Optics [antikvár]

Optics and Light Light is all around us. Without light, you could not see to read these words. Light from the sun heats the earth and provides the energy that plants need to grow. Light can carry messages or even perform surgery. It brings us beauty in sunsets, rainbows, and laser light shows. Optics is the ancient and wonderful science of light. Human beings have always been fascinated by light and thousands of years ago thought mirrors and glass were magical. Throughout history, optical instruments have opened new doors. Since Galileo Galilei first turned a telescope to the heavens in 1610, light from distant planets, stars, and galaxies has taught us about the immense universe. We first learned about very small things later in the century, when Antony van Leeuwenhoek and others looked through microscopes to discover a world that people had never before seen. Today we probe the universe with new telescopes that can see much farther than Galileo ever dreamed of. When the space shuttle is launched again, one of its first loads will be the Hubble space telescope. The largest telescope ever—ten meters (nearly forty feet) across—is being built in Hawaii. Microscopes have improved so much that any you use in your