Telescopes

A telescope is an instrument used to magnify distant objects; it has the ability to make far away objects appear closer. Telescopes do this by collecting light then magnifying it, the ability for a telescope to collect light is directly related to the diameter of the lens or mirror that it is fitted with, the light collected is then funneled through the aperture which is responsible for how much light is gathered all together ad how bright the final image will be, the larger the aperture the more light will be brought to the eyepiece therefore the brighter the image. Magnification in the telescope is performed by the eyepiece and depends on the combination of lenses/ mirrors used inside the telescope. There are two main types of telescopes; A Refractor Telescope- These telescopes magnify by the use of glass lenses. They are also called Dioptrics. Reflector Telescope- These telescopes magnify by the use of mirrors. They are also called Catoptrics.

Refractor Telescope: Refractor Telescopes contain 3 main parts: A long tube that may either be metal plastic or wood. A glass combination lens at the top end of the telescope which is called the objective lens. A second glass combination lens at the bottom end of the telescope which is called the eyepiece.

This type of telescope was invented in the 1600s and first put to scientific use by Galileo Galilei when he pointed it upwards. There is a Convex lens present inside the telescope that is grounded in such a way so that the edges have a smaller width than the middle of the lens, as light passes through the objective

lens (the convex lens) light is bent and brought to the focus, this happens since the edges are of a smaller width than the center, so the light at the edges bend more than the light coming through the center of the lens allowing light to come together at a focus point where the image is created, the image that is created is upside down and needs to be upright so it heads towards the eyepiece which also has a convex lens that turns the image upright again and also enlarges it so it can then be observed.

Good: Bad: In most cases they are heavier, longer and bigger than other types of telescopes It is costly to make large lenses so the lenses are small in size meaning less aperture. Little aperture means that you cannot get a wide view of the sky therefore they are fall short if the user wants to look into deep space. The image is not always clear because the light is actually being bended. This type of telescope is very easy to use It requires little maintenance

Reflector Telescope: These types of telescope were invented in 1672 and use mirrors to gather light from distant objects and reflect them to a focus. These telescopes use an arrangement one or more curved mirrors (concave mirrors) to collect and return light along an optical path to a point of focus, the most important part of this telescope is the Primary Mirror which is the major light gathering source in the telescope, as light strikes the parabolic reflective surface of the Primary Mirror and returns to a point of focus called the focal plane the image is collected on another mirror called a Secondary Mirror, the Secondary Mirror is aimed towards a series of lenses called an eyepiece to magnify the image and send it to the eye, reflecting telescopes are commonly used in astronomy because of its cost; it costs less and is easier to make a large convex mirror than it is to create a huge convex lens that would be used to view far away objects that do not emit much light.

Good: They are cheaper than Refractor telescopes because mirrors cost less than lenses, therefore they can be produced in sizes larger than lenses and having a wider aperture. Because of their wider aperture they can gather more light making them excellent for star watching, galaxy and star cluster watching.

Bad: They are fragile and sensitive The mirrors in these telescopes require complicated cleaning and require re-coating after several years.

Catadioptric Telescopes: Types: Schmidt-Cassegrain Maksutov-Cassegrain

Schmidt-Cassegrain: These hybrid telescopes work by using both the power of refraction and reflection combined, it was created in 1930 by a German astronomer Bernhard Schmidt, they utilize a combination of lenses and curved mirrors that fold the light emitted by the object 3 times to form images it has a Primary Mirror at the back of the telescope and a corrector lens which has the Secondary Mirror on it, As light enters it passes through the Corrector Lens and reflects off the Primary Mirror it then heads to the Secondary Mirror where it reflects again and passes through a hole in the Primary mirror then into an eyepiece where it can be viewed.

Maksutov-Cassegrain: This telescope was invented in 1941 by a Russian astronomer named Dmitri Dmitrievich Maksutov, it works the same way as the Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope and also has a similar design but only thing different is that it has a more spherical Corrector Lens.

