Comments on: What do I expect on 200 X magnification telescope?

By: Antonio D

Antonio D — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 21:41:46 +0000

You might be disappointed…a greater magnafication…does not mean a better view…The more you magnify…the darker and blurrier the view…Depends on the size of the mirror or lens…This is mandadted by rules of optics….A 6 inch mirror gathers more light than a 4 inch mirror…The rule of thumb is 50 to 60…50 to 60 times the size of the mirror..will give you the greatest theroetical magnification….10 inch mirror X 60 =600 magnification…That doesn’t mean you get that…The best views…are at 125 maginfication…or around that…Orion telescopes have good telescopes at relatively good prices….Better to buy a good telescope than a cheap toy one from the mall…You’ll be very disappointed ..and quite a really fasinating past time…Try buying a good pair of binos…or go to a “Star Party”…And check out other people’s telescopes…and ask the experts…Take Care Good Luck

good starter scopes are…

(sorry but the links didn’t work out…Jim D has a good link to the telescope I was trying to show you…)

but research before you buy…Find out how telescopes work…and the different type…

for basics on telescopes check out…
… Antonio D

By: John R

John R — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 13:38:12 +0000

Yes you can, and depending on what strength eye peace you use, you can see the ice covered poles on Mars, plus the red spot on Jupiter and the rings of Saturn, and even some of their moons. John R

By: wallyrush

wallyrush — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 07:28:57 +0000

You have some good answers already.I want to encourage you to join an astronomy club.I agree you should save a little more and get a 6 or 8 inch dob.The bigger the aperture the better the light gathering,the better the view.Check out this page it will help you understand.

There are lots of tips in Andy’s articles
Wally wallyrush

By: Faesson

Faesson — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 11:59:01 +0000

try not to worry about magnification. Think about aperture and optics. Also, remember the three rules of real estate…. 1) location 2) location 3) location.

Dark skies trump bad optics. If the person you are buying the scope for is lucky enough to have really dark skies, quality isn’t such an issue.

Still $200 isn’t chicken feed, so spend it well.

You can get a small telescope on a nice mount or a larger scope with a poor mount. Neither are bad choices.

Some are pretty cool-looking, too:

Some are kinda ugly:

Neither are bad choices.

Do some research, ask some astronomers, go to an observatory open house… use a few telescopes. Faesson

By: c

Thu, 31 Dec 2009 22:11:57 +0000

You can see lunar craters with the naked eye. With 200x magnification, you can see much smaller lunar craters. They look about the same.

To usefully use that kind of magnification, you need a really stable, wind-proof mount for the telescope. Telescopes sold by magnification are usually not of good quality and the highest magnification is not practical—too jittery, too faint.

For a first telescope, the best idea is a pair of “astronomical binoculars” and a camera tripod mount. You can see a lot with such a setup, and it’s within your budget. c

By: Jim D

Jim D — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 21:16:21 +0000

Don’t pay much attention to magnification when choosing a telescope. Its all about gathering light so choose something with a large aperture. For example, an 8″ reflector will gather more light than a 6″. If I where you I would save that $200 until you can afford more. You will only need $130 more for this one and it is a good scope to start off with. Jim D