Get a copy of What If? 2 and Randall’s other books at: https://xkcd.com/booksMore serious answers to absurd questions at: https://what-if.xkcd.com/If you poi...
Tl:dw Hubble is designed to look at objects really far away and isn’t calibrated for Earth or fast enough to track a single spot long enough for good exposure, so the earth would be blurry.
Hubble is old enough that it only has a 1MP camera, so roughly 720p or 1280x720 pixels , so each pixel would represent about 15 feet if you’re generous. A back yard swimming pool would be like 4 pixels, 9 if your parents are rich.
Tl:dw Hubble is designed to look at objects really far away and isn’t calibrated for Earth or fast enough to track a single spot long enough for good exposure, so the earth would be blurry.
Now, if we had the ability to focus at earth distance with proper stabilization, what would we see?
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Yes but to what degree of magnification? Would we see a city, a street, a car, a person…?
I did some napkin math and came to about 3.5 miles of field of view of pointed at the earth.
Hubble is old enough that it only has a 1MP camera, so roughly 720p or 1280x720 pixels , so each pixel would represent about 15 feet if you’re generous. A back yard swimming pool would be like 4 pixels, 9 if your parents are rich.
This is a much better way of looking at it! Thanks!
Earth
Apparently you spinning in a chair if you have a skylight over it