09.4 - Resolution

International-mindedness:

• Satellite use for commercial and political purposes is dictated by the resolution capabilities of the satellite

Theory of knowledge:

• The resolution limits set by Dawes and Rayleigh are capable of being surpassed by the construction of high quality telescopes. Are we capable of breaking other limits of scientific knowledge with our advancing technology?

Utilization:

• An optical or other reception system must be able to resolve the intended images. This has implications for satellite transmissions, radio astronomy and many other applications in physics and technology (see Physics option C)

• Storage media such as compact discs (and their variants) and CCD sensors rely on resolution limits to store and reproduce media accurately

Aims:

• Aim 3: this sub-topic helps bridge the gap between wave theory and real-life applications

• Aim 8: the need for communication between national communities via satellites raises the awareness of the social and economic implications of technology

A spy satellite travels at a distance of 50 km above Earth's surface.  How large must the lens (b)be so that it can resolve objects with a size of 2 mm and thus read a newspaper?  Assume the light has a wavelength of 400 nm. b = 12.2 m

The headlights of a car are 2 m apart. The pupil of the human eye has a diameter of about 2 mm. Suppose that light of wavelength 500 nm is being used, what is the maximum distance at which the two headlights are seen as distinct?  D = 6.6 km