Sunday, August 7, 2016

The Ghosts of Telescopes


When telescopes are used at night for stargazing, it is important that the mirrors be at the same temperature as the night sky, to avoid warm air coming off the mirrors and that air distorting the image.  So when telescopes are left on the observing field during the day, they are covered with mylar film to reflect sunlight and keep the telescopes cool.  Of course, when a whole field of telescopes have these coverings they look like ghosts, to me.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I just laughed out loud looking at some of the shapes. Your title for this photo is perfect! bsk

Ken Spencer said...

Betsey: Thank you! So much fun for me to hear that it gave you a good laugh!