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Why isn't necessary for radio telescopes surface to be as smooth as mirrors?
Wiki User
∙ 12y ago
The reflector of your telescope's mirror DOES need to be finely polished, with no disturbances bigger than a half-wavelength or so. So for optical telescopes, the mirror must be smooth to nanometers.
But for a radio telescope which measures wavelengths in meters or centimeters, a fine wire mesh will generally do the trick. And since radio telescopes tend to be very large, the finer the mesh the lighter the dish can be - and therefore, more easily rotated and pointed.
Wiki User
∙ 13y ago
Wiki User
∙ 12y agoIt doesn't because radio waves are longer than optical waves.
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