Remember the first time you looked at the moon through a telescope or a
set of binoculars?
Shopping for a real telescope can be at times a bit intimidating. After all, a
state of the art telescope looks pretty complicated. But it really
isn't. Let us introduce you to the one-stop telescope shopping website,
where you will find out everything you ever wanted to know about telescopes
as we guide you through the many varieties of viewing instruments.
Before you decide on which telescope to
purchase, you should ask yourself
several questions:
1. What is the most important thing about
buying a telescope? The best place to buy a telescope is a
telescope store, and not a department store. Stores that do not
specialize in telescopes will attempt to sell you a telescope
based on its "maximum magnification".
The reason is that as far as telescopes go, how much you can
magnify is a function of the amount of light the telescope
receives, which is
almost entirely determined by the telescope's aperture (the size
of the lens or mirror that points at the sky). As far as
magnification
goes, you can expect 50x per inch of aperture on a normal night,
up to 62.5x on an exceptionally clear night (this is the number
Meade uses
in calculating their magnifications). Department stores always
show little 2 1/4 inch refractors for up to 100+ dollars and say
that the refractor can get up to a whopping 600x or so. Strictly
speaking, this is true. However, applying the 50x rule, it is easy
to see that 125x would be pushing the optics, and that is assuming
that they were high quality ones. With the quality of the parts
they usually give you are lucky to get 100x with reasonable
resolution. Stores that do not specialize in telescopes will sell
you a telescope based on its "maximum magnification". A scope may
be advertised as a 500 power instrument, but what they forget to
mention is that the image is completely blurry
at that power because it far exceeds the limit of the instrument.
The best analogy we can think of is when you're buying a computer.
At a good computer store, the employees are trained to answer all
your questions. So are we.
2. What will I be able to see with my telescope? The best
way to find out is to go out observing with someone who already
has a telescope. Look for a local astronomy club via the internet,
or check with your local library. In general, you will be able to
see all the planets, except Pluto as white disks. You will be able
to see the bands and the red spot on Jupiter and the rings around
Saturn. You may be able to see the ice caps on Mars. Venus and
Mercury will show in phases, but not much else. You will be able
to see four of Jupiter's moons as points of light, as well as
Saturn's moon Titan. Of course, you will be able to track and
photograph comets. Your images will not be
as sharp and clear as the ones shown by the Voyager spacecraft.
After all, if a $2,000 telescope could see such things, why spend
billions of dollars to send a spacecraft to get them? As far as
deep sky objects, you will be able to see the Messier objects in
almost any state of the art telescope. Galaxies will tend to
appear as shining blobs of light; however, look a while longer and
you may find spiral arms or dust lanes. Galaxies look nothing like
their pictures-you do not see the arms anywhere nearly as clear.
In summary: through a 60mm refractor you will
see:
a)The moon in fantastic detail.
b)Jupiter including at least 2 major cloud belts across its surface plus the 4
major satellites.
c)Saturn and its rings are easily visible at 60X.
d)Deep space Nebulas such as the Orion Nebula are gas clouds which are
easily visible throughout the year.
e)Star clusters:
1.Globular clusters.
2.Open clusters.
f)Galaxies such as Andromeda galaxy. 40 to 50 galaxies are visible.
Through an 8" telescope
a)Moon becomes incredibly complex in fine detail with millions of valleys and
ridges.
b)Jupiter's cloud belts take on a more structural character rather than just
straight lines. Disturbances become visible.
c)Saturn's Rings are much more defined in structure and color.
d)Nebulas are brighter and in wider expanse.
e)Star clusters, galaxies and multiple star systems are much greater in number
and detail. A cluster is a fuzzy spot
in a 60mm refractor. In an 8" scope it is a radiant ball of starpoints.
