Smartphone Cameras Owe Their Power to Astronomy
As a human being, every time I see a new jaw-droppingly gorgeous astronomical image, I’m staggered by the beauty of the cosmos.
But as an astronomer who’s been observing the universe his whole life, when I see these images, I’m amazed at how far we’ve come in that time, technologically speaking, and how much easier they are to make than they used to be. It’s true that the very best pictures still require large observatories on the ground or in space, but even holding your smartphone to the eyepiece of a consumer-grade telescope can yield images that only a few decades ago would have been the envy of all the world’s astronomers.
And remarkably, this awesome power to casually capture breathtaking celestial snapshots—or selfies, for that matter—with a camera that fits in your pocket traces back, in part, to the work of astronomers using giant telescopes on the ground and in space. Both share a common legacy. Astronomers, it turns out, were among the first to develop and realize the power of digital cameras. Next time you upload a snapshot to social media, don’t forget to thank us. And you’re welcome!
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