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Telescopes and Astronomy


palmsrgreat

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Living in a more rural area, I have very dark surroundings that seem to bode well for viewing objects in the sky and outer space. My girls and I enjoy sitting out at night and looking at different stars and constellations. While I've thought about it before, I think it's finally time to purchase a telescope to take it to the next level.

I'm looking for suggestions on a decent telescope and any advice of what types of things I should really check out (stars, planets, moon, etc).I don't want the cheapest instrument but I also don't plan to shell out $1k just yet. Something fairly intuitive and easy to operate, with good optics that will keep the interest of my two daughters (9,4).

ETA: I'm totally open to a used instrument off Ebay or similar, I just don't know what I specifically need.

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7 minutes ago, palmsrgreat said:

Living in a more rural area, I have very dark surroundings that seem to bode well for viewing objects in the sky and outer space. My girls and I enjoy sitting out at night and looking at different stars and constellations. While I've thought about it before, I think it's finally time to purchase a telescope to take it to the next level.

I'm looking for suggestions on a decent telescope and any advice of what types of things I should really check out (stars, planets, moon, etc).I don't want the cheapest instrument but I also don't plan to shell out $1k just yet. Something fairly intuitive and easy to operate, with good optics that will keep the interest of my two daughters (9,4).

ETA: I'm totally open to a used instrument off Ebay or similar, I just don't know what I specifically need.

Can't really offer much advise on specifics, i'm sure others here should have great thoughts to share.. Imagine shopping around for a telescope would be a lot like  shopping for a good digital SLR Camera.. You want a good product that can provide quality images, but not looking to spend what you might use as a down payment on a car towards one, lol..  Lots of room in between no doubt. 

Will mention, keep an eye out in the Northeastern Sky an hour before Dawn the next week or so..  Comet NEOWISE is making a pass right now. Should be visible to the naked eye, better with a Scope / good camera lens obviously.

Will be in the evening sky ( just past sunset ) above the horizon after about the 18th-20th, just below the Big Dipper, to the Northwest. First time it has made a pass through our neck of the woods in over 6,800 years.  Already seeing some great images online the past few days..

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Unless you're just gonna look at the moon you will find manual tracking across the sky difficult... impossible for children.  Even with a 6 or 8" reflector style (lowest pricing vs. ease of use ratio in my opinion) keeping Saturn or Jupiter in the field of view is challenging when turning knobs (earth moves, Saturn moves, and you're trying to keep a visual field of view in a straight line between the two!  NOT EASY!)  To me telescopes are kind of like watches; but the best one you can afford or wait until you've got enough cash to do it right.  At a minimum I suggest something with GPS/automated tracking.  It takes ALOT of the work out of the equation and makes the experience more enjoyable, especially for children.  But you nailed it, unless you're gonna try to track down E42 in the eagle nebula you don't need to go crazy.  For me, I want a 14" LX600ACF, but it would rarely get used.  Way too monstrously large and heavy, atmospheric conditions become challenging (i live in 85-90% humidity and would travel to use this beast to where it's about 10%, acclimation is difficult, water in tube, water spotting lens, etc..), PITA set up and I'd have to drag it up to the top of Mauna Kea for it to be useful.  The best telescope is the one you use often, kinda like cameras; I favor a point n shoot with decent enough imagery over the mack daddy DSLR.  With your girls I would just suggest a small refractor scope that could be used for lunar viewing, light planet spotting and (surprise!) terrestrial use...  something along the lines of the ASTRO FI 90MM or the (I favor celestron usually) 80LCM.  Look at a product called SkySync.  Also, maybe think about an extra ocular with really low magnification for field spotting.  If you wanna get more deep space and you don't think you want to use it for terrestrial use, get the Nexstar 5SE, tried and true platform; a nice user friendlyish mid range space scope. 

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Ha! I know asking these questions is somewhat loaded, esp for those more experienced. Like most things, there are so many options to consider along with your budget.

