Basic Telescope Physical and Optical Characteristics
Mike Kudenov
Web Project for Physics 211 Fall 2002 (11/22/2002)

Here you will find a variety of information on the optical characteristics of various types of telescopes as well as some of the basic underlying physics behind them. This includes some information that pertains to the preformance degredation of a telescope optical system (for instance, vignetting and air turbulance) and a few concepts of mirror design (the parabolic shape and over/under correction of the primary mirror). I'd recommend starting with the "Optical Paths" section so you can familiarize yourself with some of the basic types and concepts of several of the widely used telescope designs before reading the other sections.