An optical device that enables an observer to see over or around opaque objects. The simplest type consists of a long tube with mirrors at each end set at 45° to the direction to be viewed. A better type uses internally reflecting prisms instead of plane mirrors. Periscopes are used in tanks (to enable the observer to see over obstacles without being shot at) and in submarines (when the vessel is submerged). Such periscopes are usually quite complicated instruments and include telescopes.