Good:

It is the best type of telescope and can be used for planetary, terrestrial and deep space observation. It has excellent optics and focusing capability

It is Easy to use and portable

Bad:

They are more costly than the other types of telescopes with equal aperture.

Factors affecting telescopes in various areas

Telescopes ability to gather light:

Without the objects emitting light then the telescope would not be able to pick up the object in far distances also without the following aspects the telescope would also not be able to pick up a clear image of the object: Aperture- the larger the primary optics (the largest lens or mirror) the more light is captured. Optical quality- the more reflective a mirror and the more a lens allows light to pass through it, the more light is transmitted to your eye. Contrast- the more absorptive the inside surface of the tube is, the less light will bounce around in that tube, which leads to improved contrast (darker backgrounds). A darker background means that you see more of the object you are looking at. An improperly designed optical assembly can also rob you of contrast. Collimation (alignment) - even if you have the best optics, if they are not properly aligned, your light gathering capacity will be diminished.

A telescope's ability to focus properly is dependent on:

Collimation-how well the optics are aligned. Optical quality of the eyepieces Focusing mechanism- a focuser that is smooth and allows for minute adjustments is necessary. This focuser must also be aligned properly to perform at its best.

A telescope's mount needs at a minimum the following characteristics:

Stability- the telescope should not sway or bounce on the mount. Rigidity- when you move or focus the telescope, the stand should be solid enough to quickly dampen out any vibrations; otherwise these vibrations will be seen in the eyepiece. A poorly designed mount or a mount that is too small to handle the weight and size of a telescope can render even the best telescope useless. Smooth motions-the mount should move smoothly from object to object.

Microscopes:
A microscope is an instrument used to view objects that are smaller than the human eye.

Types of Microscopes:
Optical Microscopes (light microscopes) o Compound Microscopes o Dissection Microscopes (Stereo Microscopes) Electron Microscope o Transmission electron microscope o Scanning electron microscope Digital Microscopes

Microscope Viewing Head Categories:

Monocular- Viewing heads only use one eyepiece when viewing a specimen, microscopes with
this type of head are light weight and inexpensive. Binocular- These viewing heads have two eyepieces and are more comfortable for the observer they are the most common choice of microscopes. Trinocular- These viewing heads contain 3 eyepieces, two can be used by one user and the third simultaneously by another person or by a camera which can be fitted into the microscope, microscopes with this type of head are more expensive.

Main Parts and attachments of a Microscope:

Eyepiece Lens: The lens at the top of the microscope that you look through. They are usually 10X or 15X power. Tube: Connects the eyepiece to the objective lenses. Arm: Supports the tube and connects it to the base. Base: The bottom of the microscope, used for support. Illuminator: A steady light source (110 volts) used in place of a mirror. If the microscope has a mirror, it is used to reflect light from an external light source up through the bottom of the stage. Stage: The flat platform where you place your slides or specimens in case of a Stereo Microscope. Stage clips hold the slides in place, Depressions hold Specimens in place. If the

microscope has a mechanical stage, the user will be able to move the slide around by turning two knobs. One moves it left and right, the other moves it up and down. Revolving Nosepiece or Turret: This is the part that holds two or more objective lenses and can be rotated to easily change the magnification power of the telescope. Objective Lenses: Usually you will find 2 - 4 objective lenses on a microscope. They normally consist of 4X, 10X, 40X and 100X powers. The shortest objective lens is the lowest power and the longest one is the lens with the greatest power. Lenses are color coded and some standards are interchangeable between microscopes. The high power objective lenses are retractable (i.e. 40XR). This means that if they hit a slide, the end of the lens will push in (spring loaded) thereby protecting the lens and the slide. Rack Stop: This is an adjustment that determines how close the objective lens can get to the slide. It is set at the factory and keeps the user from cranking the high power objective lens down into the slide and breaking it. Condenser Lens: The purpose of the condenser lens is to focus the light onto the specimen. Condenser lenses are most useful at the highest powers (400X and above). Microscopes with in stage condenser lenses render a sharper image than those with no condenser lens. If your microscope has a maximum power of 400X, you will get the maximum benefit by using a condenser lenses rated at 0.65 NA (Numerical Aperture)or greater Diaphragm or Iris: Many microscopes have a rotating disk under the stage. This diaphragm has different sized holes and is used to vary the intensity and size of the cone of light that is projected upward into the slide. There is no set rule regarding which setting to use for a particular power. Rather, the setting is a function of the transparency of the specimen, the degree of contrast desired and the particular objective lens in use. Eyepiece diopter setting: Compensates for focusing differences between the eyes, it is very important this is set correctly, in order to prevent eye strain. Focus knob: Moves the head of the microscope up and down to bring the object sharply into view. Lighting (Stereo Microscopes): Top lighting shines down and reflects off opaque or solid specimens; bottom lighting shines up through transparent objects. Not all microscopes will have both. Stage plate (Stereo Microscopes): This is where the specimen is placed for viewing located directly under the objective lens. Some stereo microscopes have reversible black and white stage plates to provide appropriate contrast with the object being viewed.

