Equation 2 · Comparing the Main Approaches to Planetary Science and Exploration
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the wavelength. Read the equation part by part below; each part has a contextual explanation and a link to its mathematical background.
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This reach is the approach’s defining strength and its defining limitation is spatial resolution, which is fixed by the physics of diffraction rather than by mission budget. For a telescope with aperture diameter D observing light of wavelength , the smallest angular separation it can resolve is approximately
Sources cited in the article section
- [7] James Webb Space Telescope: Science Overview ↗
- [8] Identification of carbon dioxide in an exoplanet atmosphere ↗
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