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.
simplest possible telescope
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.