![]() ![]() But the real power of Nautilus would come from turning all the individual telescopes toward a single target.īy combining data from all the units, Nautilus’ light-collecting power would equal a telescope nearly 10 times larger than Webb. Our current design is in fact not a single telescope, but a constellation of 35 individual telescope units.Įach individual telescope would be an independent, highly sensitive observatory able to collect more light than Webb. Second, lens-based telescopes work well even when not aligned perfectly, making these telescopes easier to assemble and fly in space than mirror-based telescopes, which require extremely precise alignment.įinally, since a single Nautilus unit would be light and relatively cheap to produce, it would be possible to put dozens of them into orbit. First, they are much easier and quicker to fabricate than mirrors and can be made en masse. Daniel Apai/University of Arizona, CC BY-ND The thin lens allowed the team to design a lighter, cheaper telescope, which they named the Nautilus Space Observatory. This is more than three times lighter than a Webb–style mirror of a similar size and would be bigger than Webb’s 21-foot (6.5-meter) diameter mirror. The lens and support structure of our new telescope could weigh around 1,100 pounds (500 kilograms). Using the new technology, our team thinks it is possible to build a 29.5-foot (8.5-meter) diameter lens that would be only about 0.2 inches (0.5 cm) thick. In 2019, our team published a concept called the Nautilus Space Observatory. This new lens design makes it possible to rethink how a space telescope might be built. We are now completing a 10-inch (24-cm) diameter lens that will be more than 10 times lighter than a conventional refractive lens would be. Over the next five years, we further improved the image quality and increased the size. In August 2018, our team produced the first prototype, a 2-inch (5-centimeter) diameter lens. Bigger lenses collect more light, and low weight means cheaper launches to orbit – both great traits for a space telescope. Daniel Apai/University of Arizona, CC BY-NDīecause it is the surface texture of the lens that does the focusing, not the thickness, you can easily make the lens bigger while keeping it very thin and lightweight. Because of these differences, it would be possible to launch many individual units into orbit and create a powerful network of telescopes.Ī diffractive lens bends light using etchings and patterns on its surface. Our proposed telescope, the Nautilus Space Observatory, would replace large, heavy mirrors with a novel, thin lens that is much lighter, cheaper and easier to produce than mirrored telescopes. For the last seven years, I have been co-leading a team that is developing a new kind of space telescope that could collect a hundred times more light than the James Webb Space Telescope, the biggest space telescope ever built.Īlmost all space telescopes, including Hubble and Webb, collect light using mirrors. I am an astronomer who studies astrobiology and planets around distant stars. To find the answer, astronomers will likely need more powerful telescopes than exist today. ![]() The grand question is whether any of these planets are home to life. Katie Yung, Daniel Apai /University of Arizona and AllThingsSpace /SketchFab, CC BY-NDĪstronomers have discovered more than 5,000 planets outside of the solar system to date. ![]() A light, cheap space telescope design would make it possible to put many individual units in space at once. ![]()
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