GRIN Questions and Answers
General Questions:
What is GRIN?
The Great Images in NASA (GRIN) system provides a database
of photos documenting NASA. Photos include: aircraft structures,
aircraft design, aircraft models, wind tunnel tests, materials
research, space programs, astronaut training, robotic planetary
exploration and images taken by NASA spacecraft such as the
Hubble Space Telescope and Mars Global Surveyor. GRIN contains
many, but not all of the most popular images from NASA’s history.
It also contains important historical images that you may
not have seen before. We created GRIN because the History
Office receives many requests for photos. This public database
is intended to meet that need. We used various criteria to
select photos for GRIN. These include the historical interest
and popularity of a photo and its visual impact. While you
will find many photos that you have seen before in popular
media, we also wanted to include more obscure but interesting
photos as well, particularly photos from the early NACA years
before NASA was created. There are many great photos of aeronautical
research at NACA and NASA. While GRIN is not supposed to be
totally comprehensive, we did attempt to cover all aspects
of NASA’s history. If you have any suggestions for additional
photos that you think meet the GRIN criteria, please contact
us at the address below.
What image formats and resolutions are
available on GRIN?
All of the images on GRIN are in JPEG format. There are four
possible image resolutions with the following general characteristics:
-
Thumbnail: an 8 x 10 inch image at 9 dpi yielding approximately
80 pixels (suitable for quick visual reference)
-
Small: an 8 x 10 inch image at 64 dpi yielding approximately
600 pixels (suitable as a medium quality image for the
Web)
-
Medium: an 8 x 10 inch image at 150 dpi yielding approximately
1350 pixels (suitable as a high quality image for the
Web)
-
Large: an 8 x 10 inch image at 300 dpi yielding approximately
2700 pixels (suitable for printed publishing)
The medium and large resolution images are usually available
except in cases where the original digitized image did not
have sufficient resolution (e.g. image created on a low-end
digital camera). To find out which image resolutions are available
for a particular image, click on the More Information link
and scroll to the bottom of the page.
What is JPEG and how do I display a JPEG
image on my screen?
JPEG (pronounced "jay-peg") is a standardized image compression
mechanism. JPEG stands for Joint Photographic Experts Group,
the original name of the committee that wrote the standard.
Most popular browsers can display low resolution JPEG images
within the browser itself. However if your browser cannot
display a JPEG image or your browser is having difficulty
displaying a higher resolution JPEG image then check the JPEG
FAQ to find a JPEG image viewer for your computer.
Where are pictures of ...?
The picture that you are looking for may be available from
some other NASA Center try NIX
(NASA Image eXchange) to search at the other NASA Centers.
How do I use a GRIN image in my own HTML
document?
Since each GRIN image is stored in at least 2 and at most
4 resolutions: thumbnail (~96x96), small (~544x480), medium
(~1280x1024), and large (~3072x2432), there are four possible
URLs.
The URL for a thumbnail resolution image is:
http://grin.hq.nasa.gov/GRIN/IMAGES/THUMB/GPN-yyyy-#####.jpg
(Where
yyyy is a year and ##### is the 5 digit GRIN Database number)
The URL for a small resolution image is: http://girn.hq.nasa.gov/GRIN/IMAGES/SMALL/GPN-yyyy-#####.jpg
The URL for a medium resolution image (if available) is:
http://grin.hq.nasa.gov/GRIN/IMAGES/MEDIUM/GPN-yyyy-#####.jpg
The URL for a large resolution image (if available) is:
http://grin.hq.nasa.gov/GRIN/IMAGES/LARGE/GPN-yyyy-#####.jpg
Here is an example on how to display an icon and make it
display its small resolution version when clicked:
<A HREF="http://grin.hq.nasa.gov/GRIN/IMAGES/SMALL/GPN-yyyy-#####.jpg">
<IMG SRC="http://grin.hq.nasa.gov/GRIN/IMAGES/THUMB/GPN-yyyy-#####.jpg"
ALT="GPN-yyyy-#####"></A>
How do I download an image directly to
my disk drive?
Click on your preferred image resolution link (e.g. Thumbnail,
Small, Medium, or Large) with:
- right mouse button on a PC
- middle mouse button on Unix
- option key and mouse button on Macintosh
to display a pop-up menu from which you should select "Save
Link As" (or "Save Target As" on Internet Explorer). Select
an appropriate location to save the image on your disk drive
and save link as Source.
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