RGBnauhat

RGBnauhat is a theoretical term used in color science to denote an extended color encoding that augments the standard RGB color space with an additional component named nauhat. It is not part of any established standard, but appears in speculative discussions and experimental render pipelines as a way to explore higher-dimensional color representations. In proposed models, nauhat may encode contextual information such as luminance adaptation, viewing environment, or post-processing metadata, allowing more flexible tone reproduction without changing the three primary channels.

Origins and usage: The concept arose in online discussions and lightweight writings in the early 2020s as a thought experiment about extending color spaces beyond RGB. Different proposals describe nauhat as a scalar or vector attached to each pixel, carried alongside RGB in various encodings. Implementations remain exploratory and are not broadly interoperable. Proponents cite potential benefits for dynamic range handling and perceptual accuracy, while critics point to increased data overhead, encoder/decoder complexity, and the lack of standardized workflows. As a result, RGBnauhat remains a niche topic for researchers exploring color appearance models and high-dynamic-range rendering.