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Image artifacts - Corrupted images

On rare occasions, the SECCHI image processor onboard STEREO becomes overloaded, and produces corrupted images. Generally, these take the form of images from one telescope processed as if they were from another telescope. Because the images from the Heliospheric Imager (HI) telescopes are built up from a large number of exposures added together, this sometimes results in "double exposures", where data from several telescopes appear in the same image. Instances of large numbers of corrupted images are usually tracked on the STEREO Coordinated Observations Calendar pages.

Below are some examples of corrupted images.

Corrupted COR1 image Corrupted HI1 image

Corrupted COR1 image incorporating data from the HI2 telescope. Corrupted HI1 image incorporating data from both the COR1 and EUVI telescopes.

Image artifacts - Blank images

Another error which occasionally happens on board the spacecraft is to take an image without opening the shutter. This generally results in a completely blank image. Some coronagraph images built up from several exposures may show features in the corners of the image, as in this example.

COR1 image involving blank exposures

COR1-B image taken May 29, 2009, formed from two blank exposures, and one partial exposure with the shutter left open during readout.

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Last Revised: Tuesday, 25-Nov-2025 11:58:33 EST
Responsible NASA Official: [email address: therese.a.kucera<at>nasa<dot>gov]
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