NASA invites everyone to paint pictures of the Spitzer telescope

in hive-109160 •  3 years ago 

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(NASA / JPL-Caltech)

NASA has released the Spitzer Artistronomy web application to popularize the results of the Spitzer infrared space telescope.

In the app, you can give galaxies and nebulae your own nicknames, drawing silhouettes directly on photographs taken by the telescope.

Since ancient times, mankind has sought to give names to all objects that it saw in the night sky, first they were planets, comets or constellations.

However, with the development of observation means, we detected also objects of deep space, such as nebulae or galaxies.

Most often, proper names are given for some unusual characteristics of an object or for its shape, which can resemble a variety of objects or creatures.

This phenomenon is called pareidolia, and different people may have different associations.

To popularize the results of the Spitzer infrared space telescope, which ceased operations last year, NASA has released the Spitzer Artistronomy online application, available to everyone.

The app contains 10 infrared images of nebulae, stars, star-forming regions and galaxies from the telescope's archive, which have already received unofficial names from scientists, like "Penguin and the Egg" or "Jack Lantern".

However, you can give them other looks by painting silhouettes with a brush directly on the photographs.

In particular, astronomer Robert Hurt of the California Institute of Technology saw Godzilla in the nebula in the constellation Sagittarius.

The application does not require registration and you can draw right away, removing unnecessary items with the eraser or the "Trash" tool.

Source:

#nasa #astronomy #spitzer #telescope #app #science #stem

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