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What's the largest optical telescope mirror ever put in space?

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What's the largest optical telescope mirror ever put in space?


What's the largest aperture telescope sent beyond the Earth-Moon system?What's the largest optical lens put in space?Where did Herschel Space Telescope go in 2013?What's the largest aperture telescope sent beyond the Earth-Moon system?Infrared space interferometry - Why isn't it being done?What's the largest optical lens put in space?













4












$begingroup$


As a follow-on question to What's the largest optical lens put in space? I'd like to as about mirrors this time.



Question: What's the largest optical telescope mirror ever put in space?



Optical could include infrared, visible and ultraviolet, but not microwaves. It also needs to be a single mirror, not an array of separate sub-mirrors like the JWST design. It could be a telescope's objective mirror or a part of an optical assembly of mixed elements, or it could still be in its shipping crate. It could be curved or flat, as long as it's used in an optical telescope.



Answers to What's the largest aperture telescope sent beyond the Earth-Moon system? are in the 0.5 to 1.4 meter ballpark for deep space, but what about closer to home?










share|improve this question











$endgroup$











  • $begingroup$
    No problem, added a potential solution to that question based on what was said here for you :).
    $endgroup$
    – Magic Octopus Urn
    8 hours ago















4












$begingroup$


As a follow-on question to What's the largest optical lens put in space? I'd like to as about mirrors this time.



Question: What's the largest optical telescope mirror ever put in space?



Optical could include infrared, visible and ultraviolet, but not microwaves. It also needs to be a single mirror, not an array of separate sub-mirrors like the JWST design. It could be a telescope's objective mirror or a part of an optical assembly of mixed elements, or it could still be in its shipping crate. It could be curved or flat, as long as it's used in an optical telescope.



Answers to What's the largest aperture telescope sent beyond the Earth-Moon system? are in the 0.5 to 1.4 meter ballpark for deep space, but what about closer to home?










share|improve this question











$endgroup$











  • $begingroup$
    No problem, added a potential solution to that question based on what was said here for you :).
    $endgroup$
    – Magic Octopus Urn
    8 hours ago













4












4








4





$begingroup$


As a follow-on question to What's the largest optical lens put in space? I'd like to as about mirrors this time.



Question: What's the largest optical telescope mirror ever put in space?



Optical could include infrared, visible and ultraviolet, but not microwaves. It also needs to be a single mirror, not an array of separate sub-mirrors like the JWST design. It could be a telescope's objective mirror or a part of an optical assembly of mixed elements, or it could still be in its shipping crate. It could be curved or flat, as long as it's used in an optical telescope.



Answers to What's the largest aperture telescope sent beyond the Earth-Moon system? are in the 0.5 to 1.4 meter ballpark for deep space, but what about closer to home?










share|improve this question











$endgroup$




As a follow-on question to What's the largest optical lens put in space? I'd like to as about mirrors this time.



Question: What's the largest optical telescope mirror ever put in space?



Optical could include infrared, visible and ultraviolet, but not microwaves. It also needs to be a single mirror, not an array of separate sub-mirrors like the JWST design. It could be a telescope's objective mirror or a part of an optical assembly of mixed elements, or it could still be in its shipping crate. It could be curved or flat, as long as it's used in an optical telescope.



Answers to What's the largest aperture telescope sent beyond the Earth-Moon system? are in the 0.5 to 1.4 meter ballpark for deep space, but what about closer to home?







space-telescope optical record






share|improve this question















share|improve this question













share|improve this question




share|improve this question








edited 8 hours ago







uhoh

















asked 9 hours ago









uhohuhoh

43.8k20172564




43.8k20172564











  • $begingroup$
    No problem, added a potential solution to that question based on what was said here for you :).
    $endgroup$
    – Magic Octopus Urn
    8 hours ago
















  • $begingroup$
    No problem, added a potential solution to that question based on what was said here for you :).
    $endgroup$
    – Magic Octopus Urn
    8 hours ago















$begingroup$
No problem, added a potential solution to that question based on what was said here for you :).
$endgroup$
– Magic Octopus Urn
8 hours ago




