Looking for Advice on how improve my telescope please

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porkchopsnapplesauce

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<span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial">Hi All,</span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial">&nbsp;</span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial">I am a beginner and was hoping for some advice on how to improve the power of my telescope.<span>&nbsp; </span>I received my first telescope which is a Celestron Firstscope 114 EQ 4.5&rdquo; Newtonian telescope over Christmas.<span>&nbsp; </span>I currently live in Chicago, so it makes it pretty difficult to see much from my deck.<span>&nbsp; </span>However, last night I was able to get a great view of Jupiter.<span>&nbsp; </span>I was able to see 2 of the dark lines on the planet, but the view was much smaller then I would like.<span>&nbsp; </span>Can someone please recommend some accessories that would increase the power/ability of my telescope?<span>&nbsp; </span>I am mainly looking to get great views of the planets.<span>&nbsp; </span>I currently have two eye pieces that came with the telescope that say 10k and 20k on them.</span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial">&nbsp;</span><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial">Thanks in advance</span>
 
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duluthstargazer

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<p>It sounds like you're in the&nbsp;market for a new eyepiece.&nbsp; I'd recommend a 4mm Plossl.&nbsp; Plossls are&nbsp;generally the&nbsp;best eyepieces you can get without spending too much money.&nbsp; And the 4mm size would push your magnification to 225x, which is pretty much the maximum useful magnification for a 4.5" telescope.&nbsp;&nbsp;But I should mention a&nbsp;couple notes on high&nbsp;magnification.&nbsp; Seeing will be a problem, so you might have to try a few different nights to get a clear view at 225x.&nbsp; Also, for a lot of deep space objects you won't want that much magnification anyway.&nbsp; Although for the moon and planets I generally push the magnification as high as conditions allow.&nbsp; I hope that helps.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><br /><br />&nbsp;</p>
 
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MeteorWayne

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<p><BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>It sounds like you're in the&nbsp;market for a new eyepiece.&nbsp; I'd recommend a 4mm Plossl.&nbsp; Plossls are&nbsp;generally the&nbsp;best eyepieces you can get without spending too much money.&nbsp; And the 4mm size would push your magnification to 225x, which is pretty much the maximum useful magnification for a 4.5" telescope.&nbsp;&nbsp;But I should mention a&nbsp;couple notes on high&nbsp;magnification.&nbsp; Seeing will be a problem, so you might have to try a few different nights to get a clear view at 225x.&nbsp; Also, for a lot of deep space objects you won't want that much magnification anyway.&nbsp; Although for the moon and planets I generally push the magnification as high as conditions allow.&nbsp; I hope that helps.&nbsp;&nbsp; <br />Posted by duluthstargazer</DIV><br /><br />I'm no scope expert, but a 4mm eyepiece is going to be a bit much for a 4.5 inch scope from what I know.</p><p>Might be better off going for a 6 or 7mm eyepiece. But wait for some scope experts to chime in. I'm a meteor guy, so only use my scope for entertainment purposes....</p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><font color="#000080"><em><font color="#000000">But the Krell forgot one thing John. Monsters. Monsters from the Id.</font></em> </font></p><p><font color="#000080">I really, really, really, really miss the "first unread post" function</font><font color="#000080"> </font></p> </div>
 
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TahaSiddiqui

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Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>I'm no scope expert, but a 4mm eyepiece is going to be a bit much for a 4.5 inch scope from what I know.Might be better off going for a 6 or 7mm eyepiece. But wait for some scope experts to chime in. I'm a meteor guy, so only use my scope for entertainment purposes.... <br />Posted by MeteorWayne</DIV><br /><br />Yeah I agree with M.W also, a 4mm is too much for a 4.5". It also depends on the&nbsp;focal length, btw what is your telescope focal length?&nbsp;I also have a 4.5 and when i push my magnification towards 200X I have some blurry views&nbsp;(on a bad night). A 6 or 7mm eyepiece would be perfect in my opinion as well.
 
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tfwthom

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<p>Don't invest in a new eyepiece. This is your first scope, take the time to just learn the sky with it. Save your money and in a couple of years you will be buying a better scope. With something like an 8" or 10" dob the investment in eyepieces becomes worth it, not with a 4.5".</p><p>I used to live in Chicagoland, for all you are going to see that scope is good enough just the way it is.</p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <font size="1" color="#3366ff">www.siriuslookers.org</font> </div>
 
