by Chris Peterson » Sun May 15, 2022 3:08 pm
Ann wrote: ↑Sun May 15, 2022 2:34 pm
Chris Peterson wrote: ↑Sun May 15, 2022 1:48 pm
Ann wrote: ↑Sun May 15, 2022 5:38 am
Nice picture, Marcella! :D
But what is the "true" average color of the Moon?
Could it be this?
███
What do the rest of you think?
And... what the the true average color of the Earth? No, I'll change my mind. There is no true average color of the Earth, because the Earth is a planet of many colors. But... as seen from space? There is a lot of white from the clouds, of course, but what about the color of the oceans as seen from space?
Maybe this?
███
(Special thanks to Victor Borun for providing me with rectangles that I could colorize.)
Ann
Well, FWIW, this is the average color of today's image (less the black background).
_
Thanks, Chris!
When I was looking for possible Moon colors I found a color similar to the one you posted, but it looked too red to me. But I do know that the Moon is not only reddish but also very dark.
Your color is probably the correct one! (By the way, how did you create that color and how did you post it?
Of course, this isn't the "true" color in any reasonable sense, because it is made up of images of the Moon that are mostly distorted by atmospheric conditions. It's just the average color of all the different Moons in this APOD. Color, being a physiological phenomenon, is difficult to pin down. The best way to see the "true" color of the Moon would be to view it from far enough away that it was unresolved (so basically a point source) and then blur your eyes so it was spread out into a blob on your retina.
I did something like that here. I removed the background (by making it transparent), then sized the image down to a single pixel, then sized it back up to the original dimensions. So as posted, it's just another JPEG image.
The easiest way to come close to the true color (ignoring the fact that any image will distort colors somewhat) would be to take a picture of the Moon on a clear, dry night when it was close to the zenith, then do this trick of shrinking it to a single pixel and back. The result would be just a little warmer than reality, since a bit of blue would be scattered out, but I think it would be pretty close.
[quote=Ann post_id=322748 time=1652625241 user_id=129702]
[quote="Chris Peterson" post_id=322746 time=1652622513 user_id=117706]
[quote=Ann post_id=322742 time=1652593089 user_id=129702]
[img3="Colors of the Moon. Image Credit & Copyright: Marcella Giulia Pace"]https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/2205/MoonColors_Pace_960.jpg[/img3]
[clear][/clear]
Nice picture, Marcella! :D
But what is the "true" average color of the Moon?
Could it be this? [color=#847D7F]███[/color]
What do the rest of you think?
And... what the the true average color of the Earth? No, I'll change my mind. There is no true average color of the Earth, because the Earth is a planet of many colors. But... as seen from space? There is a lot of white from the clouds, of course, but what about the color of the oceans as seen from space?
Maybe this? [color=#5D81A3]███[/color]
(Special thanks to Victor Borun for providing me with rectangles that I could colorize.)
Ann
[/quote]
Well, FWIW, this is the average color of today's image (less the black background).
_
[img2]https://asterisk.apod.com/download/file.php?id=44217&t=1[/img2]
[/quote]
Thanks, Chris!
When I was looking for possible Moon colors I found a color similar to the one you posted, but it looked too red to me. But I do know that the Moon is not only reddish but also very dark.
Your color is probably the correct one! (By the way, how did you create that color and how did you post it?
[/quote]
Of course, this isn't the "true" color in any reasonable sense, because it is made up of images of the Moon that are mostly distorted by atmospheric conditions. It's just the average color of all the different Moons in this APOD. Color, being a physiological phenomenon, is difficult to pin down. The best way to see the "true" color of the Moon would be to view it from far enough away that it was unresolved (so basically a point source) and then blur your eyes so it was spread out into a blob on your retina.
I did something like that here. I removed the background (by making it transparent), then sized the image down to a single pixel, then sized it back up to the original dimensions. So as posted, it's just another JPEG image.
The easiest way to come close to the true color (ignoring the fact that any image will distort colors somewhat) would be to take a picture of the Moon on a clear, dry night when it was close to the zenith, then do this trick of shrinking it to a single pixel and back. The result would be just a little warmer than reality, since a bit of blue would be scattered out, but I think it would be pretty close.