$begingroup$
No problem, added a potential solution to that question based on what was said here for you :).
$endgroup$
– Magic Octopus Urn
8 hours ago










2 Answers
2






active

oldest

votes


















5












$begingroup$

I could only find two real candidates that exist currently, using the following diagram and other sources:



enter image description here



More specifically:



enter image description here



TL;DR:



  • Name: collection area / diameter

  • Kepler Telescope: 0.708 m**2 / 0.95 m

  • Hubble Telescope: 4.525 m**2 / 2.4 m

  • JWST (All Mirror): 25 m**2 / 6.5 m

  • JWST (One Mirror): Could Not Find, does someone want to share this?

Those, as far as I know, would be the known candidates for a orbital single-mirror telescope (two of which are not single mirror). This leaves us with Kepler and Hubble, which isn't actually a straightforward comparison. Hubble has the larger surface area, however, Kepler is better at resolving exoplanets than Hubble:




Kepler's 115 deg2 field of view gives it a much higher probability of detecting Earth-sized planets than the Hubble Space Telescope, which has a field of view of only 10 sq. arc-minutes. Moreover, Kepler is dedicated to detecting planetary transits, while the Hubble Space Telescope is used to address a wide range of scientific questions, and rarely looks continuously at just one star-field.




It accomplishes this by using improved technology acquired since the launch of Hubble in 1990, as Kepler was launched in 2009. Even James-Webb telescope will not dethrone Hubble (despite it's resolution being a large factor better) because it will have many mirrors all of which are smaller than Hubble's.



However, if you're literally just asking which is physically more massive? Hubble wins.



Feel free to correct any misleading information in my answers, I'm by no means an expert.






share|improve this answer











$endgroup$








  • 2




    $begingroup$
    "I guess we should have named it the Merely Whelmingly Large Telescope!"
    $endgroup$
    – Russell Borogove
    8 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    The JWST mirror segments are 1.32 m flat-to-flat.
    $endgroup$
    – user71659
    3 mins ago


















2












$begingroup$

The winner (as of 2019) would be the ESA Herschel Space Observatory with a focal mirror of 3.5M/11.5ft (Image Source)



enter image description here




Optical could include infrared, visible and ultraviolet, but not microwaves.




Herschel covers both far infrared and microwaves (55–672 µm) and so doesn't show up on some lists of optical telescopes, but it counts as far as the current question is defined.



NASA's Hubble Space Telescope would be second at 2.4M/8ft.



If/when the James Webb Observatory makes it up, it will be the largest at 6.5M/21.3ft. While the question excludes JWST, it should be noted that it probably will not be possible with current rocket technology to put a Hubble-esque mirror of that size into space




If the Hubble Space Telescope's 2.4 meter mirror were scaled to be large enough for Webb, it would be too heavy to launch into orbit. The Webb team had to find new ways to build the mirror so that it would be light enough - only one-tenth of the mass of Hubble's mirror per unit area - yet very strong.




JWST vs Hubble






share|improve this answer











$endgroup$












  • $begingroup$
    fyi I have just asked Where did Herschel Space Telescope go in 2013?
    $endgroup$
    – uhoh
    1 hour ago











Your Answer








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2 Answers
2






active

oldest

votes








2 Answers
2






active

oldest

votes









active

oldest

votes






active

oldest

votes









5












$begingroup$

I could only find two real candidates that exist currently, using the following diagram and other sources:



enter image description here



More specifically:



enter image description here



TL;DR:



  • Name: collection area / diameter

  • Kepler Telescope: 0.708 m**2 / 0.95 m

  • Hubble Telescope: 4.525 m**2 / 2.4 m

  • JWST (All Mirror): 25 m**2 / 6.5 m

  • JWST (One Mirror): Could Not Find, does someone want to share this?

