
I happened upon these two rather impressive blown highlights in Google
Earth, at:

150°59'49.49"E 33°49'0.68"S

(and a hundred metres or so north of that) and and just wondering... Is
this common in Google's sat shots? Anyone seen others?

This is a flare from a direct sun reflection. These are not that unusual,
though some of them are spectacular looking.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SFIfl8XGw1U

Didn't the goddam astronaut check his histogram before posting?

Yep - and, like most of us, he decided that he'd rather expose for the rest
of the picture, rather than try for non-existent detail in a specular
reflection.

It actually begs another set of questions...
My scanner frequently blooms just like those shots if I'm scanning highly
reflective items, but my digital cameras don't bleed in a linear fashion
like that - just a big white patch.

Is Google using a huge flatbed scanner in its satellites?

You may not be far off - aerial survey cameras sometimes use a linear
arrangement to produce a continuous strip. Satellites may well do the same.
--
Mike Russell - www.curvemeister.com

Pixel blooming in Google Earth
 

"Jeff R." wrote in message
...
I happened upon these two rather impressive blown highlights in Google
Earth, at:

150°59'49.49"E 33°49'0.68"S

(and a hundred metres or so north of that) and and just wondering... Is
this common in Google's sat shots? Anyone seen others?

Didn't the goddam astronaut check his histogram before posting?

It actually begs another set of questions...
My scanner frequently blooms just like those shots if I'm scanning highly
reflective items, but my digital cameras don't bleed in a linear fashion
like that - just a big white patch.

Is Google using a huge flatbed scanner in its satellites?

--
Jeff R.

Not really. As another mentioned the closeup photos are shot from planes.
And there is a plexiglas window. So when they get bright reflections from a
surface (such as a body of water when the sun is low and in the general
direction that the camera is pointing) the plexi window tends to turn it
into a streak. I have seen that in some of the higher res photos you can
spot some of the blurry imperfections and dirt on the window. I have even
seen (in some of the earliest images) a reflection of items in the cockpit
behind the camera.

Randy B.

Pixel blooming in Google Earth
 

Jeff R. wrote:
I happened upon these two rather impressive blown highlights in Google
Earth, at:

150°59'49.49"E 33°49'0.68"S

(and a hundred metres or so north of that) and and just wondering... Is
this common in Google's sat shots? Anyone seen others?

Didn't the goddam astronaut check his histogram before posting?

It actually begs another set of questions...
My scanner frequently blooms just like those shots if I'm scanning highly
reflective items, but my digital cameras don't bleed in a linear fashion
like that - just a big white patch.

Is Google using a huge flatbed scanner in its satellites?

--
Jeff R.



In all probability, the shots are taken from a satellite that just takes
the pictures, some of which will have reflections of the sun, which WILL
result in blown out whites. Quitcherbitchin.

Pixel blooming in Google Earth
 

On Sat, 12 Jan 2008 07:14:06 GMT, "David J Taylor"
wrote in
:

Jeff R. wrote:
I happened upon these two rather impressive blown highlights in Google
Earth, at:

150°59'49.49"E 33°49'0.68"S

(and a hundred metres or so north of that) and and just wondering...
Is this common in Google's sat shots? Anyone seen others?

Didn't the goddam astronaut check his histogram before posting?

It actually begs another set of questions...
My scanner frequently blooms just like those shots if I'm scanning
highly reflective items, but my digital cameras don't bleed in a
linear fashion like that - just a big white patch.

Is Google using a huge flatbed scanner in its satellites?

Detail that close in GE is from aerial photos/scanners, not satellites.
Control of blooming is a function of the CCD design in the camera. I'm
surprised that a scanner has blooming caused by the same type of sensor
defect, as most scanners use a line sensor and not an area sensor. More
likely that the reflections from your object are behaving unlike
reflections from paper, and therefore being mis-interpreted.

A common problem in cheaper scanners is lens flare.

--
Best regards,
John Navas
Panasonic DMC-FZ8 (and several others)

Pixel blooming in Google Earth
 

On Sat, 12 Jan 2008 02:59:30 -0600, Ron Hunter
wrote in :

Jeff R. wrote:
I happened upon these two rather impressive blown highlights in Google
Earth, at:

150°59'49.49"E 33°49'0.68"S

(and a hundred metres or so north of that) and and just wondering... Is
this common in Google's sat shots? Anyone seen others?

Didn't the goddam astronaut check his histogram before posting?

It actually begs another set of questions...
My scanner frequently blooms just like those shots if I'm scanning highly
reflective items, but my digital cameras don't bleed in a linear fashion
like that - just a big white patch.

Is Google using a huge flatbed scanner in its satellites?

In all probability, the shots are taken from a satellite that just takes
the pictures, some of which will have reflections of the sun, which WILL
result in blown out whites. Quitcherbitchin.

High-res images have often been taken by aircraft rather than satellite.

--
Best regards,
John Navas
Panasonic DMC-FZ8 (and several others)

Pixel blooming in Google Earth
 

"Jeff R." wrote in message
...
I happened upon these two rather impressive blown highlights in Google
Earth, at:

150°59'49.49"E 33°49'0.68"S

(and a hundred metres or so north of that) and and just wondering... Is
this common in Google's sat shots? Anyone seen others?

Here's nice starburst one.
52°30'40.78"N 4°56'59.52"E

Pixel blooming in Google Earth
 

/\BratMan/\ wrote:
"Jeff R." wrote in message
...
I happened upon these two rather impressive blown highlights in
Google Earth, at:

150°59'49.49"E 33°49'0.68"S

(and a hundred metres or so north of that) and and just
wondering... Is this common in Google's sat shots? Anyone seen
others?
Here's nice starburst one.
52°30'40.78"N 4°56'59.52"E

A nice mixture of sensor overload and diffraction spikes!

David

Pixel blooming in Google Earth
 

/\BratMan/\ wrote:
"Jeff R." wrote in message
...
I happened upon these two rather impressive blown highlights in Google
Earth, at:

150°59'49.49"E 33°49'0.68"S

(and a hundred metres or so north of that) and and just wondering... Is
this common in Google's sat shots? Anyone seen others?

Here's nice starburst one.
52°30'40.78"N 4°56'59.52"E

Giant disco ball??