ASTC (Adaptive Scalable Texture Compression) is a highly flexible and efficient block-based texture compression format developed by ARM and standardized by the Khronos Group. It is primarily designed for use in real-time 3D graphics applications, particularly in mobile, embedded, and increasingly, desktop and console gaming. A key feature of ASTC is its adaptability, allowing for a wide range of bit rates (from 8 bits per pixel down to less than 1 bit per pixel) and variable block sizes (e.g., 4x4, 5x4, 5x5, up to 12x12 pixels). This flexibility enables developers to fine-tune the balance between image quality and memory footprint, making it suitable for diverse texture types such as diffuse maps, normal maps, specular maps, and UI elements. ASTC supports 2D textures, 3D textures, and cubemaps, as well as both LDR (low dynamic range) and HDR (high dynamic range) data, and various color spaces including sRGB and linear. Its main advantages include superior visual quality at lower bit rates compared to many older compression formats, reduced memory bandwidth requirements, and improved power efficiency on compatible hardware. ASTC is widely supported by modern graphics APIs like OpenGL ES, Vulkan, and DirectX 12 Ultimate, making it a preferred choice for high-performance graphics rendering.