How does a Dobsonian telescope magnify?

Question

All I know is that it’s collecting a large amount of light and converging all of it through the eyepiece. But shouldn’t that show the celestial body at its apparent size? Like a Refracting telescope uses lenses to magnify it right but how does a Dobsonian telescope do that?

In: 2

Answer 1

Reflecting telescopes, including Dobsonians, use a curved mirror to provide magnification. In the same way that car rear view mirrors are often curved and make objects look smaller, telescope mirrors are curved the opposite way and make objects look larger.