Optical Microscopes:
Optical microscopes contain one or more lenses that produce a large image of an object (applied engineering terms) placed in its focal plane, that objects image is magnified by projecting a beam of light through the object (specimen), this beam of light is then refracted through the various lenses within the microscope to focus the light into the eye where it is then processed by the brain. How a Multiple Optical Microscope works;

The condenser lens focuses the beam of light from the light source onto the sample (object) and then that light which contains the image goes through the objective lenses which might be of magnification 10x, 40x, 1000x to a projector lens where it is viewed by the person observing the specimen (object).

Compound Microscopes:
A Compound Microscope Invented in 1590 by Zacharias Janssen and Dutch Spectacle maker is a microscope fitted with two or more convex lenses allowing them to have higher resolutions and greater magnification; these microscopes are common in science laboratories and medical research because of their ability to produce detailed images of micro-organisms, cells and tissues.

How it works:
The compound microscope is made up of convex lenses fitted at either end of a hollow tube , this tube is fitted on an adjustable rotary nosepiece under which is an adjustable stage which specimen slides are placed or fitted for observation though the lenses, the stage has a hole or in it through which a light source can illuminate the specimen to be observed. This light source can either be a mirror reflecting natural light or a lamp in the microscope base as the illuminating beam passes though the stages window (the hole) and through the specimen the light brightens around the specimen making it stand out in contrast. The level or contrast is controlled by controlling the amount of illumination light which goes through the specimen a brighter or dimmer effect is achieved by opening or closing an iris diaphragm under the stage or by adjusting the height of the lamp. The upper lenses of the compound microscope closest to the observers eyes are the ocular lenses or eyepiece, the lower lenses closer to the object (specimen) are the objective lenses, the rotary nosepiece may contain three or four different objective lenses, to select the magnification required, the nosepiece which contains the objective lenses is rotated to select the most suitable magnification for the particular object (specimen), the four objective lenses fitted in this type of microscopes are: The scanning power objective (magnification of 4x) Low power objective (magnification of 10x) High dry objective (magnification of 40x) Oil immersion objective (magnification of 100x)

The ocular lens (eyepiece) usually has a magnification of 10x To obtain the total magnification factor the eyepiece magnification is multiplied by the objective magnification, so therefore if the High dry objective which has a magnification of 40x is coupled with the eyepiece which usually has a magnification of 10x then the total magnification of the specimen will be 400x so the specimen will be viewed at 400x its actual size.

Image formation
When the object is in focus the objective lenses for a real, inverted image of the object (specimen) at a point inside the principle focus of the ocular lenses (eyepiece), the eyepiece then treat this inverted image as the object and produce a magnified upright image of the specimen.

