9_7_1

1. Our understanding of celestial objects depends upon observations made from Earth or from space near the Earth** Galileo used the telescope to see the moon's surface.
 * Home Topics
 * discuss Galileo’s use of the telescope to identify features of the Moon
 * discuss why some wavebands can be more easily detected from space


 * define the terms ‘resolution’ and ‘sensitivity’ of telescopes


 * identify data sources, plan, choose equipment or resources for, and perform an investigation to demonstrate why it is desirable for telescopes to have a large diameter objective lens or mirror in terms of both sensitivity and resolution


 * discuss the problems associated with ground-based astronomy in terms of resolution and absorption of radiation and atmospheric distortion
 * outline methods by which the resolution and/or sensitivity of ground-based systems can be improved, including:
 * adaptive optics
 * interferometry
 * active optics