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adaptive optics
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systems used with telescopes that can compensate for distortions in an image introduced by the atmosphere, thus resulting in sharper images
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aperture
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diameter of the primary lens or mirror of a telescope
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charge-coupled device (CCD)
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array of high-sensitivity electronic detectors of electromagnetic radiation, used at the focus of a telescope (or camera lens) to record an image or spectrum
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chromatic aberration
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distortion that causes an image to appear fuzzy when each wavelength coming into a transparent material focuses at a different spot
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detector
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device sensitive to electromagnetic radiation that makes a record of astronomical observations
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eyepiece
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magnifying lens used to view the image produced by the objective lens or primary mirror of a telescope
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focus
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(of telescope) point where the rays of light converged by a mirror or lens meet
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interference
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process in which waves mix together such that their crests and troughs can alternately reinforce and cancel one another
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interferometer
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instrument that combines electromagnetic radiation from one or more telescopes to obtain a resolution equivalent to what would be obtained with a single telescope with a diameter equal to the baseline separating the individual separate telescopes
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interferometer array
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combination of multiple radio dishes to, in effect, work like a large number of two-dish interferometers
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prime focus
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point in a telescope where the objective lens or primary mirror focuses the light
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radar
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technique of transmitting radio waves to an object and then detecting the radiation that the object reflects back to the transmitter; used to measure the distance to, and motion of, a target object or to form images of it
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reflecting telescope
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telescope in which the principal light collector is a concave mirror
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refracting telescope
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telescope in which the principal light collector is a lens or system of lenses
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resolution
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detail in an image; specifically, the smallest angular (or linear) features that can be distinguished
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seeing
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unsteadiness of Earth’s atmosphere, which blurs telescopic images; good seeing means the atmosphere is steady
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telescope
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instrument for collecting visible-light or other electromagnetic radiation