ASTRONOMICAL TELESCOPE

Introduction www.citycollegiate.com

It is an optical instrument used to view heavenly bodies such moon,stars, planets and distant
objects.

Construction

Astronomical telescope consists of two convex lenses:

Objective
Eye piece

Objective www.citycollegiate.com

The objective is a convex lens of large focal length and large aperture. It usually made of two
convex lenses in contact with each other to reduce the chromatic and spherical aberrations.

Eye piece

The eye piece is also a convex lens .Its focal length is smaller than that of objective. It is also a
combination of two lenses.

The objective is mounted on a wide metallic tube while the eye piece is mounted on a small tube
.The distance b/w the eye piece and the objective can be changed by moving tubes.

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 WORKING

The rays coming from a distant object falls on objective as parallel beam at some angle
say "a" and these rays after refraction and passing through the objective converge at its focus
and make an inverted & real image AB. This image acts as an object for the eye piece. The
distance of the eye piece is so adjusted that the image AB lies within the focal length of the eye
piece. The eye piece forms the final image .The final image is magnified ,virtual and inverted
with respect to object. The final image is formed at infinity.
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MAGNIFYING POWER www.citycollegiate.com

The magnifying power (M) of astronomical telescope is given by:

It is because the object is at infinite distance and hence the angle subtended by the object at eye
may be taken as the angle subtended by the object at objective.

M = b/a ............(1)

since a and b are small angles, therefore we can take:

a = tan a...................
and..................
b = tan b.............

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 ................

In right angled triangles DAOB & DAEB

...................

This expression shows that in order to obtain high magnification, focal length of object must be
large and that of eye piece is small.

LENGTH OF TELESCOPE

The distance b/w objective lens and the eye piece is equal to the length of the telescope.
From figure:
OE = length of telescope =L

But
OB = Fo & BE = Fe
OE = OB + BE

OR

OR

L = focal length of objective + focal length of eye piece

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ASTRONOMICAL TELESCOPE

A telescope is an optical instrument which is used to see the distant

objects. Telescopes are of two types:

1. Astronomical telescope
2. Galilean telescope or Terrestrial telescope

Astronomical Telescope

An astronomical telescope is an optical instrument which is used to

see the magnified image of distant heavenly bodies like stars, planets,
satellites and galaxies etc.

The final image formed by an

astronomical telescope is always
virtual, inverted and magnified.

Principle of Astronomical Telescope

An astronomical telescope works on the principle that when an

object to be magnified is placed at a large distance from the objective
lens of telescope, a virtual, inverted and magnified image of the object is
formed at the least distance of distinct vision from the eye held close to
the eye piece.

Construction of Astronomical Telescope

An astronomical telescope consists of two convex lenses : an

objective lens O and an eye piece E. the focal length fo of the objective
lens of astronomical telescope is large as compared to the focal length
fe of the eye piece. And the aperture of objective lens O is large as
compared to that of eye piece, so that it can receive more light from the
distant object and form a bright image of the distant object. Both the
objective lens and the eye piece are fitted at the free ends of two sliding
tubes, at a suitable distance from each other.

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Working of Astronomical telescope

The ray diagram to show the working of the astronomical telescope

is shown in figure. A parallel beam of light from a heavenly body such as
stars, planets or satellites fall on the objective lens of the telescope. The
objective lens forms a real, inverted and diminished image A’B’ of the
heavenly body. This image (A’B’) now acts as an object for the eye piece
E, whose position is adjusted so that the image lies between the focus
fe’ and the optical centre C2 of the eye piece. Now the eye piece forms a
virtual, inverted and highly magnified image of object at infinity. When
the final image of an object is formed at infinity, the telescope is said to
be in ‘normal adjustment’.

It should be noted that, the final image of object (such as stars,

planets or satellites) formed by an astronomical telescope is always
inverted with respect to the object. But it does not matter whether the
image formed by an astronomical telescope is inverted or not, as all the
heavenly bodies are usually spherical is shape.

