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I don't understand one thing: how can they keep the telescope stable and focused so accurately on one spot in the sky, without any jitter? The Earth is rotating
by ajays 15y ago
I don't understand one thing: how can they keep the telescope stable and focused so accurately on one spot in the sky, without any jitter? The Earth is rotating at 360 degrees/24 hours, which is about 0.25 degrees per minute. This 17000 pixel image covers 1.2 degrees, which means the light is sweeping across this sensor at 60 pixels/second as the earth spins.
How can they move the telescope so accurately that a sensor pixel picks up light from the exact same spot in the sky for an extended duration of time?
- analyst74 15y agoI think you just answered that, right before asking it.
- ajays 15y agoSo you're saying that we have the ability to make sure that a pixel on the sensor is collecting light from the exact same spot in the sky for an extended amount of time? Taking into account (among other things) the rotation of the earth, the shaking of the ground, the wind, the changes in the atmosphere's temperature and humidity and god knows what else? That's pretty f'in awesome!