Has NASA's MESSENGER gone color blind?

"Don Stauffer in Minnesota" wrote in message
...
On Jan 19, 4:24 pm, BradGuth wrote:


So, where exactly are those true colors of Mercury?
Perhaps MESSENGER's color imaging potential can be fixed while on the
fly, prior to eventually returning for their full orbital mission of
mapping Mercury gets under way.

. - Brad Guth

This was just a flyby. To get as many pictures as you can get, you
wouldn't want to have to screw with all the filters it would take to get
color photos. Color will probably start with the orbital part of the
mission.

du wrote:
This was just a flyby. To get as many pictures as you can get, you
wouldn't want to have to screw with all the filters it would take to get
color photos. Color will probably start with the orbital part of the
mission.

I'm pretty sure this fly-by used all the filters.
Exposure time for each photo certainly didn't need to be much given the
level of illumination provided by the Sun.

Pat

In sci.space.history Gary Edstrom wrote:
The pictures from Messenger are for scientific purposes, NOT to wow the
public. To get a color picture would require taking separate shots
through each of 3 color filters. That would require extra time during
this EXTREMELY short duration pass of Mercury.

Then I suppose you will be upset to learn that they used 11 filters:

http://messenger.jhuapl.edu/gallery/...2&image_id=125

"The WAC is equipped with 11 different narrow-band filters, and this
image was taken in filter 7, which is sensitive to light near the red
end of the visible spectrum (750 nm). This view,
also imaged through the remaining 10 WAC filters,
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
is from the first set of images taken following MESSENGER's closest
approach with Mercury."

When Messenger settles down into orbit in 2011, they will have more
time to gather full color pictures.

A lot of things can happen in 3 years.

Besides, during its closest approach, it was moving so fast
that the 3 separate pictures required for color would probably not have
aligned perfectly.

It seems to me that it should be relatively easy to correct that in
software (on Earth).

Its time near Mercury was just too valuable to waste
on all those extra pictures who's primary purpose would be for public
consumption.

Remember that the taxes that pay for the mission are paid by the general
public, of which the planetary scientists are a tiny minority.

There is the saying "No Buck Rogers, no bucks", and there should also
be the saying "No pretty pictures, no bucks".

--
http://www.mat.uc.pt/~rps/

..pt is Portugal| `Whom the gods love die young'-Menander (342-292 BC)
Europe | Villeneuve 50-82, Toivonen 56-86, Senna 60-94

On Jan 21, 11:25 am, Rui Pedro Mendes Salgueiro
wrote:
In sci.space.history Gary Edstrom wrote:

The pictures from Messenger are for scientific purposes, NOT to wow the
public. To get a color picture would require taking separate shots
through each of 3 color filters. That would require extra time during
this EXTREMELY short duration pass of Mercury.

Then I suppose you will be upset to learn that they used 11 filters:
http://messenger.jhuapl.edu/gallery/....php?gallery_i...

The last thing these infowar and disinformation spewing *******s of
NASA's science ****ology ever want to hear is that I'm right. So, you
should expect to get ignored, banished or given a good amount of
whatever lethal flak they can muster.


"The WAC is equipped with 11 different narrow-band filters, and this
image was taken in filter 7, which is sensitive to light near the red
end of the visible spectrum (750 nm). This view,
also imaged through the remaining 10 WAC filters,
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
is from the first set of images taken following MESSENGER's closest
approach with Mercury."

When Messenger settles down into orbit in 2011, they will have more
time to gather full color pictures.

A lot of things can happen in 3 years.

Besides, during its closest approach, it was moving so fast
that the 3 separate pictures required for color would probably not have
aligned perfectly.

It seems to me that it should be relatively easy to correct that in
software (on Earth).

Lots of local PhotoShop efforts can manage to correct for most
anything, as long as those original images are in focus and without
too much motion distortion to start off with.

How the freaking hell did they manage to accomplish all of those Earth
flyby color frames so quickly?


