4 ms·
Despite public perception to the contrary, the Hubble Space Telescope is not an especially large telescope. Telescopes on the ground of a similar size are a di
by antognini 3y ago
Despite public perception to the contrary, the Hubble Space Telescope is not an especially large telescope. Telescopes on the ground of a similar size are a dime a dozen. What made HST special is that it was in space and could get much higher resolution than ground based telescopes at the time. With modern advances in adaptive optics that advantage has generally been negated, so a telescope needs to have some other reason to be put in space.
- Cthulhu_ 3y agoWasn't it being cold in space so there's more infra red coming in also a factor?
- alfiopuglisi 3y agoMore than temperature, the main problem is the atmosphere. Hubble can see a lot of infrared, and also ultraviolet, because it is in space. Ground-based IR telescopes are somewhat limited, and UV is non-existent.
- bouvin 3y agoFor ground-based telescopes, I am continually impressed with what amateur astronomers construct in their back gardens, e.g., https://youtu.be/tFZVmVRItbg https://youtu.be/tFZVmVRItbg