They don't. They are the same.
A radio telescope detects light in the form of radio waves and a refracting telescope detects light in the visible wavelengths
It is called a refracting telescope.
Yes, a telescope with incoming light passing through glass does refract. The glass lenses or mirrors in a telescope refract light as it passes through, focusing the light to form an image.
Refracting telescope.
It gathers the light coming from an object.
Concave Mirrors
A refracting telescope is a type of telescope that has a large thin lense at the front and a smaller thicker lense at the end where the eyepiece is. Refracting telescopes use lenses unlike reflecting telescopes that use mirrors to reflect the light. This is a good image of a refracting and reflecting telescope: [See related link]
"Optical", in this case, simply means that they work with light.
Refracting Telescope.
The telescope you are referring to is likely a refracting telescope. In a refracting telescope, light enters through an objective lens which bends the light rays to a focal point where the image is formed. This type of telescope is commonly used in astronomy and for terrestrial viewing.
The two types are refractor and reflector. In a refracting telescope, the light comes in THROUGH a magnifying LENS where it is REFRACTED (bent) to focus the light into an objective lens. In a reflecting telescope, the light BOUNCES OFF a curved magnifying MIRROR , and then reflected again on a secondary mirror to direct the light into an objective lens. Among the advantages of a reflecting telescope are that in a refracting lens, the thickness of the lens can absorb some of the light, while a mirror reflects all of the light. Additionally, a reflecting telescope can "fold" the telescope into a much more compact instrument, which is essential with especially large devices. A large refracting telescope would be enormously heavy and cumbersome.
simplest possible telescope