| Types of Astronomy Telescopes |
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| Science - Science |
| Written by Gary Pearson |
| Thursday, 18 September 2008 13:29 |
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It is possible to get various types of astronomy telescopes in the market these days. It will be an important investment if you are planning to purchase a telescope for beginning a hobby of studying astronomy at home. It is a great way to spend more time with your children and make them learn something interesting.
It is possible to get various types of astronomy telescopes in the market these days. It will be an important investment if you are planning to purchase a telescope for beginning a hobby of studying astronomy at home. It is a great way to spend more time with your children and make them learn something interesting. Before you buy, though, you should understand the main features of telescopes so that you can be a more informed consumer. Astronomy telescopes can be broken down into three main types. Let us start with the refractor telescope which is a type of astronomy telescope. In this astronomy telescopes there is an optical system which makes use of a succession of glass lenses which turn the light or refract it from the object which is at a distance so that it is focused at a point which in turn magnifies it. When we see historically it was used by Galileo in the 17th century and he was the one to make it popular. Some people also know it as a Galilean refractor. Despite being very old there are some features of this telescope which are still used. The second kind of the astronomy telescope is known as the reflector. An optical system is used in a reflector telescopes which includes a crucial mirror to get the reflection with the help of light from the remote entity in a manner that the piece can be magnified by it. Reflector telescope became popular in 17th century with the patronage of Sir Isaac Newton and is also called Newtonian reflector. Next, there is the Maksutov-Cassegrain astronomy telescope, which is designed to utilize a spherically curved front lens element in conjunction with a similarly curved primary mirror. This configuration provides incredibly sharp images in a compact folded-light path package. The total optical system provides a focal length much longer than the actual optical tube body length. Understanding how these telescopes are generally designed will give you a framework from which to evaluate astronomy telescopes on the market and make the best choice for your budget and your stargazing needs. About the Author: To learn more about Three Types of Telescopes - What are the AdvantagesvisitPowerful Telescopes for informative articles and discussions. |