Question on Refractor Telescope

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around building a small refractor telescope, specifically addressing the selection and placement of lenses, their focal lengths, diameters, and the resulting image orientation. The scope includes practical measurements and theoretical considerations related to optics.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation
  • Homework-related

Main Points Raised

  • One participant seeks guidance on the types of lenses needed for the objective and eyepiece, their placement, and appropriate diameters.
  • Another participant suggests that a simple refractor telescope requires two convex lenses, with specific diameters for the objective (1 inch) and eyepiece (1/2 inch), and provides a link for further information.
  • A later reply reiterates the need for two convex lenses and expresses frustration at not finding answers to the initial questions.
  • One participant calculates that for a tube length of 200mm, the focal lengths of the lenses should add up to this length, recommending an objective lens of approximately 150mm focal length and 25mm diameter, and an eyepiece lens of 50mm focal length and 12mm diameter.
  • Another participant emphasizes the importance of maximizing the focal point of the objective lens while keeping the eyepiece focal length short, noting the need to balance these factors to avoid aberrations.
  • A participant asks why the image produced by the telescope is inverted.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants present multiple viewpoints regarding the specifications for the lenses and their arrangement, with no consensus reached on the optimal design or practical measurements. The discussion remains unresolved regarding the best approach to building the telescope.

Contextual Notes

Participants mention practical methods for measuring focal lengths and the potential image quality of the resulting telescope, but do not resolve the implications of these factors on performance.

willingtolearn
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I am plan on building a small refractor telescope about 20 cm long, i need your guys help !
1. What len is use for Objective len and what len is use for Eyepiece len ? (how is it look like)
2. How far should i place objective len and eyepiece len apart ?
3. If i make a 20 cm long refractor telescope, what is the diameter should the objective len and eyepiece len should be ?
Thanks
 
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The simplest refractor is a keplerian telescope
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Optical_telescope)
It just needs 2 convex lenses about 1" diamter for the objective and 1/2" for the eyepiece, the wiki link explains how to position them.
 
mgb_phys said:
The simplest refractor is a keplerian telescope
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Optical_telescope)
It just needs 2 convex lenses about 1" diamter for the objective and 1/2" for the eyepiece, the wiki link explains how to position them.

Thanks ! But i couldn't find the answers for my questions from that. Help please ?
 
If you want an overla tube length of 200mm you need the focal lengths of the two lenses to add to 200mm.
So you need an objective lens of around 150mm focal length and roughly 25mm diamter with an eyepiece lens of 50mm focal length and roughly 12mm diamter.
You can measure the actual focal lenghts by focusing an image of the sun onto paper and measuring the lens distance with a ruler.
Then just put the two lenses in a tube separated by the sum of their focal lengths and you will have a rather crude telescope. It won't have a good image quality but it will show you what Galileo / Kepler saw when the first used one.
 
The other posts got most of the stuff pretty much. But to get the most magnification out of your telescope you want the focal point on the first lens to be the largest possible, and then the focal length on the eyepiece to be as short as possible. But making it too short causes aberrations and imperfections, so you need to find a balance between the two lenses. I just know what the mathematical stuff is but I have no idea what the practical measurements are so I would go with what the person above me said :)
 
mgb_phys said:
If you want an overla tube length of 200mm you need the focal lengths of the two lenses to add to 200mm.
So you need an objective lens of around 150mm focal length and roughly 25mm diamter with an eyepiece lens of 50mm focal length and roughly 12mm diamter.
You can measure the actual focal lenghts by focusing an image of the sun onto paper and measuring the lens distance with a ruler.
Then just put the two lenses in a tube separated by the sum of their focal lengths and you will have a rather crude telescope. It won't have a good image quality but it will show you what Galileo / Kepler saw when the first used one.

Rib5 said:
The other posts got most of the stuff pretty much. But to get the most magnification out of your telescope you want the focal point on the first lens to be the largest possible, and then the focal length on the eyepiece to be as short as possible. But making it too short causes aberrations and imperfections, so you need to find a balance between the two lenses. I just know what the mathematical stuff is but I have no idea what the practical measurements are so I would go with what the person above me said :)

Thanks all ! Now I'm start building it
 
And one last question, why the image is inverted ? which is up side down
 

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