Thames & Kosmos My Discovery User Manual

My Discovery
Telescope
Have you ever wanted to be able to take a closer look
at things that are far away? The Moon and stars, for
example? Or a bird perched up in a tree? Or a boat
sailing out on the open ocean? Now you can do all of
this with the My Discovery Telescope!
Introduction
A telescope is a device that allows you get a better
look at far away objects by enlarging them. Your
telescope is a type of telescope called a refracting
telescope. Telescopes are the most important
optical instruments in astronomy, the branch of
science that deals with celestial objects, outer
space, and the universe as a whole. Some
telescopes are really famous, like the Hubble
Space Telescope, which is out in space and sends
back amazing pictures of very distant stars.
Telescopes have been around for
about 400 years. We don't know
exactly who invented them.
However, Galileo Galilei (who
lived from 1564 to 1642) was the
first person to explore the sky
using the device. Among other
things, he examined the surface
of the moon and discovered that it had mountains and craters. This
was an important step for astronomy.
Of course, your telescope isn't just for looking at the night sky. You
can also use it to look at objects on Earth in the distance that you
would like to look at more closely. Scientists call this terrestrial
observation (from the Latin terra = earth). But it can also be used
whenever you are too far away from the action. So, for example, you
can use your telescope if you are
sitting high up in the stands at a
soccer or baseball game and you
want to have a closer look at the
players on the field.