Its time near Mercury was just too valuable to waste
on all those extra pictures who's primary purpose would be for public
consumption.

Remember that the taxes that pay for the mission are paid by the general
public, of which the planetary scientists are a tiny minority.

There is the saying "No Buck Rogers, no bucks", and there should also
be the saying "No pretty pictures, no bucks".

--http://www.mat.uc.pt/~rps/

.pt is Portugal| `Whom the gods love die young'-Menander (342-292 BC)
Europe | Villeneuve 50-82, Toivonen 56-86, Senna 60-94

99.9% of Usenet folks seem perfectly cozy with their pretending as
being atheists and otherwise as all-knowing at the same time, are
oddly opposed to sharing the whole truth and nothing but the truth.
They get especially testy whenever such new and improved information
rocks their NASA/Apollo good ship LOLLIPOP, and of most everything
since getting put at risk.
- Brad Guth

Gary Edstrom wrote:
The pictures from Messenger are for scientific purposes, NOT to wow the
public. To get a color picture would require taking separate shots
through each of 3 color filters.

Look... would everyone please get this straight.
They took over 1,200 pictures of the planet on this flyby.
The pictures have all been successfully transmitted to Earth.
They used the color filters on the Wide Angle Camera (WAC) in all of
the pictures it took (the narrow angle camera is B&W).
You can read up on this he
http://www.planetary.org/news/2008/0...pacecraft.html
They got a color movie of the approach to Mercury using three filters of
the Wide Angle Camera to generate a "this is how it would look to the
naked eye" view.
At one hour and twenty-five minutes before closest approach they they
took a color still image of the planet through all eleven filters.
Eleven minutes after closet approach, they took a set of five color
still images through all eleven filters.
(since those images were taken in fairly quick order of the same place
on the surface at different angles, I suspect they are going to be
turned into a 3D color image of that area.)
Then, thirty-six minutes after closest approach, another color mosaic
still view of the whole planet via nine images taken through all eleven
filters.
Finally, at one hour and twelve minutes after closet approach, another
color image of the whole planet in one image taken through all eleven
filters.
To give some idea of what Mercury looks like in color, here's a large
true color shot of it from Mariner 10:
http://www.planetary.org/image/marin...ndhires1f1.jpg
A lot like the Moon, but more light olive drab than gray in color.
You can see what instrument was doing what on MESSENGER during the flyby
via the interactive time-line he
http://messenger.jhuapl.edu/encounte...ime=1200343330
The images released from the WAC up to the moment have been trough the
red filter, as it shows detail best.

Pat

"Rui Pedro Mendes Salgueiro" wrote in message
...
Then I suppose you will be upset to learn that they used 11 filters:

http://messenger.jhuapl.edu/gallery/...2&image_id=125

"The WAC is equipped with 11 different narrow-band filters, and this
image was taken in filter 7, which is sensitive to light near the red
end of the visible spectrum (750 nm). This view,
also imaged through the remaining 10 WAC filters,
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
is from the first set of images taken following MESSENGER's closest
approach with Mercury."

It says "this image was taken in filter 7". They say later they imaged the
same view through the remaining 10 WAC filters, but those would be
*different* images than the image taken using filter 7.

To get a color image, you have to create a composite image from several
images of the same view, but that's not what is on the above web page.

Jeff
--
A clever person solves a problem.
A wise person avoids it. -- Einstein

"Jeff Findley" wrote in
:

It says "this image was taken in filter 7". They say later they
imaged the same view through the remaining 10 WAC filters, but those
would be *different* images than the image taken using filter 7.

To get a color image, you have to create a composite image from
several images of the same view, but that's not what is on the above
web page.

I get the impression that color images from this flyby are
forthcoming, but haven't been processed yet. This probably
involves matching together several frames that won't be completely
identical, but is easily composited given some computer time.

