| What telescope should I get? 14:48 - Oct 5 with 820 views | BrixtonBlue |
I remember a while back on here people mentioned a few - any tips/recommendations? Had the idea for one for a birthday present from my parents (or money towards). I've got no idea on magnifications, prices or any technical details. |  |
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| What telescope should I get? on 14:55 - Oct 5 with 793 views | StokieBlue |
It really depends entirely on what you want to see and what you're willing to spend.
I assume you're going to be using it in South London? I think it's a bit darker there than here but not by much so you need to be realistic about what you are going to be able to see.
With a simple 130mm Dobsonian you'll be able to see the moons of Jupiter clearly, possibly the rings of Saturn on a really good day, maybe Andromeda and things like the Pleiades. To be honest though a lot of that depends on the quality of the eye pieces just as much as the telescope in these cases.
SB |  | | |
| What telescope should I get? on 15:04 - Oct 5 with 779 views | BrixtonBlue |
| What telescope should I get? on 14:55 - Oct 5 by StokieBlue |
It really depends entirely on what you want to see and what you're willing to spend.
I assume you're going to be using it in South London? I think it's a bit darker there than here but not by much so you need to be realistic about what you are going to be able to see.
With a simple 130mm Dobsonian you'll be able to see the moons of Jupiter clearly, possibly the rings of Saturn on a really good day, maybe Andromeda and things like the Pleiades. To be honest though a lot of that depends on the quality of the eye pieces just as much as the telescope in these cases.
SB |
"It really depends entirely on what you want to see"
Small things that are far away!
I dunno really - enough to make it worthwhile. No idea on budget really. My brother has "a 130mm reflector telescope, with a 10mm and a 20mm lens, and also a Barlow adapter lens that doubles the magnification of either" I've just found out. He said I can come up to Essex at the weekend to have a look, but depends on Covid etc. Probably my best bet; try before you buy.
EDIT: It's not just for space, also to look at animals/birds as we have a bit of woodland out the back.
Might also be good to be able to attach a phone to take photos, though this isn't essential. [Post edited 5 Oct 2020 15:06]
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| What telescope should I get? on 15:06 - Oct 5 with 765 views | StokieBlue |
| What telescope should I get? on 15:04 - Oct 5 by BrixtonBlue |
"It really depends entirely on what you want to see"
Small things that are far away!
I dunno really - enough to make it worthwhile. No idea on budget really. My brother has "a 130mm reflector telescope, with a 10mm and a 20mm lens, and also a Barlow adapter lens that doubles the magnification of either" I've just found out. He said I can come up to Essex at the weekend to have a look, but depends on Covid etc. Probably my best bet; try before you buy.
EDIT: It's not just for space, also to look at animals/birds as we have a bit of woodland out the back.
Might also be good to be able to attach a phone to take photos, though this isn't essential. [Post edited 5 Oct 2020 15:06]
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Sounds like a good plan, you'll see a decent amount with those specs out in Essex. Just a warning that you'll see less in London simply due to the light pollution.
SB | | | |
| What telescope should I get? on 15:11 - Oct 5 with 758 views | BrixtonBlue |
| What telescope should I get? on 15:06 - Oct 5 by StokieBlue |
Sounds like a good plan, you'll see a decent amount with those specs out in Essex. Just a warning that you'll see less in London simply due to the light pollution.
SB |
Yeah. I'm in Crystal Palace now which isn't as bad as Brixton pollution wise. I've been in Crystal Palace park on a clear night and could see loads of stars then. We have a lot more open/green spaces here than Brixton, although I appreciate it's not that far up the road. | |
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| What telescope should I get? on 15:38 - Oct 5 with 718 views | Warkystache |
I got a Nexon Celestar a few years ago for about £400. It's good for stars, the moon is beautiful, Jupiter and also neighbours' young wives in the bath (slobber) especially with the anti-reflective lens |  |
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| What telescope should I get? on 16:12 - Oct 5 with 695 views | WeWereZombies |
I have an ETX-90 from these people:
https://www.meade.com/
To be honest though the light pollution is so bad in London, and the orientation problems that a beginner faces, make a pair of binoculars a better bet. No set up hassle and easier to move about. Binoculars also give you a wider field of vision which makes identification easier, once you have more knowledge of the night sky then you can think about a telescope (although the computing power in the navigation of a telescope like the ETX-90 does away with that if you a computing geek). Binoculars will also help with trying to reconcile the differing abilities of terrestrial and astronomical instruments. |  |
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| What telescope should I get? on 17:06 - Oct 5 with 652 views | itfc_bucks |
if you're on facebook - search for UK Astronomy.
I'm co-admin there and we'll steer you right, plus we have a number of sellers offering discounts to our group. |  | | |
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| What telescope should I get? on 17:18 - Oct 5 with 642 views | GeoffSentence |
For stargazing?
As ever it depends on cash but the Skywatcher 200P with a dobsonian mount is a good relatively low priced starting scope.
Generally speaking Dobsonians are cheaper than equatorial mounts because there is quite a lot of engineering that goes into an EQ mount. Dobsonians are also easier to use. The advantage of an EQ mount is that it is easier to track objects as they move across the sky, which is essential if you want to photograph objects, but for casual star gazing, not so much.
I have a Skywatcher 200P and can easily make out the rings of Saturn and just about see the bands on Jupiter when the viewing is good. Also can make out some deep sky objects like some of the better known nebula and reasonable resolution of some of the nearer galaxies.
I should also add that the best scope, is the one that you use most, and in that respect I have a 70mm hand held monocular that I can just pull out of my pocket with no set up and it's great just for a casual glance around the stars, constellations and star clusters. [Post edited 5 Oct 2020 17:20]
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| What telescope should I get? on 17:21 - Oct 5 with 634 views | GeoffSentence |
| What telescope should I get? on 17:06 - Oct 5 by itfc_bucks |
if you're on facebook - search for UK Astronomy.
I'm co-admin there and we'll steer you right, plus we have a number of sellers offering discounts to our group. |
I'm on UK Astronomy, it's a great group. However the prevalence of brilliant astro photographers on there might give a false impression of what it is possible to see through a scope. | |
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| What telescope should I get? on 17:42 - Oct 5 with 616 views | StokieBlue |
| What telescope should I get? on 17:21 - Oct 5 by GeoffSentence |
I'm on UK Astronomy, it's a great group. However the prevalence of brilliant astro photographers on there might give a false impression of what it is possible to see through a scope. |
Exactly this.
It's what I meant when I was saying to be realistic with what you are going to be able to see.
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| What telescope should I get? on 17:45 - Oct 5 with 613 views | J2BLUE |
| What telescope should I get? on 14:55 - Oct 5 by StokieBlue |
It really depends entirely on what you want to see and what you're willing to spend.
I assume you're going to be using it in South London? I think it's a bit darker there than here but not by much so you need to be realistic about what you are going to be able to see.
With a simple 130mm Dobsonian you'll be able to see the moons of Jupiter clearly, possibly the rings of Saturn on a really good day, maybe Andromeda and things like the Pleiades. To be honest though a lot of that depends on the quality of the eye pieces just as much as the telescope in these cases.
SB |
So his girlfriend still won't be able to see it? |  |
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| What telescope should I get? on 18:19 - Oct 5 with 584 views | NewcyBlue |
It really depends on how far away the window is mate |  |
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