Best answer:

Answer by Matty
Low earth orbit, where your typical spy satellite resides, is at most 2000 km from the surface, and more likely in the hundreds of kilometers

Average distance to the moon is about 384 thousand kilometers

That’s a bit different

Second problem with this idea can be illustrated by taking a pair of binoculars and looking at something four feet away. Doesn’t work so well

One of the Apollo’s left a mirror on the surface for purposes of experiments which have been carried out, involving firing a laser all the way to the moon, reflecting it off the mirror, and receiving it back on earth

It is in fact one of the ways we measure the moon’s distance, and maybe the most accurate

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APOD

Best answer:

Answer by quantumclaustrophobe
Some Infrared up to extreme ultraviolet.

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Answer by Adorabilly
Primary mirror:
The main mirror of the Hubble Space Telescope, measuring 2.4 meters (94.5 inches) in diameter. The primary mirror captures light from objects in space and focuses it toward the secondary mirror.

Secondary mirror:
A smaller mirror (0.3 meters, or 12.2 inches) that redirects the light coming from the primary mirror through a hole in the center of the primary mirror and onward to the science instruments.

Focal plane:
Where Hubble’s images are formed. The mirrors focus the starlight onto the focal plane, which is roughly the size of a dinner plate. The light is then picked up by the science instruments.

Corrective optics: Corrective apparatus “worn” by each science instrument to compensate for the imperfect shape of the primary mirror. COSTAR provided the corrective optics for the original science instruments. (http://hubblesite.org/the_telescope/nuts_.and._bolts/optics/optics2.php)

This website lets you track where the hubble is currently

http://hubblesite.org/the_telescope/where.a.s_hubble_now/

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As you look at the nighttime sky with just you eyes, you will notice small points of light and a string of stars. You might even distinguish a number of the constellations that you were taught about during your childhood. Possibly even several planets if you were familiar with their position.

The following step would be to look at the same scene through binoculars. The detail is more pronounced, you will be able to see more definition like the moons of Jupiter and actual star clouds in the Milky Way. You will see about 30x’s more of the astral bodies than with the naked eye.

If you prefer the use of solar scopes, these are great for night sky viewing. At BuyTelescopes we supply a big range including Alpen spotting scopes. Conversely, a good set of binoculars can open up the night sky drastically, even beginning with 7 x 32′s. Not only are they more cost effective, but, you will learn so much more than if you were to open up and set up a telescope with the software/ GPS ready and punch in the name you know and it locates it it.

That brings me to the final step and that is an astronomy telescope like the Lunt solar telescope. It is possible to observe all the planets, the phases and details of several planets in addition to their moons. 100′s of galaxies, and star clusters, dozens of nebulae, details of our neck of the woods in the Milky Way and other details you will not usually see. Please know, the larger the telescope, the better the light gathering functionality. For great deep sky viewing you actually need about a 4″ reflector or a 60-80mm (2.4-3.1″) refractor astronomy telescope. Take a look at our range of Baader Planetarium products at BuyTelescopes.

In conclusion, you have got a decision of which route you want to take because, to buy a telescope or binoculars can be very similar cost, for a base model telescope vs. a high end set of binoculars. Of course, as with most things in life, both of them have their own specific redeeming features. You may not need to employ a telescope for looking at an eagle 1 mile away (stability). On the other hand, you will not be able perceive the definition of the Orion nebula with your binoculars designed for bird watching (mobility and variability). At BuyTelescopes you we provide a brilliant variety of telescopes and binoculars including Losandy, Takahashi telescopes, Questar telescopes, Meade telescopes and Alpen binoculars.

Even though, cross over for each can be a gray area, it is better to stay with what you know until you really have the information to make a decision. A good recommendation would be to find your local astronomy group. You will discover the more you learn, the more you will want to learn and discover.

Best answer:

Answer by Tina L
teh hubble primary mirror is 2.4 meters in diameter

its not a schmit-cassegrain telesscope. its a ritchie-chretien telesscope.

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Best answer:

Answer by DaveSFV
HUH? There is only one Hubble telescope and there is not going to be a Hubble ll. Yes, there will be and are now telescopes being placed into space.

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Best answer:

Answer by AstroPHYSstudent
you can see a surprising amount of cool stuff with even a basic telescope (60mm scope is pretty small and good for a beginner). I would suggest getting a cheaper, small telescope to become familiar with the night sky and star gazing in general. I’ll let you know before hand though that stars are not the things that you will want to be looking at… Some of them, like Betelgeuse and VY Canis Majoris, are cool to look at because of how brilliant they are but in general, stars are pretty uneventful. You will, however, enjoy looking at the planets. With just a small 60mm telescope you will be able to see the rings around Saturn, some cloud bands on Jupiter, Mars isn’t much of a sight most of the time in most telescopes, Venus is cool to look at but just REALLY bright, Mercury is nothing special, and the others are super far away and really hard to find amongst the background stars. Some small telescopes will be able to see deep sky objects like nebulae and galaxies but you generally need a wider aperture with a wide field lens. I would definitely recommend purchasing a telescope! Download the software “Stellarium” – its free and it will show you exactly what is visible, where it is, and what it is, as viewed from wherever you are on the planet. Hope this helps, have fun star gazing!

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