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How to Strengthen a Refractor Telescope

A refractor telescope is a simple design consisting of a long-barrel shaft with two lenses. The larger lens -- or objective lens -- at the far end of the shaft gathers light from the subject. The small lens -- or eyepiece -- at the near end of the shaft magnifies light and is used for viewing. By using a shorter focal-length eyepiece, magnification is strengthened.

Things You'll Need

Telescope eyepiece

Instructions

- 1
  Assemble your refractor telescope; point it at an object that is fairly large and easy to locate through the eyepiece. Use the Moon at night, or a distant object on the horizon during daylight .
- 2
  Insert the eyepiece with the greatest focal length into your refractor telescope. Commonly available eyepieces range from 2 mm to 40 mm focal length. The shorter the focal length, the greater the magnification. Begin with your longer focal-length piece.
- 3
  Look through the eyepiece and adjust the focus until you can clearly see the object. Note how large it appears in your field of view. Remove the eyepiece and insert one with a shorter focal length.
- 4
  Look through your eyepiece, and adjust the focus until you can clearly see your object. It appears larger, because your magnification factor has been strengthened.

Astronomy