Question

Why can you see fainter stars with an 8-inch telescope than you can see with your naked eye?

Answer 1

The answer is The telescope collects light over a larger area.   You can see fainter stars with an 8-inch telescope than you can see with your naked eye because the telescope collects light over a larger area.

Answer 2

Answer:

You can see fainter stars with an 8-inch telescope than you can see with your naked eye because the telescope has a much larger object glass compared to the 'pupil' of the eye.

Explanation:

• A telescope, a microscope, or a simple magnifying glass act like just another extension added to the naked eye that amplify the light falling on them.

• The pupil of a naked eye only allows the 'light to pass' through a small hole to fall on the retina.

• The surface area of the pupil is way too small than the surface area of the object glass of a telescope.

• The object glass of the telescope simply gathers 'more light' than the pupil can and beams it back to the eye.

• Thus, fainter objects in the sky that cannot be seen with naked eyes can easily be seen through a telescope.