Artifacts can get the best of long imaging nights and amp glow is one of them. It is used to describe a specific type of spiked glow appearance on the outer edges of an astrophotography image. Glows are areas of the image that become brighter than other areas due to circuitry within the camera or sensor. Although some astrophotographers process their images to create some amazing effects, here are some useful tips on how to spot it.
What does Amp Glow look like?
The glow is an area of the image that has become brighter than neighboring areas. While this artifact looks similar in most astronomy photos, what causes it is different for different camera sensor types.
CCD cameras vs CMOS cameras
For CCD cameras glows are due to circuitry within the camera or sensor. In CMOS cameras glows are caused by its support circuits that can generate heat or may even emit NIR light.
How to handle Amp Glow
Creating similarly exposed dark frames and subtracting these from your light frames work well with removing these artifacts. Our good friend Trevor Jones of AstroBackyard has an excellent write-up on handling the issue here.
Have a question about amp glow or your experience battling it? Leave a comment below!