--Damon

On Tue, 22 Jan 2008 13:53:57 -0600, Damon Hill
wrote in
:

"Jeff Findley" wrote in
:

It says "this image was taken in filter 7". They say later they
imaged the same view through the remaining 10 WAC filters, but those
would be *different* images than the image taken using filter 7.

To get a color image, you have to create a composite image from
several images of the same view, but that's not what is on the above
web page.

I get the impression that color images from this flyby are
forthcoming, but haven't been processed yet. This probably
involves matching together several frames that won't be completely
identical, but is easily composited given some computer time.

And (more critically) people time. But we love our conspiracy theories,
no matter how silly or unfounded. I hear Messenger mission control is
in Area 51, controlled by aliens.

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

Plonk.


"BradGuth" wrote in message
...
On Jan 21, 11:25 am, Rui Pedro Mendes Salgueiro
wrote:
In sci.space.history Gary Edstrom wrote:

The pictures from Messenger are for scientific purposes, NOT to wow
the
public. To get a color picture would require taking separate shots
through each of 3 color filters. That would require extra time during
this EXTREMELY short duration pass of Mercury.

Then I suppose you will be upset to learn that they used 11 filters:
http://messenger.jhuapl.edu/gallery/....php?gallery_i...

The last thing these infowar and disinformation spewing *******s of
NASA's science ****ology ever want to hear is that I'm right. So, you
should expect to get ignored, banished or given a good amount of
whatever lethal flak they can muster.


"The WAC is equipped with 11 different narrow-band filters, and this
image was taken in filter 7, which is sensitive to light near the red
end of the visible spectrum (750 nm). This view,
also imaged through the remaining 10 WAC filters,
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
is from the first set of images taken following MESSENGER's closest
approach with Mercury."

When Messenger settles down into orbit in 2011, they will have more
time to gather full color pictures.

A lot of things can happen in 3 years.

Besides, during its closest approach, it was moving so fast
that the 3 separate pictures required for color would probably not
have
aligned perfectly.

It seems to me that it should be relatively easy to correct that in
software (on Earth).

Lots of local PhotoShop efforts can manage to correct for most
anything, as long as those original images are in focus and without
too much motion distortion to start off with.

How the freaking hell did they manage to accomplish all of those Earth
flyby color frames so quickly?


Its time near Mercury was just too valuable to waste
on all those extra pictures who's primary purpose would be for public
consumption.

Remember that the taxes that pay for the mission are paid by the general
public, of which the planetary scientists are a tiny minority.

There is the saying "No Buck Rogers, no bucks", and there should also
be the saying "No pretty pictures, no bucks".

--http://www.mat.uc.pt/~rps/

.pt is Portugal| `Whom the gods love die young'-Menander (342-292 BC)
Europe | Villeneuve 50-82, Toivonen 56-86, Senna 60-94

99.9% of Usenet folks seem perfectly cozy with their pretending as
being atheists and otherwise as all-knowing at the same time, are
oddly opposed to sharing the whole truth and nothing but the truth.
They get especially testy whenever such new and improved information
rocks their NASA/Apollo good ship LOLLIPOP, and of most everything
since getting put at risk.
- Brad Guth

In article , John Navas wrote:
On Tue, 22 Jan 2008 13:53:57 -0600, Damon Hill
wrote in
:

"Jeff Findley" wrote in
:

It says "this image was taken in filter 7". They say later they
imaged the same view through the remaining 10 WAC filters, but those
would be *different* images than the image taken using filter 7.

To get a color image, you have to create a composite image from
several images of the same view, but that's not what is on the above
web page.

I get the impression that color images from this flyby are
forthcoming, but haven't been processed yet. This probably
involves matching together several frames that won't be completely
identical, but is easily composited given some computer time.

And (more critically) people time. But we love our conspiracy theories,
no matter how silly or unfounded. I hear Messenger mission control is
in Area 51, controlled by aliens.



Ever check out Area 51 on Google maps. Interesting layout.

greg