The Hubble Space Telescope that has been placed into an Earth orbit has an aperture diameter of 2.40 metres.What angular resolution will this telescope achieve for visible light of wavelength $\lambda$= 4.80 * 10-7 m?
A)2.44 * 10-7 rads
B)2.44 * 10-4 rads
C)2.44 *10-3 rads
D)1.22 * 10-6 rads
E)2.00 * 10-6 rads

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The angular resolution of a telescope is given by the Rayleigh criterion:$$\theta = 1.22 \frac{\lambda}{D}$$where $\theta$ is the angular resolution, $\lambda$ is the wavelength of light, and D is the diameter of the telescope's aperture.Plugging in the given values, we get:$$\theta = 1.22 \frac{4.80 * 10^{-7} \text{ m}}{2.40 \text{ m}} = 2.44 * 10^{-7} \text{ rad}$$Therefore, the correct answer is A.

The Hubble Space Telescope That Has Been Placed into an Earth