What is a paraboloid?

paraboloid is a special type of three -dimensional surface. In the simplest case, it is a parabol revolution along its symmetry. This type of surface opens up on both sides. The hyperbolic paraboloid opens in one dimension and down in the other, reminds the saddle. As with a two -dimensional dish, scaling factors can be applied to the curvature of the paraboloid.

To understand how the paraboloid behaves, it is important to understand the parabola. Some paraboloid cross -sections will actually form a parabol. Equation y = x 2 will create a parabol in a standard coordinate system. This equation means that the distance of the point on this line from the X and Y axis will always have a special relationship to each other. The value of y will always be on the second value.

If one turns this line around the Y axis, a simple circular paraboloid is formed. All vertical cross -sectional surfaces open in a positive direction. However, it is possible to create a hyperbolic paraboloid, which also opens down in the third dimension.In this case, vertical cross -sections will have one half of their parabols in a positive direction; The other half opens in a negative direction. This surface of the hyperbolic paraboloid will resemble a saddle and is called a saddle point in mathematics.

One application of a paraboloid surface is the primary mirror of the binoculars. This kind of telescope reflects the rays of incident light, which are almost parallel, if they come from very far, to a smaller eyepiece. The primary mirror reflects a large amount of light into a smaller area. If a circular mirror is used, the reflected beams of the light will not perfectly match the focus; This is called spherical aberration. Although more complex, parabolic mirrors have the geometry needed to reflect all light rays to a common focus.

For the same reason as in the parabolic mirror satellite food normally use concave parabolickThe surface. Microwave signals sent from orbit satellites are reflected from the surface towards the focus of the bowl. The installed Feedhorn device is then collected for use. Sending signals works in a similar way. Any signal sent from the focus of the paraboloid surface is reflected in the parallel rays.