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Telescopes (A-level only)

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Question 13

Two telescopes, XXX and YYY, are designed to study different regions of the electromagnetic spectrum:

  • Telescope XXX is an optical reflecting telescope with a primary mirror diameter DX=30.0 mD_X = 30.0\text{ m}DX​=30.0 m, operating at an observing wavelength of λX=500 nm\lambda_X = 500\text{ nm}λX​=500 nm.
  • Telescope YYY is a single-dish radio telescope with a diameter of DY=90.0 mD_Y = 90.0\text{ m}DY​=90.0 m, operating at an observing wavelength of λY=1.5 mm\lambda_Y = 1.5\text{ mm}λY​=1.5 mm.

Perform the following analyses:

1.

Calculate the ratio of the collecting power of Telescope YYY to Telescope XXX.

[2]
2.

Calculate the minimum angular resolution (using θ≈λD\theta \approx \frac{\lambda}{D}θ≈Dλ​) for both telescopes, and determine which telescope can resolve finer spatial details.

[4]
3.

Contrast their structural design and Earth-based positioning by stating one similarity in structure and one difference in their ideal positioning.

[2]
Markscheme

Telescopes (A-level only) Questions

  1. A Level
  2. /Physics
  3. /Telescopes (A-level only)

18 exam-style questions on AQA A Level Physics Telescopes (A-level only), covering Astronomical telescope consisting of two converging lenses (A-level only), Reflecting telescopes (A-level only), Single dish radio telescopes, I-R, U-V and X-ray telescopes (A-level only), and Advantages of large diameter telescopes (A-level only). Each one has a worked solution and a mark scheme showing where the marks go.

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