Compound Microscopes

Dissection Microscopes (Stereo Microscopes)

These types of microscopes also called Stereo Microscopes are commonly used in the lab or for examining archaeological artifacts and geological samples, these microscopes have two eyepieces and must have two eyepieces to be considered a Stereo Microscope and sometimes have a third lens for the purpose of taking video or photographs of the specimen being worked with. They have two objective lenses allowing the observer to view the specimen at two slightly different angles making the specimen look three dimensional (3D). These types of microscopes have lower magnification power than compound microscopes generally below 100x however there are types of Stereo Microscopes which allow the user to assemble the stand objectives, eyespieces and lighting device (source) to suit their need. In most cases the Stereo Microscope have a greater distance between the objective and the stage than that of a Compound Microscope, the stage is usually large and may have a depression for securing specimens allowing them to be worked with or dissected while it is being viewed (hence the name Dissection Microscope). The type of illumination these microscopes use are: LED ring light, fluorescent bulbs or fiber optics. However most Stereo Microscopes work on natural light which is reflected off of the object rather than transmitted light coming from beneath the stage.

Electron Microscopes:
Electron Microscopes unlike optical microscopes use a beam of electrons to illuminate the specimen so the image can be produced the image is formed by a stream of electrons emitted by the electron source and accelerated toward the object (specimen) by use of a positive electrical potential. The stream of electrons is condensed and focused using metal apertures and magnetic lenses into a focused. monochromatic beam which is focused onto the object (specimen) using a magnetic lens. The beam of electrons is affected by interactions that occur within the object (specimen) and is then detected and formed into an image that the observer can view. One advantage that Electron Microscopes have over optical microscopes is its level of magnification, most optical microscopes can magnify up to 2000x (Two Thousand Times) whereas modern Electron Microscopes can magnify an image up 2million Times.

Types of Electron Microscopes.

Transmission Electron Microscopes and Scanning Electron Microscopes: These types of microscopes work the same way as Electron Microscopes except the electron source is an electron gun that emits the high voltage electrons to create an image.

Transmission Electron Microscopes give a 2D detailed image of the specimen. Scanning Electron Microscopes give a 3D image. They also capture the image of the specimen.

Digital Microscope
These microscopes use charged coupling device (CCD) sensors and no longer rely on optical lenses alone, they have incorporated light sensitive pixels to capture images which when compiled by a computer software allows the image to be magnified and viewed in 2D, 3D and Real time, they are built on the same basis as optical microscopes where a specimen is placed on the stage beneath an objective lens, a light source emits light to make the sample easier to see, the objective lens magnifies the specimen and it is brought up into focus within the tube of the microscope, unlike in traditional microscopes the Digital Microscope has no eyepiece instead it has a screen where the image is viewed. These Microscopes can also most times connect to a computer via USB so that the images the capture can be stored on the computers harddrive for later viewing or inspection, the images can also be displayed on a monitor or projected by the use of specialized software so many people can see the specimen while its being worked with. Digital Microscopes are dependent on the optics of the objective lens for much of their magnification. The resolution of the camera and the monitor size determine how much magnification is possible with a Digital Microscope usually up to 1000x. This type of microscope does not necessarily include an eyepiece, it may be possible to capture images with far greater optical magnification. Also images may be further magnified digitally, especially with a high resolution camera.

Projectors
Cathode Ray Tube Projectors:
This types of projectors are the largest types of projectors often used in fixed installations like home theatres because of their large size, they use three (3) tubes One Red, Green and Blue often called guns to produce the image on the screen, this image is formed by the three colors combining or converging when the Red, Green and Blue portions of the incoming video or image signal are processed and sent to the respective CRT whose images are focused by their lenses to acquire the images on the screen, CRTs are usually not as bright as the other following projectors but they do not have a fixed number of pixels which make them versatile machines being able to produce clear images from higher or lower resolution sources, in order to maintain these quality looking projected images CRTS require periodic calibration by trained professions which makes it expensive in the long term.

Advantages:
CRT projectors are produce very dark blacks and whitish whites, they produce the blackest blacks of all projectors as well as the full range of colors.

