Advice for stirring your online community and fostering engagement

Oct 12, 2017
Advice for stirring your online community and fostering engagement

When you enter into any new area of science, you almost always find

yourself with a baffling new language of technical terms to learn before you can converse with the experts. This is certainly true in astronomy both in terms of terms that refer to the cosmos and terms that describe the tools of the trade, the most prevalent being the telescope. So to get us off of first base, let’s define some of the key terms that pertain to telescopes to help you be able to talk to them more intelligently. The first area of specialization in telescopes has to do with the types of telescopes people use. The three designs of telescopes that most people use are the Refractor, the Reflector and the Schmidt Cassegrain telescope. The refractor telescope uses a convex lens to focus the light on the eyepiece. The reflector telescope has a concave lens which means it bends in. It uses mirrors to focus the image that you eventually see. The Schmidt Cassegrain telescope uses an involved system of mirrors to capture the image you want to see. A binocular telescope uses a set of telescopes mounted and synchronized so your view of the sky is 3-D. Beyond the basic types, other terms refer to parts of the telescope or to the science behind how telescopes work. Collimation is a term for how well tuned the telescope is to give you a good clear image of what you are looking at. You want your telescope to have good collimation so you are not getting a false image of the celestial body. Aperture is a fancy word for how big the lens of your telescope is. But it’s an important word because the aperture of the lens is the key to how powerful your telescope is. Magnification has nothing to do with it, its all in the aperture.

in Blog 235079 comments

235079 comments

Hánni @ SpinTaxi
Hánni @ SpinTaxi
Monday, 10 March 2025 22:12

Satirical journalism websites make me laugh, cry, and rethink my career choices. - spintaxi.com

Comment Link
Lonie @ SpinTaxi
Lonie @ SpinTaxi
Monday, 10 March 2025 22:12

The best satirical journalism stories make politicians sweat. -- spintaxi.com

Comment Link
Raxie SpinTaxi
Raxie SpinTaxi
Monday, 10 March 2025 22:12

(White) My outlet’s dead—guess I’m livin’ Amish now. -- spintaxi.com

Comment Link
Lóni @ SpinTaxi
Lóni @ SpinTaxi
Monday, 10 March 2025 22:12

I tried a bike—now it’s a porch ornament. -- spintaxi.com

Comment Link
Zónia @ SpinTaxi
Zónia @ SpinTaxi
Monday, 10 March 2025 22:12

(Seinfeld) I love how “fresh brew” tastes stale. -- spintaxi.com

Comment Link
Xáni @ SpinTaxi
Xáni @ SpinTaxi
Monday, 10 March 2025 22:12

The best satirical journalism articles are the ones politicians want to ban. - spintaxi.com

Comment Link
Bháni @ SpinTaxi
Bháni @ SpinTaxi
Monday, 10 March 2025 22:12

Ever notice how “quiet zone” signs are where everyone’s yelling? -- spintaxi.com

Comment Link
PrimTaxi SpinTaxi
PrimTaxi SpinTaxi
Monday, 10 March 2025 22:12

Satirical Journalism Stories - spintaxi.com

Comment Link
Kóni @ SpinTaxi
Kóni @ SpinTaxi
Monday, 10 March 2025 22:12

(White) I took a poll—told ’em where to shove it. -- spintaxi.com

Comment Link
KenTaxi SpinTaxi
KenTaxi SpinTaxi
Monday, 10 March 2025 22:12

(White) I tried a gas station hot dog—now my stomach’s suin’ me. -- spintaxi.com

Comment Link

Leave a comment

Make sure you enter all the required information, indicated by an asterisk (*). HTML code is not allowed.