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Glossary term: Astronomía óptica

Description: La astronomía óptica es la disciplina que se dedica al estudio y la observación del Universo (estrellas, planetas, planetas enanos, asteroides, etc.) en el infrarrojo cercano, en la luz visible y en la luz ultravioleta. La razón para agrupar estos tres tipos de radiación electromagnética es que los telescopios ópticos, con lentes de cristal y/o espejos metálicos, que los astrónomos construyeron originalmente para observar la luz visible de los objetos celestes, son igualmente adecuados para observar la luz del infrarrojo cercano o la luz ultravioleta. Además, la atmósfera terrestre es transparente no solo para la luz visible, sino también para las regiones del infrarrojo y el ultravioleta directamente adyacentes, lo que permite realizar los tres tipos de observaciones desde tierra. Por último, pero no por ello menos importante, los sensores de las cámaras que utilizan los astrónomos para las observaciones en luz visible también pueden detectar luz del infrarrojo cercano y ultravioleta. Si se tiene en cuenta todo esto, los telescopios e instrumentos que utilizan los astrónomos para observar la luz visible funcionan igual de bien para las observaciones en el infrarrojo cercano y el ultravioleta. En consecuencia, tiene sentido que los astrónomos describan colectivamente las observaciones en este rango del espectro electromagnético con un único término: la astronomía óptica. El adjetivo «óptico» también se utiliza para describir el rango espectral, como en «la parte óptica del espectro». Las observaciones en ese rango son «observaciones ópticas».

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Term and definition status: The original definition of this term in English have been approved by a research astronomer and a teacher
The translation of this term and its definition is still awaiting approval

The OAE Multilingual Glossary is a project of the IAU Office of Astronomy for Education (OAE) in collaboration with the IAU Office of Astronomy Outreach (OAO). The terms and definitions were chosen, written and reviewed by a collective effort from the OAE, the OAE Centers and Nodes, the OAE National Astronomy Education Coordinators (NAECs) and other volunteers. You can find a full list of credits here. All glossary terms and their definitions are released under a Creative Commons CC BY-4.0 license and should be credited to "IAU OAE".

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The silver-coloured Hubble Space Telescope with the blue ocean and white clouds of the Earth visible underneath.

Hubble Space Telescope over Earth

Caption: The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope orbiting Earth. This picture was taken by astronauts on board the space shuttle Columbia, right after the Servicing Mission 3B to the space telescope itself. The telescope has an opening that allows light in (seen here on the left). The light travels through the telescope optics to the cameras and spectrographs located in the bulge at the other end of the observatory (seen here on the right). Data from these instruments is then sent back to Earth using an antenna. The black rectangles on either side of the observatory are the solar panels that provide it with power.
Credit: NASA/ESA credit link

License: CC-BY-4.0 Creative Commons Reconocimiento 4.0 Internacional (CC BY 4.0) icons


Los dos telescopios Keck vistos desde arriba. Las cúpulas están abiertas y se pueden ver los espejos de los telescopios en su interior.

Telescopios Keck

Caption: Los dos telescopios Keck están situados en Mauna Kea, en la isla de Hawái. Ambos son telescopios reflectores con espejos primarios de 10 m de diámetro.
Credit: NASA/JPL credit link

License: PD Public Domain icons


The left image has finger-shaped clouds with bright edges. In the right image we see stars shining through those clouds

The Pillars of Creation in comparison

Caption: The 'Pillars of Creation' are a renowned astronomical feature situated within the Eagle Nebula in the Serpens constellation. The illustration provides a direct comparison between images captured by the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) and the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), showcasing the pillars, which span several light years in diameter, in both visible light (also known as optical light) and infrared light. On the left are the pillars as seen by Hubble in visual light, taken in 2014. It displays dark pillars against an opaque background, with only a handful of visible stars. Conversely, the counterpart on the right is Webb’s near-infrared view published in 2022, penetrating the dust and revealing numerous stars of varying sizes. Their distance from Earth is approximately 6,500 to 7,000 light years. Within these pillars, new stars are constantly forming, making them a subject of extensive study by astronomers. Composed mostly of cool molecular hydrogen and small amounts of interstellar dust, they are subject to erosion by the intense ultraviolet radiation emitted by nearby massive and newborn stars, a process known as photoevaporation.
Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI credit link

License: CC-BY-2.0 Creative Commons Atribución 2.0 Genérica icons

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