piet11111
2nd May 2008, 19:27
http://space.newscientist.com/article/dn13820-telescope-could-focus-light-without-a-mirror-or-lens.html
a new space telescope without lens or mirror but instead using a patterned metal sheet would be (in theory) far superior to the normal lens or mirrors used.
it is much lighter but unfortunately much more complicated then normal space telescopes.
the designers expect to be able to spot earth sized planets within 30 light years.
Ben Oppenheimer, a planet hunter at the American Museum of Natural History in New York, US, thinks more research needs to be done before seriously considering using the device in space. "[It's] certainly an interesting thing to pursue, but by no means is this near the level of maturity needed to propose major space missions based on it," he told New Scientist.
Koechlin is leading a series of experiments designed to prove the feasibility of a Fresnel imager. His team has taken images of objects around the laboratory using a credit-card sized sheet of stainless steel carved with the Fresnel pattern.
Next, the team plans to construct a small ground-based Fresnel imager telescope by attaching a 20-centimetre patterned sheet to a telescope mount. When it is ready about a year from now, they plan to take images of astronomical objects as a proof of concept
a new space telescope without lens or mirror but instead using a patterned metal sheet would be (in theory) far superior to the normal lens or mirrors used.
it is much lighter but unfortunately much more complicated then normal space telescopes.
the designers expect to be able to spot earth sized planets within 30 light years.
Ben Oppenheimer, a planet hunter at the American Museum of Natural History in New York, US, thinks more research needs to be done before seriously considering using the device in space. "[It's] certainly an interesting thing to pursue, but by no means is this near the level of maturity needed to propose major space missions based on it," he told New Scientist.
Koechlin is leading a series of experiments designed to prove the feasibility of a Fresnel imager. His team has taken images of objects around the laboratory using a credit-card sized sheet of stainless steel carved with the Fresnel pattern.
Next, the team plans to construct a small ground-based Fresnel imager telescope by attaching a 20-centimetre patterned sheet to a telescope mount. When it is ready about a year from now, they plan to take images of astronomical objects as a proof of concept