4.0 Learning Objectives

In this chapter, students will learn how to:

• Identify and define the three fundamental components of a modern system for measuring radiation from astronomical sources: telescope, wavelength-sorting instrument, and detector.
• Summarize the historical development of astronomical telescopes, including their ancient observatory origins and the impact of Galileo’s telescope on our understanding of celestial objects.
• Calculate the light-collecting area of telescopes with different mirror diametres and demonstrate the concept of increasing light collection with larger apertures.
• Identify the technological advancements that enabled the construction of larger telescopes in the decades starting from 1990.
• Assess the effectiveness of adaptive optics in correcting atmospheric distortions and improving image quality in ground-based telescopes.
• Summarize the importance of using electronic equipment to detect radio waves from space instead of relying on human senses.