Why can chicken wire be used as the surface of the radio telescope?

Answer 1

It reflects some of radio waves. Also the gaps don't matter too much. That's because of the nature of the radio waves, particularly the wavelengths.

In fact there is a large range of wavelengths.

For the shorter wavelengths a "dish" type receiver is needed, with no gaps.

Answer 2

Chicken wire can be used as the surface of a radio telescope because its mesh structure allows radio waves to pass through with minimal interference, making it an effective reflector for collecting and focusing radio signals. The wire spacing is typically chosen to be smaller than the wavelength of the radio waves being collected, allowing the signals to be reflected and concentrated towards the receiver. Additionally, chicken wire is a cost-effective and lightweight material, making it a practical choice for large-scale radio telescopes.

Answer 3

The mesh of chicken wire is about 1 inch across. Radio waves with a wavelength greater than the size of the holes in the mesh will be reflected, so that a chicken wire dish will reflect the radio energy back to the feed horn at the focus of the dish. But because the air molecules are much smaller than the mesh, the wind blows right through the wire without causing much disturbance.

The speed of light is 186,000 miles per second, or 300,000,000 meters per second. The formula is wavelength * frequency = c, where "c" is the symbol for the speed of light. So this gives you a way to calculate the frequency of the radio waves that will be reflected.

One more point; if you need to reflect higher frequencies, you can do this by making the mesh smaller.