Radio Telescopes

Radio telescopes allow scientists to see the invisible radiation that stars and other celestial bodies like galaxies, nebulae, and even planets emit in the form of radio waves. Radio waves, even though the weakest form of radiation, can travel long distances. By detecting these radio waves and using radio telescopes to record images of them, scientists can discover objects in space farther away than if they used other types of telescopes.

Radio telescopes are typically much larger than other telescopes that can detect wavelengths at other portions of the electromagnetic spectrum. Their large dishes better enable radio telescopes to collect more radio waves to increase the resolution and intensity of the image produced.