Newton's Reflecting Telescope
PHYSICS
Experimental History
Research Topic: Newton’s Reflecting Telescope
Patrick Doan
&
Kevin Le
&
Kevin Tumang
30/4/08
Principle Aim: To construct a recreation of the Galilean refracting telescope and a Newtonian reflecting telescope
Aim: To recreate Newton’s experiment in building a reflecting telescope, aiming to further the field of optics. We hope to use the theory studied in this experiment and produce a working Newtonian telescope (that Newton designed). He wanted to create a telescope that was not affected by chromatic aberration and thus further the field of optics. We also aim to try to remove the problem of spherical aberration that Newton had trouble with in building his telescope.
Introduction:
We are building a Newtonian reflecting telescope that doesn’t suffer from chromatic aberration. It was Newton who built the first reflecting telescope that didn’t suffer from chromatic aberration. It was also Newton who devised the idea of building a telescope that consisted of mirrors rather than just lenses. The problem that had stuck with astronomers at the time was chromatic aberration and spherical aberration. A note for the record is that Newton did not invent the reflecting telescope but it was Scottish mathematician James Gregory who made the apparatus in around the 1660s. It is good to note that Newton did not build the telescope to observe the sky and planets like Galileo but did it to further study the field of optics. Our reflecting telescope is similar to Newton’s that he made in 1668. Both ours and Newton’s consisted of a flat mirror, a spherical mirror and a convex lens. Our telescope also suffered from the repercussions of spherical aberration. Below is a drawing of the concept of our telescope and Newton's telescope:
Drawing 1
Isaac Newton (1642-1727)
Isaac Newton, often referred to as Sir Isaac Newton, was born at Woolsthorpe, near Grantham in Lincolnshire. He was a mathematician and physicist and was one of
Experimental History
Research Topic: Newton’s Reflecting Telescope
Patrick Doan
&
Kevin Le
&
Kevin Tumang
30/4/08
Principle Aim: To construct a recreation of the Galilean refracting telescope and a Newtonian reflecting telescope
Aim: To recreate Newton’s experiment in building a reflecting telescope, aiming to further the field of optics. We hope to use the theory studied in this experiment and produce a working Newtonian telescope (that Newton designed). He wanted to create a telescope that was not affected by chromatic aberration and thus further the field of optics. We also aim to try to remove the problem of spherical aberration that Newton had trouble with in building his telescope.
Introduction:
We are building a Newtonian reflecting telescope that doesn’t suffer from chromatic aberration. It was Newton who built the first reflecting telescope that didn’t suffer from chromatic aberration. It was also Newton who devised the idea of building a telescope that consisted of mirrors rather than just lenses. The problem that had stuck with astronomers at the time was chromatic aberration and spherical aberration. A note for the record is that Newton did not invent the reflecting telescope but it was Scottish mathematician James Gregory who made the apparatus in around the 1660s. It is good to note that Newton did not build the telescope to observe the sky and planets like Galileo but did it to further study the field of optics. Our reflecting telescope is similar to Newton’s that he made in 1668. Both ours and Newton’s consisted of a flat mirror, a spherical mirror and a convex lens. Our telescope also suffered from the repercussions of spherical aberration. Below is a drawing of the concept of our telescope and Newton's telescope:
Drawing 1
Isaac Newton (1642-1727)
Isaac Newton, often referred to as Sir Isaac Newton, was born at Woolsthorpe, near Grantham in Lincolnshire. He was a mathematician and physicist and was one of