I would agree I don't want anything requiring manual tracking. From what I have looked at, the computerized/motor tracking are an absolute must, especially when I'm the one that's going to be operating it! I want something I can setup fairly easy and start viewing quickly. The Nexstar models you have suggested seem to be what I'm looking for. I think I'll go with one of them and start hitting some youtube videos to further understand what I'm doing. Thanks for your input!

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Check back in and let me know what you ended up with an your experience with it after a couple months of use.  Have fun making memories! :shaka-2:

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I've been using a Celestron 4" for about 20yrs, with several primary lenses for magnification. I am glad that I did not spend too much. I prefer the lesser magnifications.

The weather is often too cloudy, nothing up there changes much. I can easily track manually anything that I want to look at, and that gets boring after not too long, and my kids get bored quicker than I do. A small fuzzy dot when magnified, becomes a larger fuzzy dot. It is often cold outside, I used to (years ago) take the telescope when we went camping if there was not much of a moon or waxing gibbous. But not for years, I only use it now to watch neighbours.  Aussie humour.

But I must say that about 10 yrs ago (maybe I forget) Saturn was at such an angle that the rings were really clear and that was awesome and such a thrill to us and many of our friends at the time. We saw the dancing moons of Jupiter, the Jewel box in Crux, It is among the most easily distinguished constellations in the southern hemisphere as its hallmark stars each have an apparent visual magnitude brighter than +2.8, even though it is the smallest of all 88 modern constellations. Sorry it is a pity that you can't see that. 

My advice is that you ignore multiplication numbers and concentrate more on angle of field numbers, they are more satisfying. Looking at a large fuzzy ball is the same as looking at Jupiter with a normal telescope or looking at an object at the aftermath of the big bang. Most people prefer a clear pic of a lot of stars, not a close up of one fuzzy one.

I hope that I have been of help.

 

 

                                                                                 

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Cheers Steve

It is not dead, it is just senescence.

   

 

 

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If you want the best view for the lowest amount of money you can't beat a dobsonian. I used to own a Meade 8" LX90 computerized scope, it was great. Then I wanted something bigger so I bought a Zhumell Z12 dobsonian scope.  And the Zhumell was under $1000, I paid $799 a few ago.

telescope.PNG

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Lived in Cape Coral, Miami, Orlando and St. Petersburg Florida.

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Oh, Michael...  forgot one other decent piece of starter advice.  Download an app for your phone thats a constellation finder type thing.  starwalk2 costs $6 (i never buy apps but I actually paid for this one...) and your kids will really love using it, draws in overlays of mythical creatures, gods and goddesses, and even cartoon things.  Even the app and a decentish pair of binoculars can enhance your viewings.  :shaka-2:

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I took a picture of comet neowise yesterday.
We have really bad light polution and i dont have a zoom lenz so its kind of fuzzy.
This is also the last picture i took before my battery died.
Hopefully i get another chance today.
I think a longer exposure and lower ISO might get me a better result.

1241498299_DSC03748-kopie(2).thumb.JPG.a92975e187470e19f77c253de97c9a85.JPG

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Hello Palmsgreat

 I have two options for you to consider. Option 1 can be used independently by a 9 year old w/o help and option 2 can be used by a teen after after gaining a bit of experience.

 

Option 1: StarBlast 4.5 Astro Tabletop f/4 Reflector Telescope

https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/1594/4815/products/cb702a519374a91697c85253a5a2f635_520x520.jpg?v=1500415430

 

https://www.telescope.com/Orion/Orion-StarBlast-45-Astro-Reflector-Telescope-Kit/rc/2160/p/130921.uts?keyword=star%20blast

Option two:

Orion Skyview Deluxe 6 EQ  Equatorial Reflecting image 0

This scope will do quite a bit more especially with the planets. With the equatorial mount and motor drive it will track objects even at high power.

https://www.telescope.com/Orion/Orion-AstroView-6-Equatorial-Reflector-Telescope/rc/2160/p/9827.uts

Motor drive accessory.    https://www.telescope.com/Orion/Orion-EQ-1M-EQ-2M-and-EQ-3M-Electronic-Telescope-Mount-Driv/rc/2160/e/6.uts

This scope can do photography with a camera adapter and of course if you have a camera.

