An optical telescope using 650-nm light has a diameter of 1 m. A radio telescope using radio waves of wavelength 6.5 cm has a diameter of 100 m. The resolution of the optical telescope is:

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Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The resolution of a telescope is proportional to the wavelength of the light it observes divided by the diameter of the telescope. The optical telescope has a much smaller wavelength (650 nm) compared to the radio telescope (6.5 cm), but also a smaller diameter (1 m vs. 100 m). When you calculate the ratio of wavelength to diameter for both, the optical telescope has a significantly better (smaller) ratio, leading to better resolution. Specifically, the ratio of the wavelengths (650 nm to 6.5 cm) is 1:10,000, and the ratio of the diameters (1 m to 100 m) is 1:100. Combining these, the optical telescope's resolution is better by a factor of 1000.

An Optical Telescope Using 650-Nm Light Has a Diameter of 1