What Are Reflector Telescopes?

A reflector telescope is a telescope that uses one or more curved mirrors to form an image by reflecting light. Of these mirrors, the primary mirror is the most important, as it functions as the first and largest light gathering source. The primary mirror alone, or in combination with other mirrors, focuses the gathered light to the focus point, where the light is gathered on the secondary mirror. From the secondary mirror, the resulting image is redirected through the eyepiece, which contains a series of lenses, and from there to the eye.

What is the difference between a reflector telescope and a refractor telescope?

The basic differences between reflector and refractor telescopes is the kind of lenses that are used and how they manipulate the light that is gathered into the telescope.

A refractor telescope uses two lenses to bend collected light in order to produce a magnified image. A large, or objective, lens, rests at the bottom and bends the light into the eyepiece, or ocular lens. The refractor telescope was the first type of telescope invented. The first refractor telescope was designed in 1609 by Galileo.

The first reflector telescope was designed by Nicola Zucchi at about the same time Galileo designed the refractor telescope. However, it didn't work well due to the primitive nature of mirror grinding techniques of the time. When Sir Isaac Newton revisited the design in 1668, he overcame many of the problems with the reflector design by adding a secondary mirror at a right angle to the first mirror. The Newtonian design is still widely used in reflector telescopes.

What are the benefits of a reflector telescope?

One of the reasons reflector telescopes have grown in popularity is that its design allows a large amount of light to be collected for less expense than that of a refractor telescope. Many large telescopes use a reflector design, though extremely powerful telescopes tend to make use of hybrid designs that combine reflector and refractor approaches. The Hubble telescope even incorporates reflectors in its design.

Because of their lower expense for high magnification and resolution, reflector telescopes are a popular choice among hobbyists. Be sure to research extensively about the advantages and disadvantages of reflector telescopes before deciding on a final purchase. Having a telescope can open up a whole new world, so be sure you acquire one that will allow you to investigate that world as thoroughly as possible with your available budget.