Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

How About a Gigapixel Digital Camera?

Posted by michael on from the eye-spy dept.

vcullen writes "Ever wondered where digital cameras will end up? What about a 1 Gigapixel digital camera? It would certainly beat the latest array of new digital cameras - the biggest of which only has an 8.2MP sensor! The 1 Gig Digital Camera might not quite fit in your pocket but the thought of it does make one's mind spin a little. The European Space Agency is building this massive camera (actually it's made from 170 cameras) for its Gaia space telescope, due for launch in 2010. Why? They want to map the entire universe 'down to a resolution one million times fainter than the human eye can see.'"

6 of 52 comments (clear)

  1. Pixels don't matter by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Insightful

    All that matters is the lens. By Allah, an 8.2MP camera with a quality nikon lens is better than a 1GP pixel camera with a plastic lens. When will people learn?

    1. Re:Pixels don't matter by Barsema · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Hm, but an 8.2MP camera with quality nikon lens is not better than a 1GP pixel camera with a quality nikon lens. zo I guess they do matter somewhat?

  2. Simply amazing by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful
    Lately, the ESA has really shown itself to have the innovation and can-do attitude that brings successes like these. What makes it all the more suprising is that they rely on a budget that is a fraction what NASA spends. Their cooporation and teamwork should be an inspiration - and a lesson - to the NASA, and US Gov't, buraucracy, who seem to thik technological and scientific advancement come by magic if you throw your money at a private company. When will they understand that blind faith in the capitalist system can only lead to their slow decline?

    Put another way, it's not how much money you spend, it's how you spend it.

  3. Nitpicking by KilobyteKnight · · Score: 3, Informative
    It would certainly beat the latest array of new digital cameras - the biggest of which only has an 8.2MP sensor!

    Not quite right
    --
    When will Windows be ready for the desktop?
  4. What are you talking about, 8mps? by AllMightyPaul · · Score: 4, Interesting

    You can already get 14 megapixel cameras from Kodak. And as other people have said, the pixels aren't important, it's the sensor and the lenses you use.

    http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/kodakdcs14n/

  5. Pixels don't matter - CCD size does by DoctorRad · · Score: 3, Informative
    The best quality optics in the world won't get you past the diffraction limit, so the physical size of the CCD matters too. The diffraction limit imposes the condition that cramming ever more pixels into the same area eventually becomes fruitless: there's no more information to be had in that area. You want more information? Increase that area.


    That said, I have no handle on how the cost/benefit curve looks assigning funds to improving either the optics or the CCD in different proportions.


    Matt...

    --

    Save the Bottom Line