5 ms·

Wait if Hershel was the largest optical telescope in orbit, how come it didn't catch the public imagination like Hubble did?

nabla9 5y ago
Because it must be American to catch attention in American media. Hershel took awesome images. For example: Galactic outflow with the Suzaku X-ray astronomy satellite https://www.esa.int/var/esa/storage/images/esa_multimedia/images/2015/03/galactic_outflow/15327261-1-eng-GB/Galactic_outflow_pillars.jpg https://www.esa.int/var/esa/storage/images/esa_multimedia/im... Herschel’s view of new stars and molecular clouds https://www.esa.int/var/esa/storage/images/esa_multimedia/images/2017/09/herschel_s_view_of_new_stars_and_molecular_clouds/17161676-1-eng-GB/Herschel_s_view_of_new_stars_and_molecular_clouds_pillars.jpg https://www.esa.int/var/esa/storage/images/esa_multimedia/im... The Little Fox and the Giant Stars https://www.esa.int/var/esa/storage/images/esa_multimedia/images/2016/05/the_little_fox_and_the_giant_stars/15997422-1-eng-GB/The_Little_Fox_and_the_Giant_Stars_pillars.jpg https://www.esa.int/var/esa/storage/images/esa_multimedia/im... Star formation on filaments in RCW106 https://www.esa.int/var/esa/storage/images/esa_multimedia/images/2017/02/star_formation_on_filaments_in_rcw106/16821984-1-eng-GB/Star_formation_on_filaments_in_RCW106_pillars.jpg https://www.esa.int/var/esa/storage/images/esa_multimedia/im... Feathery filaments in Mon R2 https://www.esa.int/var/esa/storage/images/esa_multimedia/images/2015/08/feathery_filaments_in_mon_r2/15563621-1-eng-GB/Feathery_filaments_in_Mon_R2_pillars.jpg https://www.esa.int/var/esa/storage/images/esa_multimedia/im...
Gravityloss 5y ago
Herschel was more modest in size, 3.5 meters vs JWST:s 6.5 meters. Also ESA PR is not as great as NASA. NASA is the gold standard in this regard.
- jcims 5y ago
  Also because it was imaging far infrared with wavelengths 100-1000 times that of visible light, the resolution of the optics was much lower and yielded kind of bla images (with a few notable exceptions): https://www.herschel.caltech.edu/images https://www.herschel.caltech.edu/images
ATsch 5y ago
I think a big reason Hubble managed to do that was that it captures in the visible spectrum due to being a repurposed spy satellite. That spectrum just isn't that interesting these days afaict, especially since ground based observatories have gotten a lot better at seeing through the earth's atmosphere. The false color images of most of today's missions are just a lot harder for the public to understand. It was also launched in a time where NASA desperately needed good publicity.
- izacus 5y ago
  "... due to being a repurposed spy satellite." What? Where did this come from?
  - segfaultbuserr 5y ago
    KH-11 ("Keyhole-class") spy satellites. It's generally believed that Hubble's optical technology came directly from that. > KH-11s are believed to resemble the Hubble Space Telescope in size and shape, as the satellites were shipped in similar containers. Their length is believed to be 19.5 meters, with a diameter of up to 3 meters (120 in). A NASA history of the Hubble, in discussing the reasons for switching from a 3-meter main mirror to a 2.4-meter (94 in) design, states: "In addition, changing to a 2.4-meter mirror would lessen fabrication costs by using manufacturing technologies developed for military spy satellites". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KH-11_KENNEN https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KH-11_KENNEN
  - krallja 5y ago
    https://space.stackexchange.com/questions/3448/was-hubble-really-related-to-spy-satellites https://space.stackexchange.com/questions/3448/was-hubble-re...
- garaetjjte 5y ago
  I doubt general public even knows about false color difference, they are nice looking images either way.
adventured 5y ago
In the late 1990s you'd walk into Walden Books or the equivalent store and this would be staring at you: https://i.imgur.com/Go5VDi1.jpg https://i.imgur.com/Go5VDi1.jpg And it seemed truly astounding. Like we were getting to journey across the universe. The visuals that Hubble presented, the variety and scale of that style of imagery (great for PR), and the way it cultivated the imagination of the mass public, is still unrivaled.

