Astronomy Anyone?

[Lion]

Anyone into astronomy? Not astrology ar....

 

Need some advice and tips...

[ronaldinho]

Yes, what do you want to know?

[Lion]

Originally posted by ronaldinho@May 08, 2007 02:29 am

Yes, what do you want to know?

Are you into astronomy? Like what's the best kind of telescopes for beginners? Where do you actually locate the various stars and planets?

 

Someone new like me could be searching the whole sky with the telescope and not find anything....

 

Oh and what do you mean by 80mm telescopes etc etc?

[Lion]

Wah this is so sad...

 

Nobody into astronomy...

[ronaldinho]

Question: what's the best kind of telescopes for beginners

 

for beginners any kind of telescopes will do and since you do not know how to locate the various stars or planets its useless even if you buy a professional telescope. I would recommend you standard binoculars because these Binoculars will help you study the star Patterns in the sky and once you master the patterns, its easy to identify where are the planets. Experienced observers start of with the binoculars. standard binoculars comes with a lens of 50mm with a magnification of x7. You could then proceed to Giant binoculars where much more can be seen.

 

Question: Where do you actually locate the various stars and planets?

 

To start off with locating stars and planets you need to know your location and to be frank Singapore is not the place to observe stars because of the bright city lights but Singapore is perfect to observe and study the brightest stars and planets because since it could penetrate our bright skies. you need to study the star patterns or constellations first and some basic knowledge of the solar system and how the planets move when you are observing from Singapore. This can be studied in any astronomy books in the library. After that, it's easy to spot which is Jupiter and which is Venus just by looking at the Moon. Bukit timah hill is obviously the best place in singapore for star gazing. A mini map which is called THE PLANISPHERE will guide you through the different constellations

 

Question: what do you mean by 80mm telescopes etc etc?

 

Whoaa, theres a thousand one kinds of telescopes of different settings.. You can go back to the shop and ask more of their attributes and functions. If you want to go deep into star gazing, choosing the right telescopes may be needed but like i said, you need to study the constellations first before trying out more advanced tools

 

To add, not all you see are stars, they may just be planets, and also not all you see are planets, they may just be comets, stars, galaxy or even nebulas. Using the binoculars wont help you differentiate which are stars or planets, a standard, professional telescope or a CCG would help you do that.

 

i recommend you the book 'NEW ASTRONOMER' by CAROLE STOTT. the basics of star gazing and other loads of information can be found there.. but should u have any more questions i'll try to answer them to the best of my knowledge

 

*if you already have a telescope now, use it to study the Moon.. i tell you it looks beautiful up close and personal

[ronaldinho]

Question: what's the best kind of telescopes for beginners

 

for beginners any kind of telescopes will do and since you do not know how to locate the various stars or planets its useless even if you buy a professional telescope. I would recommend you standard binoculars because these Binoculars will help you study the star Patterns in the sky and once you master the patterns, its easy to identify where are the planets. Experienced observers start of with the binoculars. standard binoculars comes with a lens of 50mm with a magnification of x7. You could then proceed to Giant binoculars where much more can be seen.

 

Question: Where do you actually locate the various stars and planets?

 

To start off with locating stars and planets you need to know your location and to be frank Singapore is not the place to observe stars because of the bright city lights but Singapore is perfect to observe and study the brightest stars and planets because since it could penetrate our bright skies. you need to study the star patterns or constellations first and some basic knowledge of the solar system and how the planets move when you are observing from Singapore. This can be studied in any astronomy books in the library. After that, it's easy to spot which is Jupiter and which is Venus just by looking at the Moon. Bukit timah hill is obviously the best place in singapore for star gazing. A mini map which is called THE PLANISPHERE will guide you through the different constellations

 

Question: what do you mean by 80mm telescopes etc etc?

 

Whoaa, theres a thousand one kinds of telescopes of different settings.. You can go back to the shop and ask more of their attributes and functions. If you want to go deep into star gazing, choosing the right telescopes may be needed but like i said, you need to study the constellations first before trying out more advanced tools

 

To add, not all you see are stars, they may just be planets, and also not all you see are planets, they may just be comets, stars, galaxy or even nebulas. Using the binoculars wont help you differentiate which are stars or planets, a standard, professional telescope or a CCG would help you do that.

 

i recommend you the book 'NEW ASTRONOMER' by CAROLE STOTT. the basics of star gazing and other loads of information can be found there.. but should u have any more questions i'll try to answer them to the best of my knowledge

 

*if you already have a telescope now, use it to study the Moon.. i tell you it looks beautiful up close and personal

[Lion]

That was info... Thanks alot of the time bro.

 

anyway, I plan to start off with an inexpensive telescope which cost less than $200SGD. Is that an good idea? Honestly I find that since I am gonna keep the equipment for a long time to come, I might as well start off with a telescope.

 

I was told that you could see the craters on the moon with the basic telescope... Wondering if its true...

[qebalt]

interest in astronomy just an excuse to take a glance through your telescope to see your neighbour's daugther. lol. just kidding.

 

anyway, it is a healthy hobby. it depends how powerful is your telescope, and also, it depends on the weather.

[ronaldinho]

well its definitely up to you on how much you want to invest on the tools..

 

and yep the power of a telescope determines how much can be seen clearly but the features on the moon; craters etc can easily be viewed from any standard telescope, just remember to fix the scope properly on the tripod (some tripods are not suitable for some outdoor areas) or mounting stand because its quite a task to focus and direct the lens to the moon

 

if you want to observe the moon, a 75mm refractor telescope is recommended

 

a 150mm reflector telescope is recommended for studying the solar system and deep-sky objects

 

a 200mm catadioptric telescope is an all-rounder and very portable

 

when you bought your telescope, does it come with several eyepieces? Ask the shop for Barlow Lenses because they can greatly magnify the image and you can see more

[Lion]

I haven bought it yet thats why Im asking around for more info on getting around to it.

 

Would you be able to tell me btw this telescope

 

http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-WHITE-6-ASTRONOMY-...1QQcmdZViewItem

 

and this

 

http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-6-NEWTONIAN-REFLEC...1QQcmdZViewItem

 

Which would be a better choice in terms of value for money?

[ronaldinho]

i can view the telescope in the 1st link but the 2nd link says ITEM HAS ENDED

[ronaldinho]

i'll go with the first link telescope, to be honest i wont be able to tell which is the better one..

As long as we're not in Australia or anywhere far, far away from the city, any will do as long as it serves its purpose

[ronaldinho]

ehh? how come i click add reply still cant be seen, haiya now must type all over again..

 

Back again to the question, i'd go for the first link telescope..unless we're in Australia or somewhere far, far away from the city.. any of the two telescope will do.. upz to you

[Lion]

I see. Thanks so much for the time and info!