3. Do I want to take photographs through my telescope? If you are a photo
enthusiast, you will want to take pictures of stellar events like
the
Hale-Bopp. You will need the following: a stable mount or tripod to avoid out-of
focus pictures. Also, you should stay away from inexpensive 60mm
alt-az refractors, which have mounts that are not stable enough. You may also want
to avoid the Dobsonian-style telescopes, which may be fine for
visual use, but the mount does not lock down. Later in this text we will tell you the
best telescopes for photography.
4. Do I want to use my telescope during the day, or night, or both? Not all
telescopes fit all applications. For example, a telescope that is just
right for a safari in Africa may not be appropriate for night photography. If you're
going on a whale watch, you don't want a reflector, which gives
an upside down or sideways view of the world. A refractor or Cassegrain
telescope will give a normal picture.
5. Do I want to travel with my telescope? Portability can be an important issue,
especially if you want to travel from place to place, by car or jeep
or horseback. The most portable telescopes are Cassegrains and those with
short focal length refractors.
6. Will the telescope be integrated with a computer system for electronic imaging?
Five years ago, CCD cameras were used primarily by professionals
and observatories. Today, they take up a substantial portion of advertising space
in astronomy magazines, and many are used by amateur astronomers.
This type of equipment is a bit expensive still, but within the reach of many
amateurs. The chances are that if you can afford a computer, you could
afford this kind of system.
7. This leads to the next question: How much do you want to spend? Telescopes
are available in a wide price range, from about $50 for a 60mm
alt/az refractor with tripod (telescopes can be assumed to come complete with
tripod, unless otherwise stated) to a whopping $15,000 and more for
Meade Instrument's sixteen-inch, computerized LX200 with all the bells and
whistles. Fortunately, just like buying a car, there are a lot of choices
in between, which brings us to our last question.
8. Who is the telescope for, an adult or a youngster or both? Obviously, if the
telescope is for an adult, your expectations would be a bit higher. You
would expect the telescope to move smoothly, to present excellent images, and
allow for the viewing of a variety of stars. On the other hand, a
youngster might very well be happy with a telescope that will show the moon and
the rings of Saturn. The older a child is, the more he or she will
expect.
9. Where do I buy my telescope? There are three basic sources: a store that does
not specialize in telescopes, that sells many different products;
buying from other people; and mail order. The advantage of buying a telescope in
a store is that you have someplace to return the instrument if
you have problems with it. The disadvantage of a store is that you generally pay
more for the telescope, and do not get any knowledgeable
technical support. When you buy from other people, the disadvantage is that you
are buying something as is. Also, both Meade and Celestron offer
limited lifetime warranties on their optics which are NOT transferable to a second
owner. There are two kinds of mail order: the outfits that sell all
sorts of items only through the mail, and telescope stores that sell through the mail
(or internet) in addition to selling from their store.
Three considerations in dealing with an internet only business:
(1)Make sure you can send the merchandise back easily if something goes wrong
(2)Be sure the store has a liberal return/exchange policy.
(3) Be sure the store is willing to take the time to help you with your purchase after you have your new scope.
ONE LAST PIECE OF ADVICE.....
If you want to learn more about astronomy, I suggest that you join an astronomy
club in your area. The great thing about astronomy clubs is that
you can get lots of "hands-on" experience at their monthly (sometimes even
twice monthly) meetings. Most amateur astronomers who attend meetings are
more than willing to allow you to look through their telescopes and ask questions.
If you have a new telescope, bring it! There is bound to be
someone there who can help you polar-align and set up, and maybe even point
the way to your first deep-sky object! Sky and Telescope and Astronomy
magazine publishes a list of astronomy clubs by state at least once a year.
You can also get more help by subscribing to astronomy-related magazines
like Sky and Telescope and Astronomy. These are monthly publications full
of up to date articles on everything from the Shuttle to the existence of Black
Holes. They also have a "centerfold"... a star map for that
month that will help you to get around the sky AND information on where the
planets are currently located.
PLUS... I am only a phone call away. If I can be of any help, just give me a call Mon-Friday from 9am -6pm at 516-475-1118. Ask for Jeff and mention our website.