Magnifying Power of an Astronomical Telescope

The Magnifying Power of a telescope is given by:

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 m =

Where, fo = Focal length of the objective lens

fe = Focal length of the eye-piece lens

And the length (L) of the tube of telescope is equal to the sum of the
focal lengths of the objective lens and the eye piece. Thus,

L = fo + fe

Test Your Understanding and Answer These Questions:

a. Define telescope.

b. Name the types of telescope.

c. What is an astronomical telescope?

d. Explain principle, construction and working of an astronomical telescope with the

help of a ray diagram.

e. What is magnification of astronomical telescope?

f. Which lens has small focal length in astronomical telescope?

g. How many lenses are used in a telescope?

h. Which instrument is used to see heavenly bodies?

The Astronomical Telescope

The astronomical telescope makes use of two positive lenses: the objective, which
forms the image of a distant object at its focal length, and the eyepiece, which acts

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as a simple magnifier with which to view the image formed by the objective. Its
length is equal to the sum of the focal lengths of the objective and eyepiece, and
its angular magnification is -fo /fe, giving an inverted image.

The astronomical telescope can be used for terrestrial viewing, but seeing the
image upside down is a definite inconvenience. Viewing stars upside down is no
problem. Another inconvenience for terrestrial viewing is the length of the
astronomical telescope, equal to the sum of the focal lengths of the objective and
eyepiece lenses. A shorter telescope with upright viewing is the Galilean telescope.

The Astronomical Telescope

The diagram shows the standard astronomical telescope focused at infinity. This
requires that the image formed by the objective be exactly at the focal length of the
eyepiece. The astronomical telescope can be used to view objects at finite
distances, although there is the inconvenience of having the image upside down.
Nevertheless, showing the imaging details for finite distances is an interesting
exercise in applying the lens equation. If used to view objects at a finite distance,
the lens separation must be changed, as you can demonstrate by trying different
distances in the calculation below.

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If you want to focus the telescope an object at distance o = m,

then for a telescope with objective focal length fo = cm

and eyepiece focal length fe = cm,

the separation of the lenses must be L = cm

compared to a separation of cm for focusing on an object at infinity.

The above calculation assumes that the image is formed as a virtual image at
infinity for comfortable viewing; this is the standard practice. The calculation
involves application of the lens equation to calculate the image distance of th
image formed by the objective lens in the tube of the telescope. Forcing the final
image to be at infinity requires the real image formed by the objective to be at the
focal length of the eyepiece.

If you insist, you can get more magnification from the telescope by adjusting the
eyepiece to form its virtual image closer to the user's eye. If you bring it in to the
standard close-focus distance of 25 cm, then applying the lens equation to both
objective and eyepiece images shows that you must adjust the separation of the
lenses to

L= cm to force the resulting image to be 25 cm from your eye.

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You can get more magnification from the telescope by focusing it so that the
virtual image is at 25 cm rather than infinity, but it is not a good idea because it
puts the eye of the viewer under strain to accommodate the eye to that close
distance. The relaxed eye is focused at infinity, so if you are going to use the
telescope all day, you had better focus it at infinity.

The astronomical telescope can be used at different distances as shown be the

above calculation, but if you insist on having your image right-side up, then you
need to use a Galilean telescope, or use an inverting prism arrangement with the
astronomical telescope

Question:
What is the magnifying power of an astronomical telescope using a reflecting mirror whose
radius of curvature is 8.0 m and an eyepiece whose focal length is 3.2 cm?

Magnifying Power of An Astronomical Telescope

Magnifying Power of An Astronomical Telescope is defined as its ability to magnify a distant
object. Mathematically Magnifying Power of an Astronomical Telescope is equal to the ratio of
focal length of objective to the focal length of eyepiece.

Answer and Explanation:

Let us recap important information from the question

 Radius of curvature of objective R=8.0mR=8.0m

 Focal length of eyepiece {eq}f_{e} = 3.2...

Astronomical Telescopes

It is used to observe distinct images of heavenly bodies.

