Somewhere Far Away

It is always fascinating to see, understand and recognize the unknown. Who doesn't want to see the unknown while walking in the darkness of the night and running in the rush of the day? It is possible to see the details with technology, of course, but it is important to choose this technology correctly.

Let's think quickly for whom it is important to see far. For a soldier standing guard at a border post, it is vital to see far, day and night. It is also important for a hunter to see and track its prey. It is a passion to study the space and to see the stars and to see far away. For a sailor sailing on a sailboat, seeing far is actually a discipline.

So how is it possible to see far away with technology? How should night and day features be chosen to see far away? First of all, it is necessary to start with a little history of binoculars and telescopes. Binoculars are the general name given to the devices that allow the observer to see distant objects as if they are close when he uses both eyes of the observer by placing the same or symmetrical group of lenses to focus on the same point. The telescope is an observatory device used by astronomers that receives and displays all kinds of radiation from space. It was invented by Hans Lippershey (Dutch eyeglass maker) in 1608, and was first used by Galileo Galilei in 1609 to make sky observations. All kinds of electromagnetic transmissions such as visible light, ultraviolet rays, infrared rays, X-ray rays, radio waves, reflected from objects in space or coming directly, are very necessary evidence to gather information about the universe. These evidences are examined either with optical telescopes in the classical sense or with much more modern radio telescopes.

If the height of the object is known, there are binoculars and a calculation method that allows the distance between the binoculars and the object to be calculated. For example, an American sailor's binocular (7 x 50) has angles equivalent to 5 mil (the military unit of angle that divides a circle into 6400 parts). 1 milliem is equal to the distance of 1 meter from the bottom to the top of the object at a distance of 1000 meters. The telescope structure consists of an objective, eyepiece and a tube that protects these lenses. There are two types of telescopes according to the lens type. If the light from space hits a mirror in the telescope and comes to the eye after passing through the prism, this type is called reflective telescope. If the light from space passes directly through the lenses and reaches the eye, this type is called a refracting telescope. The power of the telescope is proportional to the amount of light it collects. The larger the objective diameter of the telescope, the greater its light-gathering capability. For example, a 50mm diameter telescope collects (50/5)² or 100 times more light than a 5mm diameter pupil. Since there may be reflection losses in telescopes, this amount is reduced by ten percent. Astronomers have described brightness differences as logarithmically increasing values. A 100-fold difference in brightness is seen with a value of 5 on the telescope scale. In the dark night, the human eye can see 5 precious stars of light intensity. The Hale Telescope, located on Mount Palomar in California, has an objective diameter of 5.1 meters. This telescope collects a million times more light than the eye. The clarity of the image formed in the telescope changes depending on the negative effect of the atmosphere. The stability in the telescope is valid for two arcseconds. Atmospheric conditions sometimes reduce this angle to 0.25 arcseconds. In this case, images of the star nearby, not the star being examined, can be recorded.

Today, binoculars and telescopes are produced with plastic and rubber to prevent damage under harsh conditions and to be lighter and more durable. In this way, they are much more useful in urgent and important moments.

Binoculars and telescopes will always be in our lives as they are air tools and give a different meaning to the person. Even though seeing far away is the main thing, they are our beautiful toys.