How to Make a Model Telescope
Even a model telescope in the hands of an adventurer can be a gateway to the stars. Buying an expensive telescope may not be in your budget, but building a model telescope certainly is, and only requires basic knowledge to complete. There are many types of optical telescopes used by professional and amateur astronomers involving lenses, mirrors, or a combination of both, some of which can be constructed easily. The simplest type of telescope, called a "refracting" telescope, uses two lenses and can be built very cheaply, even with materials found around your home.
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Things You'll Need
- Disposable camera
- Flat head screwdriver
- Plastic water bottle with cap
- Drill
- Glue
- Magnifying glass lens
- Tape measure
- Cardboard tube
- Scissors
- Duct tape
Instructions
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1
Use the flat head screwdriver to pry the cover off the disposable camera and carefully remove the main lens. Be careful not to touch the flash, battery or capacitor, in order to avoid receiving an electric shock.
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2
Unscrew the lid from the plastic water bottle (save the bottle) and drill a hole slightly smaller than the camera lens into the center of the lid.
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3
Circle the hole on the inside of the bottle cap with a small amount of glue, and fix the camera lens to the cap. Make sure you don't get glue on the lens since this will make it impossible to see through. This is your eyepiece.
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4
Pick any object, such as the spine of a book, and look at it through the magnifying glass lens held out at arm's length. With your other hand, hold the eyepiece and look through it at the magnifying glass lens, which is still pointed at your chosen object.
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5
Move the magnifying glass lens toward or away from you until the image is in focus--and hold. Have someone measure this distance and write it down for you. Your cardboard tube needs to be several inches longer than this measurement.
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6
Cut a slot in the cardboard tube near one of the ends and slide the magnifying glass lens into the slot. Wrap the outside of the tube near the slot with duct tape to secure the lens.
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7
Cut the top third off the plastic water bottle and screw the eyepiece lid back onto the bottle. Slide the bottle over the opposite end of the cardboard tube from the magnifying glass lens.
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8
Adjust the water bottle eyepiece (or trim the cardboard tube if necessary) until the distance from the camera lens to the magnifying glass lens matches the measurement you wrote down earlier. Look through your model telescope to make sure the image is as clear as possible, and then duct tape the water bottle in place, covering all clear plastic areas so no light can enter the tube.
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Tips & Warnings
The lenses have to be aligned for you to see through your telescope.
You can make small adjustments to the focus by unscrewing the eyepiece slightly.
NEVER look at the sun through your telescope! You will burn a hole in your retina.
References
- Photo Credit moon image by Christian De Grandmaison from Fotolia.com