nabla9 5y ago

Because it must be American to catch attention in American media. Hershel took awesome images. For example: Galactic outflow with the Suzaku X-ray astronomy satellite https://www.esa.int/var/esa/storage/images/esa_multimedia/images/2015/03/galactic_outflow/15327261-1-eng-GB/Galactic_outflow_pillars.jpg https://www.esa.int/var/esa/storage/images/esa_multimedia/im... Herschel’s view of new stars and molecular clouds https://www.esa.int/var/esa/storage/images/esa_multimedia/images/2017/09/herschel_s_view_of_new_stars_and_molecular_clouds/17161676-1-eng-GB/Herschel_s_view_of_new_stars_and_molecular_clouds_pillars.jpg https://www.esa.int/var/esa/storage/images/esa_multimedia/im... The Little Fox and the Giant Stars https://www.esa.int/var/esa/storage/images/esa_multimedia/images/2016/05/the_little_fox_and_the_giant_stars/15997422-1-eng-GB/The_Little_Fox_and_the_Giant_Stars_pillars.jpg https://www.esa.int/var/esa/storage/images/esa_multimedia/im... Star formation on filaments in RCW106 https://www.esa.int/var/esa/storage/images/esa_multimedia/images/2017/02/star_formation_on_filaments_in_rcw106/16821984-1-eng-GB/Star_formation_on_filaments_in_RCW106_pillars.jpg https://www.esa.int/var/esa/storage/images/esa_multimedia/im... Feathery filaments in Mon R2 https://www.esa.int/var/esa/storage/images/esa_multimedia/images/2015/08/feathery_filaments_in_mon_r2/15563621-1-eng-GB/Feathery_filaments_in_Mon_R2_pillars.jpg https://www.esa.int/var/esa/storage/images/esa_multimedia/im...

Gravityloss 5y ago

Herschel was more modest in size, 3.5 meters vs JWST:s 6.5 meters. Also ESA PR is not as great as NASA. NASA is the gold standard in this regard.

jcims 5y ago
Also because it was imaging far infrared with wavelengths 100-1000 times that of visible light, the resolution of the optics was much lower and yielded kind of bla images (with a few notable exceptions): https://www.herschel.caltech.edu/images https://www.herschel.caltech.edu/images

ATsch 5y ago

I think a big reason Hubble managed to do that was that it captures in the visible spectrum due to being a repurposed spy satellite. That spectrum just isn't that interesting these days afaict, especially since ground based observatories have gotten a lot better at seeing through the earth's atmosphere. The false color images of most of today's missions are just a lot harder for the public to understand. It was also launched in a time where NASA desperately needed good publicity.

izacus 5y ago
"... due to being a repurposed spy satellite." What? Where did this come from?
- segfaultbuserr 5y ago
  KH-11 ("Keyhole-class") spy satellites. It's generally believed that Hubble's optical technology came directly from that. > KH-11s are believed to resemble the Hubble Space Telescope in size and shape, as the satellites were shipped in similar containers. Their length is believed to be 19.5 meters, with a diameter of up to 3 meters (120 in). A NASA history of the Hubble, in discussing the reasons for switching from a 3-meter main mirror to a 2.4-meter (94 in) design, states: "In addition, changing to a 2.4-meter mirror would lessen fabrication costs by using manufacturing technologies developed for military spy satellites". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KH-11_KENNEN https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KH-11_KENNEN
- krallja 5y ago
  https://space.stackexchange.com/questions/3448/was-hubble-really-related-to-spy-satellites https://space.stackexchange.com/questions/3448/was-hubble-re...
garaetjjte 5y ago
I doubt general public even knows about false color difference, they are nice looking images either way.

adventured 5y ago

In the late 1990s you'd walk into Walden Books or the equivalent store and this would be staring at you: https://i.imgur.com/Go5VDi1.jpg https://i.imgur.com/Go5VDi1.jpg And it seemed truly astounding. Like we were getting to journey across the universe. The visuals that Hubble presented, the variety and scale of that style of imagery (great for PR), and the way it cultivated the imagination of the mass public, is still unrivaled.