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EQUIPMENT GUIDE
Telescopes
Types of Telescopes
Choosing a Telescope
Telescope Accessories
Spotting Scopes
Astrophotography
Astro Binoculars
Types of Binoculars
Choosing Binoculars
Binocular Accessories
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Performance Limits for Telescopes
There are several factors that influence the performance limit, as measured by maximum visual magnitude and resolution, primary among these is the aperture of the telescope:
Aperture
(inches) |
Maximum
Magnitude |
Theoretical
Resolution |
| 3.1" (80mm) |
12.2 |
1.50 arc-seconds |
| 4" (100mm) |
12.7 |
1.20 arc-seconds |
| 5" (125mm) |
13.2 |
0.95 arc-seconds |
| 6" (150mm) |
13.6 |
0.80 arc-seconds |
| 8" (200mm) |
14.2 |
0.65 arc-seconds |
| 10" (250mm) |
14.7 |
0.50 arc-seconds |
| 12.5" (320mm) |
15.2 |
0.40 arc-seconds |
| 14" (355mm) |
15.4 |
0.34 arc-seconds |
| 16" (400mm) |
15.7 |
0.30 arc-seconds |
| 20" (500mm) |
16.2 |
0.24 arc-seconds |
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