Two astrophotographers have combine their talents to take the " most ludicrously detail " photo of the Moon , and gosh is our natural satellite pretty .

Andrew McCarthyandConnor Mathernecombined their considerable talents to make a composite mental image that took 250,000 shots and many month to put together for one terminal incredible image .

“ Connor was responsible for for the color , while I was responsible for for the item , ” McCarthy state IFLScience . “ To produce the gamy - quality image , we each had to entrance a gamey phone number of images . I captured 200,000 up - tight surface item shots , while Connor trance 50,000 full - color shots of the full lunar disc . When combined , this gave us a last picture with incredible fidelity and productive colour . ”

![An incredibly detailed photo of the Moon showing craters, scars on the surface and ridges](https://assets.iflscience.com/assets/articleNo/65007/iImg/61373/MicrosoftTeams-image (138).png)

The Hunt for Artemis isavailable to buyas a lmited edition photo on the run up to Artemis I launching on Monday. Image courtesy of Andrew McCarthy and Connor Matherne

" The Hunt for Artemis " , as they have called the image , is a whopping 174 - megapixel shot released ahead of the inauguralArtemis missionlaunching next calendar week that will eventually take homo back to the Moon . The beautiful photo is uncommitted as a limited version print from McCarthy ’s astrophotographywebsite , so you’re able to even own this little mo of chronicle in the qualification .

The colouring material picture in the image are literal , McCarthy check us , just smarten up up for our poor human eyes .

" The color on the Moon is real , but far too subtle to be mention with our comparatively crude eyes . Scientific instruments are much more sensitive , and can detect these nonaged color sport , " he told IFLScience .

" The most coloured country are basaltic lava , referred to as lunar " seas " and are seeable to the nude eye from Earth as dark piece on the Moon . Reddish areas are racy in iron and felspar , while more profane areas are plentiful in titanium . "

Scientific instruments can indeed see what we can not – JWST is a prime example of that , revealing our planetsin magnificent infrared – but the equipment used by both is promptly available .

Matherne used an 8 - inch Meade LX80 ACF telescope and a 7D Mark II DSLR to capture the Moon in full color , while McCarthy used a Celestron C11 telescope with an ASI174 millimeter television camera and an infrared pas filter to enamor the frosty details .

" This range is a love life letter to the upcoming Artemis I mission , the first human - grass lunar launching fomite in 50 eld , " McCarthy said onTwitter . When humans set foot on the lunar surface in the coming year we can wait many more gloriously elaborated images of our natural satellite .