Exactly, eventually you should be able to build much bigger telescopes than what can be reasonably built on Earth thanks to the lack of gravity, no horizon and no atmosphere to trash your giant scope with a storm.
Many kilometers in diameter in circumference should be possible and likely much more. The whole thing would at the same time be likely really really light, just thin stabilized foil, as it does not need to fight gravity or survive launch loads. Could be quite a sight. :)
>eventually you should be able to build much bigger telescopes than what can be reasonably built on Earth thanks to the lack of gravity
>Many kilometers in diameter in circumference should be possible and likely much more.
This is a misconception. There is plenty of "gravity". The mirror has to keep a very precise shape and attitude, which severely limits the possible size, considering it has to be light and is a subject to gravitational perturbations. Large and thin constructions in space (solar panels, antennas etc) are mechanically non-trivial on their own, and for telescope-quality mirrors it seems downright impossible.
I'd say it may envisioned theoretically (better materials, new photo-sensor processus, you-tell-me, physics say we have a much higher bound).
But in the short-medium term, the cheapest course that delivers is to use normal telescopes and interferometry (say on some orbit between Venus and Mars). I'm pretty sure it's also a domain where narrow AI may help because finding "anomalies" in space is a lot like finding anomalies on X-rays to find malignant tumors — something AI apparently can do well. Both problems fit incredibly large datasets + ultra low resolution of said anomalous blobs, and discrepancy with normal ones barely statistically significant (well below what human eyes may spot).
This is how I see the immediate future of space-based observation: lots of small things that cooperate extremely (increasingly) well with each other, "networks" more than "giants", much like down here on the ground.
It's just easier, cheaper, and lets you grab a lot of low-hanging fruits. Meanwhile, space-based fabrication can kick off and take the time to reach 'self-sustaining' velocity.
Many kilometers in diameter in circumference should be possible and likely much more. The whole thing would at the same time be likely really really light, just thin stabilized foil, as it does not need to fight gravity or survive launch loads. Could be quite a sight. :)