Using math, compare the light-gathering power of a 3-meter reflector with the light gathering power of the 5-meter Hale telescope and the 4-meter reflector at Cerro Tololo, Chile. Show your calculations.
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It's all about area. The area of a circle is pi X r^2.
For a 3 meter scope, the radius is 1.5 meters. A = 3.141529 X (1.5)^2 = 7.07m^2
For a 4 meter scope, the radius is 2.0 meters. A = 3.141529 X (2)^2 = 12.57m^2
For a 5 meter scope, the radius is 2.5 meters. A = 3.141529 X (2.5)^2 = 19.63m^2
The Hale telescope will collect almost 3 times the light of the 3-meter telescope by increasing the radius by a meter. Likewise, the telescope in Chile will collect nearly double the light with increasing the radius by just a 1/2 meter.
For a 3 meter scope, the radius is 1.5 meters. A = 3.141529 X (1.5)^2 = 7.07m^2
For a 4 meter scope, the radius is 2.0 meters. A = 3.141529 X (2)^2 = 12.57m^2
For a 5 meter scope, the radius is 2.5 meters. A = 3.141529 X (2.5)^2 = 19.63m^2
The Hale telescope will collect almost 3 times the light of the 3-meter telescope by increasing the radius by a meter. Likewise, the telescope in Chile will collect nearly double the light with increasing the radius by just a 1/2 meter.
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http://www.company7.com/library/astforms…
http://astronomyonline.org/Science/Teles…
http://www.telescope-optics.net/index.ht…
http://shutterfreak.net/content/page/200…
http://astronomyonline.org/Science/Teles…
http://www.telescope-optics.net/index.ht…
http://shutterfreak.net/content/page/200…