Telescope Mirror- thickness

[Wil242424]

Hello, I am going to start to create my own telescope and was wondering if I could get away with having a thin primary telescope mirror. Please tell me if this will ruin my telescope. I was thinking about making the telescope out of a parabolic mirror that is 35" by 1/2" thick. I have also heared that by exposing a thin parabolic mirror to different temperatures it changes its shape causing it to move its focal point, is that true?

[DrKrettin]

Wow! Not only will the temperature make a difference, but I think the distortion through moving the mirror around would ruin the image anyway. How would you make a parabolic surface?

[Country Boy]

Yes, that is true. I think that you would need to support the mirror with some backing that will not change much with temperature.

 

35" is pretty large for an amateur telescope. What experience do you have with making smaller telescopes?

 

It is also true that the cost of a telescope, mostly in the supporting structure, is roughly proportional to the cube of the diameter of the lens.

Edited February 10, 2017 by Country Boy

[Wil242424]

Well, I was thinking about repurposing this parabolic mirror that I have from a GreenPower project that I did. And I have had some experience with telescope making. I know it will be quiet the challenge to make such a large telescope, but I feel like giving it a shot.

[StringJunky]

There are mirrors now that are designed to intelligently distort to correct air-density variations which can cause imaging irregularities. Maybe you could look into how they are supported. I can't remember what that technique is called.

 

Edit: Adaptive optics

Edited February 11, 2017 by StringJunky

[Bender]

If it was a mirror used to heat stuff with sunlight, I doubt it is going to be accurate enough for any distortions to matter.