What is this weird paint job NASA uses on rockets?

[SpaceLaunchSystem]

So I'm wondering about this paint job:

What is it called? Does it even have a name? I've seen it on a lot of launch vehicles, particularly test ones. Is it a test pattern?

Edited November 1, 2014 by SpaceLaunchSystem

[r4pt0r]

what else has it been used on?

[razark]

It gives a reliable, easily seen, and known reference to tell what the rocket is doing in terms of pitch, roll, and yaw when you go through the imagery frame by frame.

[NovaSilisko]

They're called roll stripes, generally. They help identify if the rocket has any small errors in its roll attitude, by looking at footage taken of the vehicle after launch.

[Tommygun]

I can't remember what it is called, but they have something like a modern version of this on the space station.

They have black circular spots painted on the station's modules.

It's a type of video motion capture system. With the help of a computer program and cameras, they can move a module or supply craft around the station and know its precise location relative to the station.

[SpaceLaunchSystem]

what else has it been used on?

Well, the ares 1-x for one thing.

[Nibb31]

The stripes and checker patterns are to allow visual monitoring of roll.

[FishInferno]

I read somewhere that while Von Braun was a teenager, there was a film about a moon landing, and the rocket in the film was painted black and white. Strange, that the real moon rocket was also black and white...

Just a theory, but this is coming from a real, non-wikipedia book

[tg626]

Read here http://amyshirateitel.com/2012/02/05/painting-rockets/

[Pipcard]

It's also on the French Diamant rocket.