The image in a CRT projector is scanned with an electron beam (just as in regular tube TV) and is not limited to a fixed pixel field, as are the other projector types making the CRT projector suitable when displaying different resolutions is the main concern. CRTS have a very long projection life (20,000 hours) but with LCD and DLP video projectors the light source needs to be replaced every 1,000-2,000 hours to maintain their optimal contrast and brightness.

Limitations of CRT projectors:

CRT projectors are generally not as bright as other types of projectors which means that the room they are being used in needs to be completely dark for proper viewing of the projected images. They are usually very expensive because of their ability to produce high quality images going for prices at least $10,000. Light from the CRT projector has to be converged properly for best image reproduction. Since modern CRT projectors house three projection tubes (red, green, and blue), the tubes need to be aligned so that the projected image does not show defects and the colors are mixed correctly. Also, if one projection tube fails, all three have to be replaced in order to provide the correct color and brightness balance. CRT projectors are generally very large in order to house the optimum CRT and lens size combination to project onto large screens, with enough brightness. CRT projectors can take up as much space as a 20-inch TV making them less portable if needed to be travelled with or place it in another room.

Light Crystal Display (LCD):

To make up for the CRT Projectors brightness disadvantage the Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) projector in 1968 a student named Gene Dolgoff came up with the idea for the LCD projector and took 20 years till it was fully developed and commercialized. These types of projectors use a halogen light projected though a prism to break up visible light (white light) into its Red, Green and Blue components, the split light passes through panels (One for the Red light, One for Green light and One for Blue light) that are composed of an analyzer, liquid crystal and a polarizer. Heat from the light and electrical source make the individual crystals open so that light can pass through or close so that to block light. The polarizing layer turns the Ultraviolet (UV) light generated by the crystals into visible light that is then projected onto the screen.

Advantages:
LCD projectors have low power consumption. They have high brightness capabilities enabling them to produce very sharp images suitable for business presentations or home theater use. They are inexpensive costs starting as little as $1,000.

Limitations:
LCD projectors can often times exhibit what is called "the screen door effect". Since the screen is made up of individual pixels, the pixels can be visible on a large screen, thus giving the appearance of viewing the image through a "screen door".

Since the L:CD chip is made up of panels of individual pixels if one pixel happens to burn out it displays a black or white dot on the projected image and because individual pixels cannot be repaired if one or more pixels then later burn out then the entire chip has to be replaced. LCD chips have specific number of pixels so signal inputs having higher resolutions must be scaled to fit the pixel field count of that particular LCD chip. This gives the image a poor quality look. The LCD light source (bulb) has to be replaced occasionally depending on the projector usually about every 2000-3000 viewing hours, which may cost hundreds of dollars.

Digital Light Processing: In 1987 the optical semiconductor was created by Dr. Larry Hornbeck, the chip consists of up to 2 million rectangular microscopic mirrors that are hinged in a way that lets them tilt forward and backward to the light coming, when the rectangular mirror tilts backward away from the light it is known as the off position and creates a black pixel, when it tilts forward towards the light it produces a white pixel. Every tiny microscopic mirror can be turned off and on several thousand times every second the ratio at which the tiny mirrors switch from on to off determines the how light or dark the pixel which the mirror creates. To add color the light goes through a fast spinning Red, Green and Blue color wheel before reaching the Digital Light Processing (DLP) chip, the Primary colors are filtered as they go through the wheel so the correct shade and hue of color is displayed on the screen.

How a Digital Light Processing (DLP) Projectors Work:

Advantages:
DLP projectors provide the excellent color accuracy with no screen door effect as in the LCD projectors DLP projectors are low power consuming and provide high contrast and brightness. (not as much as LCDs).

Limitations of DLP Projectors:

Just as in LCD projectors they have a finite number of pixels. Their light source has to be changed every 2000-3000 viewing hours Though DLP projectors dont exhibit the "screen door" effect of many LCD units, a DLP projector can exhibit "the rainbow effect". Which is exhibited by a brief flash of colors (like a small rainbow) when the viewer rapidly looks from side to side on the screen or looks rapidly from the screen to the side of the room. But this doesnt occur frequently and many people do not have sensitivity to this effect at all.

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