Those, as far as I know, would be the known candidates for a orbital single-mirror telescope (two of which are not single mirror). This leaves us with Kepler and Hubble, which isn't actually a straightforward comparison. Hubble has the larger surface area, however, Kepler is better at resolving exoplanets than Hubble:




Kepler's 115 deg2 field of view gives it a much higher probability of detecting Earth-sized planets than the Hubble Space Telescope, which has a field of view of only 10 sq. arc-minutes. Moreover, Kepler is dedicated to detecting planetary transits, while the Hubble Space Telescope is used to address a wide range of scientific questions, and rarely looks continuously at just one star-field.




It accomplishes this by using improved technology acquired since the launch of Hubble in 1990, as Kepler was launched in 2009. Even James-Webb telescope will not dethrone Hubble (despite it's resolution being a large factor better) because it will have many mirrors all of which are smaller than Hubble's.



However, if you're literally just asking which is physically more massive? Hubble wins.



Feel free to correct any misleading information in my answers, I'm by no means an expert.






share|improve this answer











$endgroup$








  • 2




    $begingroup$
    "I guess we should have named it the Merely Whelmingly Large Telescope!"
    $endgroup$
    – Russell Borogove
    8 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    The JWST mirror segments are 1.32 m flat-to-flat.
    $endgroup$
    – user71659
    3 mins ago















5












$begingroup$

I could only find two real candidates that exist currently, using the following diagram and other sources:



enter image description here



More specifically:



enter image description here



TL;DR:



  • Name: collection area / diameter

  • Kepler Telescope: 0.708 m**2 / 0.95 m

  • Hubble Telescope: 4.525 m**2 / 2.4 m

  • JWST (All Mirror): 25 m**2 / 6.5 m

  • JWST (One Mirror): Could Not Find, does someone want to share this?

Those, as far as I know, would be the known candidates for a orbital single-mirror telescope (two of which are not single mirror). This leaves us with Kepler and Hubble, which isn't actually a straightforward comparison. Hubble has the larger surface area, however, Kepler is better at resolving exoplanets than Hubble:




Kepler's 115 deg2 field of view gives it a much higher probability of detecting Earth-sized planets than the Hubble Space Telescope, which has a field of view of only 10 sq. arc-minutes. Moreover, Kepler is dedicated to detecting planetary transits, while the Hubble Space Telescope is used to address a wide range of scientific questions, and rarely looks continuously at just one star-field.




It accomplishes this by using improved technology acquired since the launch of Hubble in 1990, as Kepler was launched in 2009. Even James-Webb telescope will not dethrone Hubble (despite it's resolution being a large factor better) because it will have many mirrors all of which are smaller than Hubble's.



However, if you're literally just asking which is physically more massive? Hubble wins.



Feel free to correct any misleading information in my answers, I'm by no means an expert.






share|improve this answer











$endgroup$








  • 2




    $begingroup$
    "I guess we should have named it the Merely Whelmingly Large Telescope!"
    $endgroup$
    – Russell Borogove
    8 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    The JWST mirror segments are 1.32 m flat-to-flat.
    $endgroup$
    – user71659
    3 mins ago













5












5








5





$begingroup$

I could only find two real candidates that exist currently, using the following diagram and other sources:



enter image description here



More specifically:



enter image description here



TL;DR:



  • Name: collection area / diameter

  • Kepler Telescope: 0.708 m**2 / 0.95 m

  • Hubble Telescope: 4.525 m**2 / 2.4 m

  • JWST (All Mirror): 25 m**2 / 6.5 m

  • JWST (One Mirror): Could Not Find, does someone want to share this?

Those, as far as I know, would be the known candidates for a orbital single-mirror telescope (two of which are not single mirror). This leaves us with Kepler and Hubble, which isn't actually a straightforward comparison. Hubble has the larger surface area, however, Kepler is better at resolving exoplanets than Hubble:




Kepler's 115 deg2 field of view gives it a much higher probability of detecting Earth-sized planets than the Hubble Space Telescope, which has a field of view of only 10 sq. arc-minutes. Moreover, Kepler is dedicated to detecting planetary transits, while the Hubble Space Telescope is used to address a wide range of scientific questions, and rarely looks continuously at just one star-field.




It accomplishes this by using improved technology acquired since the launch of Hubble in 1990, as Kepler was launched in 2009. Even James-Webb telescope will not dethrone Hubble (despite it's resolution being a large factor better) because it will have many mirrors all of which are smaller than Hubble's.



