The Art of Hubble Spectra

• Main Authors: Antonella Nota, Kenneth Sembach
• Other Authors: The Pennsylvania State University CiteSeerX Archives
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Subjects: Arctic; Hubble; Spitsbergen
• Online Access: http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.352.4035

He has collaborated with a variety of institutions, including Fermilab, Brookhaven National Laboratory, the Bibliotheca Alexandrina (the new Library of Alexandria), and the Koldewey station for arctic research on Spitsbergen. He has been guest artist at the European Southern Observatory (ESO) and the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN). Roth collaborated with Bob Fosbury from ESO to create an art exhibit entitled From the Distant Past, which premiered in Venice in October 2010. A powerful green laser painted Hubble spectra of galaxies on the façade of Palazzo Cavalli Franchetti—hundreds of spectra, one after the other. This science animation We all recognize Hubble’s iconic pictures, which are found everywhere in the media these days, all over the internet, and even in movies. These pictures are now a part of how people think about the universe and their relationship to it. But what about Hubble spectra? Well, not so much. Even though astronomers find spectra essential for studying the physical and chemical properties of astronomical objects, spectra have less visual appeal than images, and they don’t immediately convey meaning in the same way images do. Consequently, spectra are less widely recognized and understood. Presenting and explaining spectra to nonscientists is a real challenge for communicators of science, and past attempts to convey the interest and excitement of astronomical spectra have met with limited success. Bring in the artist!