How imperative is it to store a Telescope near outside temperature?
Saturn asked:
I’ve read you need to store a telescope in a place that is near or within the outside temperature, especially for cold climates. How important is it to do this? Could it eventually damage the optics, or just hinder my view? I ask because I really don’t have a place to store it. My garage is heated, and needs to stay that way to accommodate a soon to be garden, and I don’t have a shed. Any and all helpful answers appreciated!
I plan to use it alot in the winter, actually.
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I’ve read you need to store a telescope in a place that is near or within the outside temperature, especially for cold climates. How important is it to do this? Could it eventually damage the optics, or just hinder my view? I ask because I really don’t have a place to store it. My garage is heated, and needs to stay that way to accommodate a soon to be garden, and I don’t have a shed. Any and all helpful answers appreciated!
I plan to use it alot in the winter, actually.
April 18th, 2010 at 11:17 am
The telescope does not need to be stored at outside temperatures during seasons that you do not use it. The reason one stores a telescope at outside temperatures is so that thermal changes don’t damage the optics. Warm inside and then cold outside (winter) will cause the parts to expand and contract and possibly put the optics out of alignment.
If you are not going to use it in the winter, you can store it in the house. In summer time, the difference in temperature outside and inside is not as great as winter.
Hope this helps. jdomanico
April 19th, 2010 at 5:17 am
Ideally, telescopes should be stored close to the nighttime temperature. If there’s a substantial temperature differential, you will get condensation going from the cooler to the warmer environment. If the temperature change is extreme, you may actually have the mirror or objective crack: that happens occasionally up here in Canada. Geoff G
April 20th, 2010 at 11:56 pm
Condensation on surfaces is the biggest problem. Keep the scope in a dry area if you bring it from warm moist air to a cool place. Depending upon type of telescope (reflector, refractor), its size (over 6 inch) and ventilation of tube, you should try to cool the scope for an hour before observing during winter. Heat currents and distortion of optics would make images poor.
Never heard of optics walking out of position due to temperature changes. Starrysky
April 21st, 2010 at 6:21 am
I telescope that is either warming up or cooling off is not performing at its peak optical capability. Temperature changes temporarily warp the optics and cause air currents that blur the image. But when the telescope settles down to the same temperature as its surroundings it goes back to peak performance. If you plan to observer on a cold night, take the telescope outside a couple hours before you plan to start using it to allow it to cool off and it should perform well. campbelp2002
April 23rd, 2010 at 4:44 pm
It is more important to maintain a constant temperature if you are doing long exposure photography. For direct viewing, you can keep adjusting focus as the optics change. If you have a problem with condensation, you might want to keep the telescope warm until you are ready to use it; also make a thermal blanket to slow the cooling off process. If you do a lot of winter astronomy, you might consider building a heated dome, or you could do your viewing remotely on video, like the pros do. Philip J