However, if you're literally just asking which is physically more massive? Hubble wins.



Feel free to correct any misleading information in my answers, I'm by no means an expert.






share|improve this answer











$endgroup$



I could only find two real candidates that exist currently, using the following diagram and other sources:



enter image description here



More specifically:



enter image description here



TL;DR:



  • Name: collection area / diameter

  • Kepler Telescope: 0.708 m**2 / 0.95 m

  • Hubble Telescope: 4.525 m**2 / 2.4 m

  • JWST (All Mirror): 25 m**2 / 6.5 m

  • JWST (One Mirror): Could Not Find, does someone want to share this?

Those, as far as I know, would be the known candidates for a orbital single-mirror telescope (two of which are not single mirror). This leaves us with Kepler and Hubble, which isn't actually a straightforward comparison. Hubble has the larger surface area, however, Kepler is better at resolving exoplanets than Hubble:




Kepler's 115 deg2 field of view gives it a much higher probability of detecting Earth-sized planets than the Hubble Space Telescope, which has a field of view of only 10 sq. arc-minutes. Moreover, Kepler is dedicated to detecting planetary transits, while the Hubble Space Telescope is used to address a wide range of scientific questions, and rarely looks continuously at just one star-field.




It accomplishes this by using improved technology acquired since the launch of Hubble in 1990, as Kepler was launched in 2009. Even James-Webb telescope will not dethrone Hubble (despite it's resolution being a large factor better) because it will have many mirrors all of which are smaller than Hubble's.



However, if you're literally just asking which is physically more massive? Hubble wins.



Feel free to correct any misleading information in my answers, I'm by no means an expert.







share|improve this answer














share|improve this answer



share|improve this answer








edited 8 hours ago

























answered 9 hours ago









Magic Octopus UrnMagic Octopus Urn

3,55211550




3,55211550







  • 2




    $begingroup$
    "I guess we should have named it the Merely Whelmingly Large Telescope!"
    $endgroup$
    – Russell Borogove
    8 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    The JWST mirror segments are 1.32 m flat-to-flat.
    $endgroup$
    – user71659
    3 mins ago












  • 2




    $begingroup$
    "I guess we should have named it the Merely Whelmingly Large Telescope!"
    $endgroup$
    – Russell Borogove
    8 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    The JWST mirror segments are 1.32 m flat-to-flat.
    $endgroup$
    – user71659
    3 mins ago







2




2




$begingroup$
"I guess we should have named it the Merely Whelmingly Large Telescope!"
$endgroup$
– Russell Borogove
8 hours ago




$begingroup$
"I guess we should have named it the Merely Whelmingly Large Telescope!"
$endgroup$
– Russell Borogove
8 hours ago












$begingroup$
The JWST mirror segments are 1.32 m flat-to-flat.
$endgroup$
– user71659
3 mins ago




$begingroup$
The JWST mirror segments are 1.32 m flat-to-flat.
$endgroup$
– user71659
3 mins ago











2












$begingroup$

The winner (as of 2019) would be the ESA Herschel Space Observatory with a focal mirror of 3.5M/11.5ft (Image Source)



enter image description here




Optical could include infrared, visible and ultraviolet, but not microwaves.




Herschel covers both far infrared and microwaves (55–672 µm) and so doesn't show up on some lists of optical telescopes, but it counts as far as the current question is defined.



NASA's Hubble Space Telescope would be second at 2.4M/8ft.



If/when the James Webb Observatory makes it up, it will be the largest at 6.5M/21.3ft. While the question excludes JWST, it should be noted that it probably will not be possible with current rocket technology to put a Hubble-esque mirror of that size into space




If the Hubble Space Telescope's 2.4 meter mirror were scaled to be large enough for Webb, it would be too heavy to launch into orbit. The Webb team had to find new ways to build the mirror so that it would be light enough - only one-tenth of the mass of Hubble's mirror per unit area - yet very strong.




