Musician, director and retro technology enthusiast Chris Graue proved that even a camera accessory for an old handheld game console can shoot space. In the Mount Wilson Observatory in California, he took photos of Jupiter using a Nintendo Game Boy paired with the Game Boy Camera, which was first released in 1998.
The camera was fitted with a custom 3D-printed mount and connected to the observatory’s renowned 60-inch telescope. In the end, the tiny camera effectively captured images through an optical system with an equivalent focal length of about 730,000 millimeters.
@chrisgraue is this the largest lens on a game boy camera ever?
♬ original sound – Lo(u)ser {Chris Graue}
Initially, the content creator attempted to photograph the Moon but found that it was too close for equipment of this caliber. He then turned to Jupiter, located about 714 million kilometers from Earth.
Despite the camera’s modest capabilities, the images reveal the outline of the planet and even its distinctive cloud bands. By today’s standards, the image quality is extremely primitive, but that was precisely the point of the experiment.
The camera accessory for the handheld was released in 1998 and was regarded more as a gimmick than a fully functional camera. It was capable of taking only small, low-resolution black-and-white photos, yet it went on to achieve cult status among retro technology enthusiasts.
