HackerTube
HomeLongsLikedHistoryWatch laterCategoriesPlaylistsSettings

Visualizing video at the speed of light — one trillion frames per second

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)1 HN recommender · recommended in 1 month, 2011-2025
YouTube
12M views · 14 years ago · demo · evergreen

MIT Media Lab shows an imaging system capturing a trillion frames per second, fast enough to film light pulses travelling through objects in slow motion.

HN cites it as the original and still-wow reference whenever newer ultra-high-speed light imaging comes up.

Everyday physics & science demosAudio & video engineering#trillionfps#lightinmotion#mitmedialab#femto-photography#high-speedcamera

9 comments from Hacker News

@westurner2025 · in “Man Builds Two Billion FPS Camera That Records at the Speed of Light”

"Visualizing video at the speed of light — one trillion frames per second" (2011; MIT) ▶ this video "Single-shot real-time femtosecond imaging of temporal focusing" (2018) link "Filming the Speed of Light at 10 Trillion FPS" (2019; The Slow Mo Guys) link

CitesView on HN
@jval432025 · in “A laser pointer at 2B FPS [video]”

The original MIT video from 2011: "Visualizing video at the speed of light — one trillion frames per second" ▶ this video (project site: link ) He mentions this as the inspiration in his previous video ( link ).

CitesView on HN
@getpost2025 · in “Los Alamos is capturing images of explosions at 7 millionths of a second”

It's an apples-to-oranges comparison, but I'm reminded of the ~10^12 fps (1.7 ps exposures) demonstrated in work at MIT[0], which was for a completely different application. [0] link EDIT: Video with explanation. ▶ this video

CitesView on HN
@westurner2025 · in “'Strange metals' point to a whole new way to understand electricity”

Photons certainly appear to have a real physical location with 1e9 FPS imaging capabilities: "Visualizing video at the speed of light — one trillion frames per second" (2012) ▶ this video But is there an identity function for a photon(s), and is "time-polarization" necessary for defining an identity function for photons?

CitesView on HN
@itishappy2024 · in “U of T computational imaging researchers harness AI to fly with light in motion”

It's quite realistic, here's the same thing without AI: ▶ this video I still share your concern, however, particularly because they seem to be avoid moving the camera without time moving as well. I was expecting bullet-time!

CitesView on HN
@itishappy2024 · in “U of T computational imaging researchers harness AI to fly with light in motion”

> There's zero purpose for having a bottle with any label. Light interacts quite differently with the label than the material of the bottle. We get to observe scattering, diffusion, color... y'know, science stuff. It is rather interesting that the first video (from 12 years ago) used a blank red label instead. (See how it differs in from the rest of the bottle? I particularly like how it obscures the pulse itself and highlights the wavefront on the surface.) ▶ this video

CitesView on HN
@soulofmischief2024 · in “U of T computational imaging researchers harness AI to fly with light in motion”

For those curious, here is prior art from 12 years ago, capturing light in a coke bottle with a single streak camera. ▶ this video link I remember when this dropped and where I was when I watched it and read the paper. One of the coolest things I'd ever seen. This seems like a great extension of the work. I'm okay with trading accuracy for crude usefulness as a model. Making this interactive and putting it in the hands of curious minds is the next step.

CitesView on HN
@bXVsbGVy2022 · in “Exporting Data from Old Gear Through LCD Sniffing”

Since you are finding about femto-photo today, I think you are gonna love this: link ▶ this video By the way. Femto laser are somewhat common nowadays. They are used in eye surgery and microscopy. I even seem papers talking about using them in finger print scanners! See Optical coherence tomography for more info.

RecommendsView on HN
@jcr2011 · in “Trillion-frame-per-second video”

The relevant video from MIT Media Lab is here: ▶ this video > MIT researchers have created a new imaging system that can acquire visual data at a rate of one trillion exposures per second. That's fast enough to produce a slow-motion video of light traveling through objects. > link

CitesView on HN
Filming the Speed of Light at 10 Trillion FPS13:06

Filming the Speed of Light at 10 Trillion FPS

The Slow Mo Guys
42.1M views • 7 years ago
Imaging at a trillion frames per second | Ramesh Raskar11:02

Imaging at a trillion frames per second | Ramesh Raskar

TED
3.2M views • 14 years ago
1 million fps Slow Motion video of bullet impacts made by Werner Mehl from Kurzzeit10:00

1 million fps Slow Motion video of bullet impacts made by Werner Mehl from Kurzzeit

Matt Rece
15.6M views • 17 years ago
A laser pointer at 2 billion fps makes the speed of light look... kinda weird29:22

A laser pointer at 2 billion fps makes the speed of light look... kinda weird

AlphaPhoenix
6M views • 1 year ago
Why is TV 29.97 frames per second?14:27

Why is TV 29.97 frames per second?

Stand-up Maths
2.2M views • 10 years ago
How a TV Works in Slow Motion - The Slow Mo Guys11:39

How a TV Works in Slow Motion - The Slow Mo Guys

The Slow Mo Guys
45.7M views • 8 years ago
Reveal Invisible Motion With This Clever Video Trick14:20

Reveal Invisible Motion With This Clever Video Trick

Steve Mould
2.8M views • 6 years ago
Eulerian Video Magnification4:28

Eulerian Video Magnification

Miki Rubinstein
788K views • 14 years ago
The Visual Microphone: Passive Recovery of Sound from Video4:32

The Visual Microphone: Passive Recovery of Sound from Video

Abe Davis's Research
1.9M views • 12 years ago
Admiral Grace Hopper Explains the Nanosecond2:04

Admiral Grace Hopper Explains the Nanosecond

funbury
163K views • 14 years ago
Dual Photography5:10

Dual Photography

mm648230
24K views • 17 years ago
CD / Color7:00

CD / Color

Captain Disillusion
2.9M views • 6 years ago
Fairy Lights in Femtoseconds: Tangible Holographic Plasma (SIGGRAPH)3:20

Fairy Lights in Femtoseconds: Tangible Holographic Plasma (SIGGRAPH)

Yoichi Ochiai
1.1M views • 11 years ago
Bullet vs Prince Rupert's Drop at 150,000 fps - Smarter Every Day 1658:40

Bullet vs Prince Rupert's Drop at 150,000 fps - Smarter Every Day 165

SmarterEveryDay
7.4M views • 9 years ago
Peru 8K HDR 60FPS (FUHD)5:38

Peru 8K HDR 60FPS (FUHD)

Jacob + Katie Schwarz
63.8M views • 9 years ago
Marc Levoy - Lectures on Digital Photography - Lecture 1 (21mar16).mp41:15:21

Marc Levoy - Lectures on Digital Photography - Lecture 1 (21mar16).mp4

Marc Levoy
512K views • 10 years ago
The Fast Fourier Transform (FFT): Most Ingenious Algorithm Ever?28:23

The Fast Fourier Transform (FFT): Most Ingenious Algorithm Ever?

Reducible
2.3M views • 5 years ago
.38 Special vs Prince Ruperts Drop at 170,000 FPS - Smarter Every Day 1696:00

.38 Special vs Prince Ruperts Drop at 170,000 FPS - Smarter Every Day 169

SmarterEveryDay
5.6M views • 9 years ago
Hypercentric optics: A camera lens that can see behind objects14:22

Hypercentric optics: A camera lens that can see behind objects

Applied Science
597K views • 6 years ago
The Most Underrated Algorithm26:33

The Most Underrated Algorithm

Veritasium
10.8M views • 4 years ago