What is the primary trade-off regarding the size of the telescope's mirror?
Answer
It is limited by the size of the rocket fairing
Ground-based observatories can utilize massive mirror arrays, sometimes exceeding 30 meters in diameter, because they are constructed on solid ground. In contrast, a space-based telescope must fit inside the fairing of a rocket for launch. This imposes a strict physical limit on the size of the primary mirror. The trade-off is that space-based systems prioritize the stability of a vacuum environment and the ability to access specific wavelengths of light, even if they must settle for a smaller light-gathering surface area compared to ground arrays.
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