The Cosmic Perspective (9th Edition)
9th Edition
ISBN: 9780134874364
Author: Jeffrey O. Bennett, Megan O. Donahue, Nicholas Schneider, Mark Voit
Publisher: PEARSON
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Textbook Question
Chapter 6, Problem 5EAP
How do reflecting telescopes differ from refracting telescopes? Which type is more commonly used by professional astronomers, and why?
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Quite often advertisements appear for telescopes that extol their magnifying power. a) Is this a good criterion for evaluating telescopes? Explain your answer. b) What would be a better criterion for evaluating telescopes? Explain your answer.
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Imagine that you are the head of a funding agency that can afford to build only one telescope. Which of the four proposed telescopes below
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O A. a radio telescope in orbit above the Earth
B. A gamma ray telescope in orbit above the Earth
O C. An x-ray telescope located on a mountain in Peru
D. An ultraviolet telescope located in the Mojave desert
Chapter 6 Solutions
The Cosmic Perspective (9th Edition)
Ch. 6 - Prob. 1VSCCh. 6 - Prob. 2VSCCh. 6 - Prob. 3VSCCh. 6 - Prob. 4VSCCh. 6 - How does your eye focus light? How is a glass lens...Ch. 6 - How does a camera record light? How are images...Ch. 6 - What are the two key properties of a telescope,...Ch. 6 - What is the diffraction limit, and how does it...Ch. 6 - How do reflecting telescopes differ from...Ch. 6 - What are the three basic categories of...
Ch. 6 - Prob. 7EAPCh. 6 - What do we mean by spectral resolution? Why is...Ch. 6 - List at least three ways in which Earth's...Ch. 6 - 10. Describe how deeply each portion of the...Ch. 6 - Prob. 11EAPCh. 6 - Prob. 12EAPCh. 6 - Prob. 13EAPCh. 6 - Prob. 14EAPCh. 6 - Prob. 15EAPCh. 6 - Prob. 16EAPCh. 6 - Prob. 17EAPCh. 6 - Prob. 18EAPCh. 6 - Prob. 19EAPCh. 6 - Prob. 20EAPCh. 6 - Prob. 21EAPCh. 6 - Prob. 22EAPCh. 6 - Prob. 23EAPCh. 6 - Prob. 24EAPCh. 6 - Prob. 25EAPCh. 6 - Prob. 26EAPCh. 6 - Prob. 27EAPCh. 6 - Prob. 28EAPCh. 6 - Prob. 29EAPCh. 6 - Prob. 30EAPCh. 6 - Prob. 31EAPCh. 6 - Prob. 32EAPCh. 6 - Prob. 37EAPCh. 6 - Prob. 38EAPCh. 6 - Prob. 39EAPCh. 6 - Prob. 40EAPCh. 6 - Prob. 41EAPCh. 6 - Prob. 42EAPCh. 6 - Prob. 43EAPCh. 6 - Prob. 44EAPCh. 6 - Prob. 45EAPCh. 6 - Prob. 46EAPCh. 6 - Prob. 50EAPCh. 6 - Close Binary System. Suppose that two stars in a...Ch. 6 - Prob. 52EAPCh. 6 - Diffraction Limit of the Eye. Calculate the...Ch. 6 - Prob. 54EAPCh. 6 - Prob. 55EAPCh. 6 - Hubble’s Field of View. Large telescopes often...Ch. 6 - Prob. 57EAPCh. 6 - Visible-Light Interferometry. Technological...
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- What kind of visible-light and infrared telescopes on the ground are astronomers planning for the future? Why are they building them on the ground and not in space?arrow_forwardWhen astronomers discuss the apertures of their telescopes, they say bigger is better. Explain why.arrow_forwardTelescopes can now be operated remotely from a warm room, but until about 25 years ago, astronomers worked at the telescope to guide it so that it remained pointed in exactly the right place. In a large telescope, like the Palomar 200-inch telescope, astronomers sat in a cage at the top of the telescope, where the secondary mirror is located, as shown in Figure 6.6. Assume for the purpose of your calculation that the diameter of this cage was 40 inches. What fraction of the light is blocked? Figure 6.6 Focus Arrangements for Reflecting Telescopes. Reflecting telescopes have different options for where the light is brought to a focus. With prime focus, light is detected where it comes to a focus after reflecting from the primary mirror. With Newtonian focus, light is reflected by a small secondary mirror off to one side, where it can be detected (see also Figure 6.5). Most large professional telescopes have a Cassegrain focus in which light is reflected by the secondary mirror down through a hole in the primary mirror to an observing station below the telescope.arrow_forward
- The X-ray image in Figure UN 5-5 shows the remains of an exploded star. Explain why images recorded by telescopes in space are often displayed in representational (“false”) color rather than in the “colors” (wavelengths) received by the telescope.arrow_forwardThe dean of a university located near the ocean (who was not a science major in college) proposes building an infrared telescope right on campus and operating it in a nice heated dome so that astronomers will be comfortable on cold winter nights. Criticize this proposal, giving your reasoning.arrow_forwardMany decades ago, the astronomers on the staff of Mount Wilson and Palomar Observatories each received about 60 nights per year for their observing programs. Today, an astronomer feels fortunate to get 10 nights per year on a large telescope. Can you suggest some reasons for this change?arrow_forward
- How much more light can be gathered by a telescope that is 8 m in diameter than by your fully dark-adapted eye at 7 mm?arrow_forwardThe most important function of an astronomical telescope is to: a. collect as much light as possible and bring it into focus c. enhance the violet colors of an object, which our eyes have trouble seeing d. bring distant objects closer by pulling on the lightarrow_forwardWhich of the following is NOT a characteristic of the next generation of planned telescopes? Answers: A. multiple focus points B. extreme size C. segmented mirrors D. adaptive optics E. multiple wavebandsarrow_forward
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