Seeing the Universe

before 1610 - naked eye astronomy

1608 - Galileo's hand held telescopes

1673 - Hevelius' long telescopes

1780 - Herschel's large reflectors

1838 - Meridian Circles

1845 - Rosse's Leviathian

1890 - Barnard's camera

1923 - The Hooker 100 inch

1948 - The Palomar 200 inch

1990 - The Hubble Space Telescope

1998 - The Keck 10 metre pair

2000 - The VLT array

2015 - Planning the JWST

2020? - Planning the OWL

Since their invention, telescopes have become larger and more powerful. In a few decades, we will be able to resolve earth-like planets around neighbouring stars as points of light. What are the limits? Will we ever be able to resolve extra solar planets as disks and make out weather patterns and landforms? Are advanced civilizations already observing the Earth in detail from the stars?  Home Pages of the World's Largest Telescopes