Which of the following two telescopes has a better angular resolution? 1) the Hubble Space Telescope (2.4 meter aperture) at optical wavelengths and 2) the Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA), a radio interferometer with a maximum baseline of 8600 km observing at 1 mm wavelengths. (Please answer with either HST or VLBA)
You can calculate this readily
theta=1.22 wavelength/aperture
Theta is in radians. Look up the wavelength of light (yellow).
Thank you very much!! And what is the answer to this question?
To determine which telescope has better angular resolution, we need to compare the values of their respective resolving powers.
The resolving power of a telescope is given by the formula:
θ = λ / D
Where:
θ represents the angular resolution (in radians),
λ represents the wavelength of observation (in meters),
and D represents the diameter of the telescope's aperture (in meters).
In this case, we can calculate the angular resolutions for both the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) and the Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA) using the given information.
For the Hubble Space Telescope (HST):
λ = optical wavelengths
D = 2.4 meters
For the VLBA:
λ = 1 mm = 0.001 meters
D = maximum baseline of 8600 km = 8600000 meters
Now let's calculate the angular resolution for each telescope:
For HST:
θ_HST = λ / D = optical wavelengths / 2.4 meters
For VLBA:
θ_VLBA = λ / D = 0.001 meters / 8600000 meters
To compare the two angular resolutions, we need to convert them to the same unit. Let's use radians for comparison:
θ_HST = optical wavelengths / 2.4 meters
θ_VLBA = 0.001 meters / 8600000 meters
Since both angular resolutions are expressed in radians, we can compare them directly.
Comparing the values, we find that the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) has a smaller angular resolution than the Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA). Therefore, the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) has a better angular resolution.
So the answer is: HST (Hubble Space Telescope) has a better angular resolution.