The look of a Titanic moon

Astronomical imaging is an interesting process. The most common question I get when I show a picture is, "Is this what it would look like if you were actually there?" That's a tough question to answer in many cases, because our eyes see in a different way than cameras take pictures. We have receptors in our eyes that are sensitive to red, green, or blue light, and they send signals to the brain which then constructs a "true color" image from that. In astronomy, we use filters to mimic that, but they don't actually perfectly represent the way our eyes see. And even after you get the picture, there are adjustments in contrast, brightness, and so on that can alter a photo. A few months ago, the folks at Cassini released a really cool picture of Saturn's moon Titan. It's a great shot, have no doubt, but amateur astrophotographer Gordon ...