It consists of 2 lenses, the objective lens O of large focal length and

large aperture and the eyepiece E which has a small focal length and
small aperture.

In the normal adjustment of the telescope, the final image is formed at

infinity.

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Principle:

The objective forms the real and inverted image of the distant object
at its focal plane. The distance of the eyepiece from the objective is
adjusted the final image is formed at the least distance vision. In case
the position of the eye is so adjusted that the final image is formed at
infinity.

To increase magnifying power of an astronomical telescope in normal

adjustment, the focal length of objective lens should be the large and
focal length of eye lens should be small.

Note: In normal adjustment, distance between the lenses = f0 + fe.

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When final image is formed at the least distance of distinct vision from
the eye

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Physics Project Report on Astronomical Telescope

ASTRONOMICAL TELESCOPE
A telescope is an optical instrument which is used to see the distant objects. Telescopes
are of two types:
1. Astronomical telescope
2. Galilean telescope or Terrestrial telescope

Astronomical Telescope
An astronomical telescope is an optical instrument which is used to see the magnified
image of distant heavenly bodies like stars, planets, satellites and galaxies etc.
The final image formed by an astronomical telescope is always virtual, inverted and
magnified.

Principle of Astronomical Telescope

An astronomical telescope works on the principle that when an object to be improved is
placed at a significant distance from the objective lens of the telescope, a virtual,

`
inverted and magnified image of the object is formed at the least range of distinct vision
from the eye held close to the eyepiece.

Construction of Astronomical Telescope

An astronomical telescope consists of two convex lenses: an objective lens O and an
eyepiece E. the focal length fo of the objective lens of a solar telescope is large as
compared to the focal length few of the eyepiece. And the aperture of actual lens O is
large as compared to that of eyepiece so that it can receive more light from the distant
object and form a bright image of the remote object. Both the objective lens and the
eyepiece are fitted at the free ends of two sliding tubes, at a suitable distance from each
other.

Telescope – Introduction
In day to day life, we come across many gadgets; you might have seen some persons
wearing glasses or aspects. Have you ever thought about the function of such glasses?
The crystals which are mainly used for curing problems such as shortsightedness or
longsighted etc. are called lenses. These lenses can also be prepared in many ways; for
example, these are practiced in a telescope, microscope eye lenses, binoculars etc.
In this investigatory project, we shall discuss one of the uses of the arrangement of
lenses, i.e., and we shall discuss the telescope.
The telescope is used for seeing distant objects such as stars, planets etc. Let us see
their function, how they can bring a thing near to us.

THEORY
An astronomical telescope is an optical instrument which is applied for observing distinct
images of heavenly bodies like sources, planets etc.
It consists of two lenses, the objective lens O, which is the vast focal small aperture. The
two lenses are mounted co-axially at the three ends of two tubes. The distance between
these lenses can be adjusted using a rack and pinion arrangement.
In the normal adjustment of the telescope, the final image is formed at infinity. A parallel
beam of light from an astronomical object is made to form on the objective lens of the
telescope. It forms a real, inverted and diminished image of the object. The eyepiece is
so adjusted that A’B’ lies just at the focus of the eyepiece. Therefore a final highly
magnified image is formed at infinity. The final image is erect concerning A’B’ and is
inverted concerning the object.

However, in an astronomical telescope, final image being inverted w.r.t. The object does
not matter, as the astronomical object are usually spherical.
Magnifying Power of an astronomical telescope is a normal adjustment is defined as the
ratio of the angle subtended on the eye by the final image of the angle subtended on the
eye, by the object directly when the final image and the object both lie at an infinite
distance from the eye.