Taken with the option 2 scope.

m35p.thumb.jpg.00fadda5ca1fac9e6a02b419e039c0da.jpg

 

Here is my astronomy web site.

http://www.egrafton.com/

Ed in Houston

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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  • 1 year later...

I bought Gskyer Telescope knowing nothing about telescopes and not knowing what I could expect to see through this thing.

Now I know more, I think this is a decent value. In telescopes, the aperture size matters much more than magnification. The bigger the aperture, the better the image will be. This is a 70mm aperture (2.75 inches), which is about as small as you can get. It's typical for an "entry-level" telescope, and a decent value for the money if you want to get into stargazing without dropping 500 bucks or more on a bigger scope.

However, if I could do it over again, I would've spent more and gone with a better one.

First, as with all beginner telescopes, it is actually much harder to use than a more intermediate-level one. This is something well-known in the amateur astronomy group I've joined, and they never, EVER recommend buying a beginner telescope, ESPECIALLY for kids. Because most kids like looking AT stuff more than looking FOR it. And with this telescope, far more time is spent hunting for objects than actually looking at them.

My kid doesn't have the patience or attention span for that, but I rather enjoy the challenge, so I do it. This brings me to the next problem. This is made for kids. As such, the stand is very short. This means that all the time you spend hunting for things, you'll have to be hunched over, crouched down, or kneeling on the ground. And if you live in a place with a lot of light pollution, you won't be able to see much more than stars, the Moon, or the brightest planets. Even Mars is difficult to see through this telescope, and you can't make out any detail whatsoever on the surface.

You can make out SOME faint detail on Jupiter, especially if you go away from light pollution on a clear, moonless night. And you can just make out Saturn's rings. Venus, on the other hand, is very easy to see. Especially now, near the end of April 2020, it is the brightest it'll be all year, so we've been looking at it every night. It's too bright, even at its dimmest, to make out any detail, but you can see what phase it's in. Galaxies, most nebulas, and many star clusters are beyond the ability of this telescope, but that being said, I was able to see a planetary nebula called The Ghost of Jupiter last night. For perspective, I've had a few weeks of use and practice, and feel comfortable with the telescope, and have a number of apps, charts, and star maps to help me find things, and it STILL took over an hour for me to finally find it, put it close enough to the center of my field of view to use with max magnification, and put it in focus. And even then, it looked like a hazy, bluish star.

We couldn't make out any detail or the distinctive eye shape that can be seen with even slightly larger scopes. Still, it was cool and the kid loved it. I consider it worth the effort, but my back is killing me today. If you absolutely MUST get other than the entry-level telescope, you can check this article for a complete guide and review. But for an entry-level telescope, this is good. It'll serve our needs while we save up for an upgrade. But, like all entry-level telescopes, this is harder to use and not powerful enough to see much.

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I have commented earlier in this thread and although we have a couple of telescopes, when camping out with no light pollution we usually prefer, when looking at the night sky, to lay back in our camping chairs with binoculars.  You can see shooting stars, constellations and satellites all of which would not be possible with a telescope in the same situation. 

I have a couple of SLR's and a DSLR and I still take most of my pics with my phone, like most people.  The same analogy applies to my sky watching, I find that a good set of binoculars is usually my preferred choice for sky watching, as is for most people.

My point being, that don't spend much before you are sure that the interest is really there, to support all of those cloudy windy and cold days when you won't be out there looking at anything.  And get yourself a good pair of binoculars too because even avid sky-watches use them all of the time too.

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Cheers Steve

It is not dead, it is just senescence.

   

 

 

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