NASA Mars Imaging Technique Reveals Ancient Rock Art on Earth

Jon Harman, a mathematics PhD and rock art aficionado, utilized a NASA image-processing method known as 'decorrelation stretch' to analyze ancient rock art. He presented his findings at a conference in 2005 after observing its impact on images from Mars. To facilitate this, Harman created the Dstretch plug-in for open-source image processing and launched applications for both Android and iOS. His initial breakthrough occurred in Baja California, where he uncovered a yellow figure in the Cave of San Borjitas. Since then, Dstretch has aided archaeologists globally, including Noel Hidalgo Tan, who identified over 200 faded artworks at Angkor Wat from 2010 to 2012. This technique significantly enhances color variations while maintaining hue, greatly benefiting cultural heritage research.