Buying A Telescope - Tips and How-To

!9# Buying A Telescope - Tips and How-To

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A telescope can be the most expensive piece of metal and glass that sits on your shelf, or it can be your family's favorite toy. It all depends on how appropriate your decisions are when buying a telescope.

First, telescopes are not mere tubes with lenses at either end. Even the simplest ones are complex and relatively fragile, so they are not something to purchase until your children are mature enough to handle them with care.

Refracting telescopes are the simplest version. These scopes use precision-ground lenses at both the viewing end and the objective end (that's the big end), and also may use Barlow lenses and a mirror to increase the light-gathering quality of your telescope. The best refracting telescopes may have up to eight lenses throughout their construction. Overall, refracting telescopes have low maintenance and are excellent for clear viewing of planets and detail viewing. Look for the ones that have achromatic or apochromatic lenses. Apochromatics are better, but they are also significantly more expensive, sometimes by a factor of 10x the cost.

Reflecting telescopes are the ones that have much fatter barrels. That's because they depend on a well-cut mirror to collect light, rather than perfected achromatic or apochromatic lenses. While reflecting telescopes do a good job of gathering light so you can more easily view distant objects, they aren't as good as a quality refracting telescope for seeing small details on closer objects. For instance, the craters of the moon may not look as clear in reflecting telescopes, though you can see all the stars that make up the Pleiades without any problem. Newtonian reflectors have some of the detail problem corrected, but they still aren't perfect. And while refracting scopes need little maintenance, a reflecting telescope needs mirrors recoated every few years or it loses much of its light-gathering advantage. You may see high-end telescopes of this type marketed as Schmidt-Cassegrain.

There are a few other types of telescopes: the Ritchey-Chretien, which is a modified reflecting telescope; catadioptric telescopes, or compound scopes with elements of both refracting and reflecting types; and Schmidt camera telescope, a catadioptric scope designed specifically for photography. Because of price, most people opt for simpler refracting or reflecting telescopes for at least the first time out.

Selecting your telescope is not all you need to do; you must also select the proper mount, or tripod. The simplest is an alt-azimuth mount, which lets you move your scope up and down and left and right. More expensive are the equatorial mounts, which use alt-azimuth motion but also align themselves according to the earth's spin to make it easier to track heavenly bodies. The best mounts are the motorized equatorial mounts, which can be programmed to not just align themselves properly but even to find specific star bodies for you.

Next, look at magnifying power. This is not as important as you might think. Most telescopes come with eyepieces that provide higher magnification power. Don't pay attention to what the box says; instead, multiply the size in inches of the lens (on refracting) or mirror (on reflecting) of the scope by 50 to find out what the maximum useful magnification is, and depend on swapping out eyepieces to get your real magnification power. Lower magnifications are typically used much more than higher ones.

Larger telescopes in general, are better for viewing, but they are also more delicate. If you have a place where you're going to set up a permanent viewing station, it's worth it to get a large scope, but if you want high mobility, you should get a smaller good-quality scope.

If you live in a high-humidity area or a place where there are extremes of heat or cold in which you will be using your telescope, do not try to get away with a cheap telescope. Telescopes are very sensitive to both moisture and temperature, and your scope must be properly sealed to manage these extremes.

Finally, before buying a telescope, try to join a local astronomy club and check a few of the good ones out. Trying before you buy is always the best way to go, and you'll pick up lots of great tips from other club members in the process.

Buying A Telescope - Tips and How-To

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How Galileo's Telescope Created the Modern Science of Astronomy

!9# How Galileo's Telescope Created the Modern Science of Astronomy

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Before Galileo turned his telescope toward the night sky the act of astronomy was pretty much an astrological pursuit where objects and motions of object in the sky were explained using ancient and archaic understandings of the universe and how it works.

But he didn't just observe and note new objects in the sky. He applied scientific methods, mathematical laws, and logical thinking to what he observed and it is this cross discipline approach that created the modern science of observational astronomy.

Galileo is often thought of as inventing the telescope. He didn't invent the telescope but he was the first person to turn one toward the night sky. And the observations he made created the new science of modern astronomy where telescopes are used to help us understand our universe, our place in it, and how it works.

Galileo first heard about the mysterious telescope in 1609 and set out to make a copy for himself. This first telescope magnified images about three times. And over the course of a decade Galileo continued to make more telescopes and his most powerful one magnified images about ten times. This telescope enabled him to see things never before seen. And it enabled him to change our view of the universe and of the objects in the sky.

The first thing that Galileo turned his telescope to was the moon and by observing it over the course of many nights he made an important discovery. He saw that dark areas on the surface grew and shrunk depending on where the moon was in relation to the sun. From this he made the correct deduction that these dark areas were shadows cast by craters and mountains. He further explained with geometry that the height of the mountains and depth of the craters could be correctly calculated. This was an astonishingly important revelation in our view of the universe because it was previously believed that the moon was a smooth surfaced object.

Another extraordinary observation, and the most important, that Galileo made was the discovery of the four largest moons around Jupiter. They were previously unviewable but with his ten-power telescope he could see them. And after viewing them over the course of several nights he observed that they moved. With further careful observation and calculation he proved that they revolved around Jupiter. And this was a universe changing observation because it was previously believed that everything in the universe revolved around the Earth.

Galileo went on to make many telescopes and to make many other important observations in both the night and day sky including the discovery of spots on the sun and the discovery of the rings of Saturn. His observations in the sky spurred on many other telescope makers and astronomers to further explore the amazing and mysterious objects in the sky. But more importantly he also spurred on other astronomers to apply the laws and lessons of mathematics and logic to their observations in a quest to understand how the universe works.

This creation of the modern science of telescopic astronomy was clearly born in 1610 when he published his work called "Sidereus Nuncius" or the "Starry Messenger". This work is still available to this day and is considered one of the most important written scientific works.

How Galileo's Telescope Created the Modern Science of Astronomy

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What to look for when buying a telescope

!9# What to look for when buying a telescope

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As children, we have enjoyed in the rule up to the sky at night to see the stars. Maybe we should try to find some of the most popular constellations such as Orion, Ursa Minor, and Ursa Minor and Major. They have been spoiled this time, while we may not have been interested in this over time, has the desire to know the stars and planets remains unpaid. Buying a telescope will not only help to learn more about the moon, the stars and planets.

But the 'Most of his case, it is important to have a telescope that the purchase of quality and your needs. The following are some factors to consider.

Durability

Of course you want to buy depending on what you buy telescope last for a long time for you not to return again and again and a new one. A telescope is an investment, and sometimes it's a great depending on how much you spend. Durability is often associated with the brand, so buying a known brand is a sure way to get feedbackthat is durable. Read the reviews of customers will also give you vision on the shelf.

Features

When cell phones first came out, they were analog and now digital. Over time, the compact mobile phones come in various colors, and more features were added, such as cameras and applications.

As for telescopes may have had, or not so important to you. But some have more functions than others, so you must decide whatThey want out of your telescope. Do you want a telescope that is simple and easy, or that all types of functions that the viewing experience?

For example, the ETX-80AT-TC Astro Telescope Meade with multiple functions, including AutoStar. This is a computer controller that can find more than 1400 objects in the sky between the planets, stars, nebulae, and so on. For beginners, this feature could be really useful. More experienced users can not benecessary. But this is something to consider.

How far you want to see? Determine the size of the opening, so as you can see, some you can only view the solar system only. However, this may be sufficient for most people.

Total purchase of a telescope is not something that should be taken lightly. There are many brands and models available, and make an impact on the quality of your viewing experience.

What to look for when buying a telescope

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