The basic design, the function of the eyepiece and lens, and optical mechanics of a refracting telescope is so simple that even a middle school student would be able to enumerate its parts, lens and eyepiece – few as they are.
While it is a fact the refracting telescope is one of the simplest types of astronomical telescope – it contributes greatly in the science of astronomy being one of the more important and major instrument utilized in many innumerable astronomical discoveries.
It is unfortunate that the refractor is an imperfect instrument as it possesses a major technical flaw which is known as the chromatic aberration. Chromatic aberration is a defect in which all the lights that pass through the lens do not meet on one point of focus. This in turn renders the vividness and clarity of the images to become inferior.
Because of such defective feature of the refracting telescope, this astronomical telescope gradually became known as an ineffective type of telescope. The refractor acquired the image of being not very reliable for astronomical gazing, study and research.
The popularity of the refractor as a dependable astronomical and stargazing instrument continued to dwindle all the more especially with the invention of a more improved version of the reflecting telescope. Eventually, the reflecting telescope took over the refracting telescope as the important astronomical telescope of modern times.
The fact is, there is not a major refractor built and constructed in recent times.
But the honor can not be denied – the discovery of this astronomical telescope is indeed one of the most important events that helped greatly in the advancement of the science of astronomy.
No comments:
Post a Comment