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crazyeddie

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<p><BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>Hi All,&nbsp;I am a beginner and was hoping for some advice on how to improve the power of my telescope.&nbsp; I received my first telescope which is a Celestron Firstscope 114 EQ 4.5&rdquo; Newtonian telescope .......Can someone please recommend some accessories that would increase the power/ability of my telescope?&nbsp; I am mainly looking to get great views of the planets.&nbsp; I currently have two eye pieces that came with the telescope that say 10k and 20k on them.&nbsp;Thanks in advance <br /> Posted by porkchopsnapplesauce</DIV></p><p>Is it the "ST" or "Short-tube" version of the Firstscope 114? &nbsp;If so, there's not much you can do to improve the view. &nbsp;The "short-tube" versions of these cheap scopes are notorious for poor-quality optics.</p><p>If it's the convention kind, with a long tube, there's some hope, but bear in mind that this instrument has an aperture of only 4.5". &nbsp;A telescope's ability to resolve detail is limited by it's aperture, and no accessory will give big-telescope views in a small instrument. &nbsp;If you want <span style="font-weight:bold" class="Apple-style-span">"great"</span> views of the planets, you probably need to move up to a reflector of at least 6" aperture, or a refractor of at least 4" aperture. &nbsp;Make sure the scope is well-collimated, then consider buying an eyepiece that will give you a magnification of around 150x. &nbsp;That's about the highest useful magnification you can expect from a scope this size. &nbsp;To calculate what magnification you will get with any given eyepiece, you need to know the focal length of the mirror in millimeters. &nbsp;If your scope has a focal length of 1000mm, for example, then a 20mm eyepiece will give you 50x magnifications (1000mm divided by 20mm = 50x. &nbsp;A 10mm eyepice will give you twice that: 100x. &nbsp;So your highest-power eyepiece should probably be a 6 or 7mm. &nbsp;A 7mm will give you 142x, and a 6mm will give you 166x, which might be a bit high.</p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>
 
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Joveno

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<p><BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>Hi All,&nbsp;I am a beginner and was hoping for some advice on how to improve the power of my telescope.&nbsp; I received my first telescope which is a Celestron Firstscope 114 EQ 4.5&rdquo; Newtonian telescope over Christmas.&nbsp; I currently live in Chicago, so it makes it pretty difficult to see much from my deck.&nbsp; However, last night I was able to get a great view of Jupiter.&nbsp; I was able to see 2 of the dark lines on the planet, but the view was much smaller then I would like.&nbsp; Can someone please recommend some accessories that would increase the power/ability of my telescope?&nbsp; I am mainly looking to get great views of the planets.&nbsp; I currently have two eye pieces that came with the telescope that say 10k and 20k on them.&nbsp;Thanks in advance <br />Posted by porkchopsnapplesauce</DIV></p><p>&nbsp;Newtonian telescopes are not especially good for planetary viewing in the shorter focal lengths.&nbsp; Collimation becomes increasing critical as the focal length gets shorter.&nbsp; Short focus newtonians are best for extended nebular type objects, which is what they were designed for in the first place.</p><p>&nbsp;I have a three inch refractor with a barlow lens which allowed me to detect the moon Io and correctly determine it's diameter by timing how long it took to clear the limb of Jupiter.&nbsp; I could have done the same thing with my long focus eight inch Newtonian of course, which can support higher image resolution (higher magnification), but it wouldn't have improved the accuracy of the timing by very much.</p><p>Refractors usually out perform reflectors for planetary work because, even with smaller apertures, it's possible to detect details, assuming one is patient enough to wait for the seeing to clear.&nbsp; Planetary objects are usually bright enough that the lower light gathering power of smaller apertures is not a problem.</p><p>That said, I'd recommend you get a 2X Barlow, which will increase the effective focal length of your instrument and allow you to use your existing oculars at higher magnifications.&nbsp; Also, attend to the collimation of your instrument, insure it has stabilized to the ambient temperature and be patient in your observing.&nbsp; You should notice the seeing clearing now and then and it is at such times you see the best views.<br /></p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>
 
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duluthstargazer

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<p><BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>Yeah I agree with M.W also, a 4mm is too much for a 4.5". It also depends on the&nbsp;focal length, btw what is your telescope focal length?&nbsp;I also have a 4.5 and when i push my magnification towards 200X I have some blurry views&nbsp;(on a bad night). A 6 or 7mm eyepiece would be perfect in my opinion as well. <br />Posted by TahaSiddiqui</DIV></p><p>The focal length of his telescope is 900mm.&nbsp; (Some of us look these things up before posting.)&nbsp; So a 4mm eyepiece will give a magnification of 225x.&nbsp; The rule of thumb for maximum useful magnification is double the telescope's aperture in millimeters.&nbsp; For a 4.5" scope, that also comes out to right about 225x.&nbsp; And you're right, that much magnification will give a blurry view on a bad night (most nights actually - which is why I warned him about seeing.)&nbsp; But the views you get on a good night will be worth it.&nbsp; The 4mm eyepiece I use on my 6" scope gives 300x magnification.&nbsp; And about 80% of the time, the seeing isn't good enough to use it.&nbsp; But the other 20% of the time, I'm really glad I've got it.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;</p>
 