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Working of Astronomical telescope
The ray diagram to show the working of the astronomical telescope. A parallel beam of
light from a heavenly body such as stars, planets or satellites falls on the objective lens
of the telescope. The objective lens forms a real, inverted and diminished image A’B’ of
the heavenly body. This image (A’B’) now acts as an object for the eyepiece E, whose
position is adjusted so that the image lies between the focus for’ and the optical center
C2 of the eyepiece. Now the eye piece forms a virtual, inverted and highly magnified
image of the object at infinity. When the final image of an object is formed at infinity, the
telescope is said to be in ‘normal adjustment’.
It should be seen that the final image of an object (such as stars, planets or satellites)
formed by an astronomical telescope is always prepared concerning the object. But it
does not matter whether the image formed by an astronomical telescope is inverted or
not, as all the heavenly bodies are usually spherical shapes.

Magnifying Power of an Astronomical Telescope

The Magnifying Power of a telescope is given by:

m = Magnifying Power of an Astronomical Telescope
Where, fo = Focal length of the objective lens
fe = Focal length of the eye-piece lens
And the length (L) of the tube of the telescope is equal to the sum of the focal lengths of
the objective lens and the eyepiece. Thus,
L = fo + fe

Physics for Kids

Telescopes

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A telescope is an instrument used to see objects that are far away. Telescopes are often
used to view the planets and stars. Some of the same optical technology that is used in
telescopes is also used to make binoculars and cameras.

Important properties of Telescopes

The two most important properties of a telescope are:

1. Light gathering ability - The better a telescope can gather light, the better you will be
able to see far away stars and faint objects in the night sky. This feature is usually
determined by the size of the aperture of the telescope. The larger the aperture, the
more light the telescope can gather.
2. Magnification - The magnification of a telescope describes how much larger the
telescope can make objects appear.

Lenses and Mirrors

There are two main types of telescopes. One type uses lenses to magnify the image.
Telescopes that use lenses are called refracting telescopes. The other type uses mirrors to
focus the light of the image. These telescopes are called reflecting telescopes.

Refracting Telescopes

Refracting telescopes use lenses to bend the light to a specific focal point such that the
object will be magnified to the viewer. You can go here to learn more about the refraction of
light using lenses.

The basic refracting telescope has two lenses. The first lens is called the objective lens. This
lens is a convex lens that bends the incoming light rays to a focal point within the telescope.
The second lens is called the eyepiece. This lens takes the light from the focal point and
spreads it out across the retina of your eye. This makes the object seem much closer than it
really is.

Reflecting Telescopes

Reflecting telescopes use mirrors instead of lenses to focus the light. A convex mirror is
used to gather light and reflect it back to a focal point. In order to get the light out of the
telescope, another mirror is used to direct the light to an eyepiece. There are various
designs of reflecting telescopes, but the original design by Isaac Newton is still popular
today.

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 Example of a Newtonian reflecting telescope

History of the Telescope

The first telescope invented was a refractor invented by Dutch lensmaker Hans Lippershey
in 1608. Galileo made some improvements and first used the telescope for astronomy. The
refractor was further improved by astronomer Johannes Kepler around 1611. Kepler used a
convex lens for the eyepiece. Although this made the image appear upside down, it
improved the usability of the telescope.

In the late 1600s, Isaac Newton developed the reflecting telescope. By using mirrors instead
of lenses, Newton was able to make an improved telescope that did not suffer from some of
the issues with the refractor such as chromatic aberration.

The Hubble Space Telescope

One of the most famous telescopes in the world today is the Hubble Space Telescope. This
telescope was put into orbit around the Earth in 1990 by the Space Shuttle. Being outside
the Earth's atmosphere allows the Hubble to view outer space without background light. This
has enabled it to take some amazing pictures of far away stars and galaxies.

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 Hubble Space Telescope
was the first space-based telescope.
Source: NASA.

Fun Facts about Telescopes

 The successor to the Hubble Telescope is the James Webb Space Telescope. It is
planned to be launched in 2021.
 The first telescopes were used by sea merchants and the military.
 Most observatories are built on mountaintops where the air is thinner and cleaner.
 A lot of astronomers today work remotely from the actual telescope. They control the
telescope using computers over the internet.
 The largest refracting telescope in the world is located at Yerkes Observatory in
Wisconsin.