Posts Tagged ‘telescopes’
The Science of Astronomy Today
When we think of astronomy, we may be inclined to think that it only deals with scientists and astronomers looking up at objects in space with a telescope. However, there is far more to astronomy than simply looking at objects in space. In this article, we will look into the science of astronomy.
Why Send Telescopes into Space?
Universe sends us light in the entire electromagnetic spectrum. However, much of this light (or radiation) does not reach the earth’s surface. Our atmosphere prevents certain types of radiation, while allowing other types through. Fortunately for life on Earth, our atmosphere block the harmful high energy radiation like X-rays, gamma rays, and most of the ultraviolet light. The atmosphere also absorbs most infrared radiation. On the other hand, our atmosphere transparent to visible light, most radio waves, and a small window in the infrared region. Ground-based optical and infrared observatories are usually placed near the top of the mountain to get a lot of dry upper atmosphere. Radio telescopes can operate both day and night from the surface of the earth. This ground-based observatories to provide long-term studies of objects in space, but they can only detect light that passes through our atmosphere.