Optical Telescopes

Throughout time, humans have looked out into the universe for answers and knowledge; however, the ways through which people have observed space and its objects has changed. Optical telescopes have advanced in their technology, and observatories, as they are known today, have been around only for a couple hundred years.

This is a picture of a refracting telescope from the middle 1800s. The general functioning principle is still the same, yet the best telescopes are those that have the largest light-gathering power. Light-gathering power is simply the ability to capture the most amount of light as possible. In this topic, you will explore optical telescopes and their uses.

Essential Questions

• How do optical telescopes work?
• What are the major observatories and research centers for astronomy?