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TahaSiddiqui

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<p><BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>The focal length of his telescope is 900mm.&nbsp; (Some of us look these things up before posting.)&nbsp; So a 4mm eyepiece will give a magnification of 225x.&nbsp; The rule of thumb for maximum useful magnification is double the telescope's aperture in millimeters.&nbsp; For a 4.5" scope, that also comes out to right about 225x.&nbsp; And you're right, that much magnification will give a blurry view on a bad night (most nights actually - which is why I warned him about seeing.)&nbsp; But the views you get on a good night will be worth it.&nbsp; The 4mm eyepiece I use on my 6" scope gives 300x magnification.&nbsp; And about 80% of the time, the seeing isn't good enough to use it.&nbsp; But the other 20% of the time, I'm really glad I've got it.&nbsp;&nbsp; <br />Posted by duluthstargazer</DIV></p><p>&nbsp;Oh wow sorry about that, I somehow skipped through the Celestron "Firstscope" and just&nbsp;thought he said Celestron 114EQ.</p>
 
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weeman

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Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>Hi All,&nbsp;I am a beginner and was hoping for some advice on how to improve the power of my telescope.&nbsp; I received my first telescope which is a Celestron Firstscope 114 EQ 4.5&rdquo; Newtonian telescope over Christmas.&nbsp; I currently live in Chicago, so it makes it pretty difficult to see much from my deck.&nbsp; However, last night I was able to get a great view of Jupiter.&nbsp; I was able to see 2 of the dark lines on the planet, but the view was much smaller then I would like.&nbsp; Can someone please recommend some accessories that would increase the power/ability of my telescope?&nbsp; I am mainly looking to get great views of the planets.&nbsp; I currently have two eye pieces that came with the telescope that say 10k and 20k on them.&nbsp;Thanks in advance <br />Posted by porkchopsnapplesauce</DIV><br /><br />I have a 4.5" refracting Orion telescope, and my favorite add-on is a 2x Barlow lense. That's my recommendation <img src="http://sitelife.space.com/ver1.0/content/scripts/tinymce/plugins/emotions/images/smiley-laughing.gif" border="0" alt="Laughing" title="Laughing" /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p> </p><p><strong><font color="#ff0000">Techies: We do it in the dark. </font></strong></p><p><font color="#0000ff"><strong>"Put your hand on a stove for a minute and it seems like an hour. Sit with that special girl for an hour and it seems like a minute. That's relativity.</strong><strong>" -Albert Einstein </strong></font></p> </div>
 
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porkchopsnapplesauce

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<p>&nbsp;</p><p>Thanks for all of the information so far.&nbsp; I understand my telescope might not be ideal, but it was a gift and I am hoping it helps me learn more about searching the skys before I upgrade in a couple of years.</p><p>After reading some of these posts and looking into this more, I was thinking of purchasing a 4mm Plossl and a 2 x Barlow lens.&nbsp; I was hoping that the Barlow might give me some more functionality with the 10mm that I already have.&nbsp; It seems like I can get both on Ebay for a resonable price.&nbsp; </p><p>Would any specific filters help enhance my viewing at all?</p><p>&nbsp;Thanks again<br /></p>
 
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Joveno

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<p><BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>&nbsp;Thanks for all of the information so far.&nbsp; I understand my telescope might not be ideal, but it was a gift and I am hoping it helps me learn more about searching the skys before I upgrade in a couple of years.After reading some of these posts and looking into this more, I was thinking of purchasing a 4mm Plossl and a 2 x Barlow lens.&nbsp; I was hoping that the Barlow might give me some more functionality with the 10mm that I already have.&nbsp; It seems like I can get both on Ebay for a resonable price.&nbsp; Would any specific filters help enhance my viewing at all?&nbsp;Thanks again <br />Posted by porkchopsnapplesauce</DIV></p><p>&nbsp;Your 10mm with the 2X Barlow will give a magnification comparable to a 5mm eyepiece, which might beg why you'd need a 4mm then.&nbsp; I doubt there are any filters that would prove very useful for planetary work.&nbsp; Again, patience in observation to detect details when the seeing improves now and then will reveal more than a filter.<br /></p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>
 
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crazyeddie

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<p><BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>&nbsp;Thanks for all of the information so far.&nbsp; I understand my telescope might not be ideal, but it was a gift and I am hoping it helps me learn more about searching the skys before I upgrade in a couple of years.After reading some of these posts and looking into this more, I was thinking of purchasing a 4mm Plossl and a 2 x Barlow lens.&nbsp; I was hoping that the Barlow might give me some more functionality with the 10mm that I already have.&nbsp; It seems like I can get both on Ebay for a resonable price.&nbsp; Would any specific filters help enhance my viewing at all?&nbsp;Thanks again <br /> Posted by porkchopsnapplesauce</DIV></p><p>Buy a good-quality 2x barlow, not a cheap one. &nbsp;I recommend the Orion Short-Plus 2x barlow, available here:</p><p>http://www.telescope.com/control/product/~category_id=barlows/~pcategory=accessories/~product_id=05121</p><p>The only filter I'd recommend in such a small telescope is the Baader Planetarium Moon and Skyglow filter:</p><p>http://www.buytelescopes.com/product.asp?m=&pid=6076&display=gallery&currentimage=10689&gallerypage=1</p><p>&nbsp;</p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>
 
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