FITS Liberator

FITS Liberator is a software program jointly developed by European Southern Observatory (ESO), European Space Agency (ESA), and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) that can be used to produce colorful images from astronomical data in the FITS (Flexible Image Transport System) format.

The FITS format is commonly used to store scientific data collected by telescopes, such as images of galaxies or spectra of stars. However, these data are often represented in grayscale and incomprehensible to the human eye.

With FITS Liberator, users can import FITS files and apply various color schemes, filters, and enhancements to create visually appealing images. The program also offers tools for aligning and stacking multiple images, as well as creating overlays and annotations.

FITS Liberator has been widely used in astronomy education and public outreach to convey the beauty and significance of astronomical discoveries to a general audience. It is available for free download on the ESO, ESA, and NASA websites.

• Developers: European Southern Observatory (ESO), European Space Agency (ESA), National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
• Use: Producing colorful images from astronomical data in FITS format
• Features: Color schemes, filters, enhancements, alignment and stacking tools, overlays and annotations
• Availability: Free download on ESO, ESA, and NASA websites