JWST vs Hubble






share|improve this answer











$endgroup$












  • $begingroup$
    fyi I have just asked Where did Herschel Space Telescope go in 2013?
    $endgroup$
    – uhoh
    1 hour ago















2












$begingroup$

The winner (as of 2019) would be the ESA Herschel Space Observatory with a focal mirror of 3.5M/11.5ft (Image Source)



enter image description here




Optical could include infrared, visible and ultraviolet, but not microwaves.




Herschel covers both far infrared and microwaves (55–672 µm) and so doesn't show up on some lists of optical telescopes, but it counts as far as the current question is defined.



NASA's Hubble Space Telescope would be second at 2.4M/8ft.



If/when the James Webb Observatory makes it up, it will be the largest at 6.5M/21.3ft. While the question excludes JWST, it should be noted that it probably will not be possible with current rocket technology to put a Hubble-esque mirror of that size into space




If the Hubble Space Telescope's 2.4 meter mirror were scaled to be large enough for Webb, it would be too heavy to launch into orbit. The Webb team had to find new ways to build the mirror so that it would be light enough - only one-tenth of the mass of Hubble's mirror per unit area - yet very strong.




JWST vs Hubble






share|improve this answer











$endgroup$












  • $begingroup$
    fyi I have just asked Where did Herschel Space Telescope go in 2013?
    $endgroup$
    – uhoh
    1 hour ago













2












2








2





$begingroup$

The winner (as of 2019) would be the ESA Herschel Space Observatory with a focal mirror of 3.5M/11.5ft (Image Source)



enter image description here




Optical could include infrared, visible and ultraviolet, but not microwaves.




Herschel covers both far infrared and microwaves (55–672 µm) and so doesn't show up on some lists of optical telescopes, but it counts as far as the current question is defined.



NASA's Hubble Space Telescope would be second at 2.4M/8ft.



If/when the James Webb Observatory makes it up, it will be the largest at 6.5M/21.3ft. While the question excludes JWST, it should be noted that it probably will not be possible with current rocket technology to put a Hubble-esque mirror of that size into space




If the Hubble Space Telescope's 2.4 meter mirror were scaled to be large enough for Webb, it would be too heavy to launch into orbit. The Webb team had to find new ways to build the mirror so that it would be light enough - only one-tenth of the mass of Hubble's mirror per unit area - yet very strong.




JWST vs Hubble






share|improve this answer











$endgroup$



The winner (as of 2019) would be the ESA Herschel Space Observatory with a focal mirror of 3.5M/11.5ft (Image Source)



enter image description here




Optical could include infrared, visible and ultraviolet, but not microwaves.




Herschel covers both far infrared and microwaves (55–672 µm) and so doesn't show up on some lists of optical telescopes, but it counts as far as the current question is defined.



NASA's Hubble Space Telescope would be second at 2.4M/8ft.



If/when the James Webb Observatory makes it up, it will be the largest at 6.5M/21.3ft. While the question excludes JWST, it should be noted that it probably will not be possible with current rocket technology to put a Hubble-esque mirror of that size into space




If the Hubble Space Telescope's 2.4 meter mirror were scaled to be large enough for Webb, it would be too heavy to launch into orbit. The Webb team had to find new ways to build the mirror so that it would be light enough - only one-tenth of the mass of Hubble's mirror per unit area - yet very strong.




JWST vs Hubble







share|improve this answer














share|improve this answer



share|improve this answer








edited 48 mins ago

























answered 2 hours ago









MachavityMachavity

2,60511037




2,60511037











  • $begingroup$
    fyi I have just asked Where did Herschel Space Telescope go in 2013?
    $endgroup$
    – uhoh
    1 hour ago
















  • $begingroup$
    fyi I have just asked Where did Herschel Space Telescope go in 2013?
    $endgroup$
    – uhoh
    1 hour ago















$begingroup$
fyi I have just asked Where did Herschel Space Telescope go in 2013?
$endgroup$
– uhoh
1 hour ago




$begingroup$
fyi I have just asked Where did Herschel Space Telescope go in 2013?
$endgroup$
– uhoh
1 hour ago

















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