How does a good Telescope work?
Dave asked:
I’m thinking about getting a telescope, but I’m not exactly sure how these things work. If you were to get one of the better ones for a couple hundred dollars or so, what exactly do these telescopes do? And how well can you see things in outer space with the telescopes? If you were to look at Mars with one of these telescopes, how well would you be able to see it? Whoever have one of the nice telescopes, can you tell me how it works, what you can see, and how well you can see it? thanks alot guys
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I’m thinking about getting a telescope, but I’m not exactly sure how these things work. If you were to get one of the better ones for a couple hundred dollars or so, what exactly do these telescopes do? And how well can you see things in outer space with the telescopes? If you were to look at Mars with one of these telescopes, how well would you be able to see it? Whoever have one of the nice telescopes, can you tell me how it works, what you can see, and how well you can see it? thanks alot guys
July 30th, 2009 at 4:48 am
I’m glad you’re thinking about getting a telescope and learning about astronomy. It’s a great hobby and you’ll have hours of enjoyment pursuing the cosmos.
First, though, read the attached article. It will give you a good idea of how telescopes work and what to expect from one.
Second, check out your local astronomy club. Amateur astronomy is one of the most widely practiced sciences in the world. Chances are there is an astronomy club close to you. You’ll find people there who are friendly and will help you with your decision to get a telescope.
Third, take a look at Orion’s site (see second link below). They have some decent scopes at affordable prices. For beginners I suggest a 6 to 8 inch dobsonian scope. They’re easy to put together and operate, yet yield great views of the night sky (Moon, planets, and deep sky objects).
Finally, stay away from department store scopes, like those sold by wally*Xart, etc. They’e a hunk of junk and you’ll just be wasting yout money. Also, before you buy, send a post to this group and let us review the scope for you.
Good luck and if you have any questions you can drop me an e-mail.
July 30th, 2009 at 11:01 am
The most bang for the buck is a Newtonian telescope. You can get a 6 inch telescope for $250 or a 16 inch telescope for $2,000 or anything between these sizes and prices. These telescopes have only 2 optical surfaces, a parabolic primary mirror and a flat diagonal mirror. The mount now-a-days is a cheap wood Altitude - Azimuth mount designed by a Vindantin monk in 1957 named John Dobson. True to a monks life, he never demanded royalties for the design of the mount. It still bears his name as a Dobsonian Telescope.
The biggest drawback is finding objects in space. Of course the bright ones are visible to the naked eye and you just sight along the tube and there you are.
I offer free spreadsheets to find many dim objects. Here they are:
To use them you need a laptop at the observing site and setting circles (big compass dial on the ground board and angle guage on the elevation) on the telescope mount.
These big telescopes are dandy for planets. Mars? Well you can see the morning fog and windstorms and dark and light areas and the polar cap if one is tipped toward Earth.
Look at bright objects like planets and the moon at the start of the evening. By the time the sun has been set for an hour, it will be truly dark. Protect your night vision by never looking at a bright light until you are ready to call it a night. Dim objects will show you their best view as you start to look away from them. Your edge vision is more sensitive than your central vision.
August 2nd, 2009 at 7:11 am
There are several different kinds of telescopes and all of them have some excellent features. Refractors and Reflectors, plus Schmidt-Cassegrain, APO refractors, Mac-Cass, and many more. There are also several mounts to chose from and the mounts are just as important, if not even more important, than the scope is. All of the different scopes and mounts have some features that some people like and do not like. No two eyeballs are the same and the perfect scope for one person might be completly wrong for another person.
There is no one scope that is “better” than another —except for the junk scopes out there which are all just a waste of money. Never, ever buy from Walmart, Costco, Target, or any other discount store like that. Junk scopes are flooded into the market from those stores. You will be buying nothing but bad optics and plastic.
If you are new at this, then stay away from anything used from any site. If you don’t know what you are buying and who you are buying from you will most likely be getting someone else’s headache—with no warranty either. Buyer beware you know. Some great deals on used equipment, by people who know how to use and take care of scopes, are out there but if you don’t know what you are doing, you might be spending a lot of money on junk.
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I recomend:
Orion is the very best for value and for customer service too. I have 2 of their scopes and I will only buy from them from now on. My first scope was a manual controlled scope and I am very glad that it was because it forced me to learn where things are in the night skies. Go-To type scopes can be frustrating to use. If you do not have them aligned exactly perfect, they do not find the targets. If you are a beginner, you will be frustrated unless you spring for a GPS Go-To. An object locator is just that—it will locate objects for you (must be aligned first) but an object locator is not a tracking motor. It will not keep the scope on the target.
The Orion site has some excellent diagrams and explanations of all types of scopes and mounts.
Things to consider are size–can the user lift and transport the scope to the viewing site easily? Does it fit in your car? If not, then it will gather dust in a closet. I recomend a carrying case too so it is protected in storage and transport. Can the viewer reach all the knobs and buttons? I have a long tube large manual refractor and it is very dificult for me to reach the knobs when I am pointed to Zenith. I am not a tall person.
Take your time in making your decision.
+++ I would like to suggest that you join a local astronomy club or astronomical society BEFORE you spend your money on a scope. There are many different kinds of scopes and what is perfect for one person is not perfect for another. Everyone has their own set of eyeballs and no two are the same. If you join a club, you can attend a few of their star parties and try out members scopes to see what works best for YOU, before you buy a scope. The members can also help you when you get your scope and show you how to get the most out of your new scope as well as to help teach you where the treasures in the sky are located. Most clubs have loaner scopes and extensive libraries that you can gather more information from too. Most clubs will have monthly membership meetings with informative presentations given by members and by guest speakers. You can really learn a lot from these clubs and an added plus is all the great new freinds you make there too.
Some people will suggest that you purchase binnoculars. Not a bad idea but dont buy anything less than 10×50 and you must have a tripod too or you will not be happy with your astronomical views because they will be too shakey from your movements. Personally, I prefer a scope to binos because if binoculars are not aligned properly at the factory, then you get double images and distortions that cant be fixed. Most of the cheaper binoculars are not properly aligned. That is not as important for terrestial viewing but it is a killer for astronomical viewing. Binos can also be bumped out of alignment and become useless for astronomy.
When you buy go Orion and you wont be disappointed. Don’t try to learn everything all at once or you will be overwhelmed and discouraged. Patience is the key to Astronomy.
You will need a good star chart program too.
This is great freeware that you can download. Tell it where you are and it will tell you what you see. Ask it where something is and it will show you.
I wish you all the best! Enjoy!