Telescopes and Astronomy

[LordVila]

After wanting one for 28 years I finally bought my first telescope. It was on sale for $25 and it had some pretty good reviews. Does anyone have any advice on extra lenses to buy?

Does anyone have any experiences to share about astronomical events they have witnessed?
Any experiences with astrophotography?

 

[dmlopr]

You probably could find some good reading here;

http://www.cloudynights.com/ubbthreads/postlist.php/Cat/0/Board/beginners

If you can find an astronomy club in your area, most have gatherings on weekends that correspond with a new moon (darker skies make a difference). Looking through telescopes and binoculars with others with the ability to ask questions has a lot of value even for people that have been observing for years.

Be careful with your expectations. It is a rewarding hobby but not always from the start. While some events won't repeat in our lifetime, there is so much up there and will always be up there, don't be discouraged if you miss something.

My avatar is from when I was in my backyard imaging Mars back in 2005. Using one of my telescopes and a webcam, I took video, saved and compiled the best 500 or so frames and stacked them using software. So to get that, I have spent a lot of money (many thousands) and hundreds of hours of practice in the winter cold or bug biting summer and it is worth it to me. Oh, and a lot of luck and a patient wife help.

Light pollution is not your friend so try and stay away from it the best you can. Dark skies make a huge difference but if you don't have access to them start observing the moon.

 

[chiwii]

I have one of those scopes! $25 is a great price. I think I paid $30 when it was on clearance at a local store. I love that this scope is so convenient. If you have a table and chair outside, you can just set the scope on the table and sit in the chair.

I usually use a larger dob , so I don't have any advice on specific eyepieces for ths scope. But I can tell you that I'm not a fan of the 4mm that came with this scope.

Also, did you buy a finder scope? You'll probably want some type of finder, or you'll spend a lot of time just moving the scope around, wondering what you're looking at. I think that the easiest thing to start with is a red dot finder. After you set it up, you point the red dot at the object you want to see in the sky. That object should then be in the scope eyepiece.

I think Saturn, Jupiter, and the moon are always fun to look at. If you like the moon, you might want a moon filter. The moon is quite bright through a telescope!

 

[LordVila]

Thanks for the advice guys!

I live in the country on a farm so light pollution is very minimal for me. I have ordered a finder scope and some new eye pieces just waiting on them to arrive from eBay. They came from reputable sellers and they said the product was new. So far I have just been viewing the moon and trying to practice with the telescope while waiting on my finder scope to come in. I also picked up a book called Turn Left at Orion.