New Telescope

[forspace2006]

Just found this neat new telescope. So small yet great magnification. Looks like a Cassegrain to me with a unique design. Any thoughts?<br /><br />http://www.powerofthedream.com/tt/

 

[harmonicaman]

I would recommend caution. I couldn't find any information on this optical system and it may not have enough essential "Light Gathering" capabilities to be a useful astronomical tool. <br /><br />Telescopes that stress high magnification tend to have weaknesses in their other optical abilities; I would like to know more about the optical system, specifically it's useable aperture area, before paying a grand for this unit...<br /><br />It might be a great telescope, but there really isn't information to know for sure!

 

[tasco578]

I just both my first telescope. Is there any way to upgrade parts in the future or do I have to buy a brand new one?

 

[doubletruncation]

Depends on what telescope you have and what parts you want to upgrade. Things like the eyepieces, finder scope, filters can easily be changed, for some telescopes the mount can also be changed pretty easily. But if you want to increase the aperture of your telescope - well then you're pretty much just buying a new bigger telescope. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[tasco578]

If I decided to upgrade, what is the best telescope for stargazing? Should I stick with refractors?

 

[heyscottie]

You really need to be more specific. I'll assume from your user name that you currently have a Tasco, which is (no offense) a cheap, "toy" scope.<br /><br />What is it you want to see? How much do you want to spend? Where do you live? A big city? The middle of nowhere? These all factor in.<br /><br />A good beginner scope I often recommend is either a Celestron Firstscope 114 or an Orion XT6. Both of these are reflector scopes. The Celestron has a 4.5" aperture and is mounted on an equitorial mount. The Orion has a 6" aperture and is mounted on a Dobsonian mount. Both cost somewhere in the neighborhood of $200 - $250 or so. Either will let you see all the Messier objects, which includes star clusters, globular clusters, planetary nebulae, etc. Either will show you moons and atomspheric bands of Jupiter, rings of Saturn, phases of Venus, polar caps of Mars, and craters and mountains on the Moon.<br /><br />But give us some more information here!

 

[tasco578]

Thanks eddie. I think I'm hook on this hobby even though I just got my telescope last two weeks ago and haven't had the chance to use it yet due to weather condition. There is so much stuff to see in the sky. Thanks for your suggestions.

 

[tasco578]

Thanks for all of your suggestions. As you know, it's my first telescope and haven't had the chance to use it yet (virgin)lol. But it seems like I'm hooked already. Thanks for taking time to respond to my annoying questions. <br />Thanks again.

 

[gebotodd]

hello to everyone iam new to astronomy.i just wanted to know what i could see with my new telescope?i bought it about 2 weeks ago and havent been able to get out and use it to much do to weather.but anyway i bought a "Celestron AstroMaster 114 EQ Reflector"with the Aperture:114mm and the Focal Length:1000 and the Focal Ratio:f/9 with the Highest Useful of 200x.will i be able to see mars,saturan and messier objects with this?i have been doing alot of research on telescopes and i realy realy wanted to buy a" Zhumell 12-Inch Dobsonian Reflector Telescope".but the scope i bought was on sale and i figured i better start small to make sure i will realy stick with astronomy.cause this started out with a free 70mm tasco telescope for free threw work.you know that magazine they give you at work you can choose a gift for being with your company for so many years.lol.but anyway just wanted to see what everyone thought about my scope?any comments will be great.thanks everyone and happy star hoppin<br /><br />

 

[vandivx]

LOL nice to see those gifts come to some good end <img src="/images/icons/smile.gif" /><br /><br />there is a telescope advising sticky thread at the top of forum here, I read it when I was figuring getting something myself and its good reading, starting small is what pros advise here, they also say its a law you get bad weather when your scope arives in mail and they seem to be right <img src="/images/icons/laugh.gif" /><br /><br />vanDivX <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[adrenalynn]

Welcome to SDC!<br /><br />How dark are your skies? Are you in the country, suburbs, city lights?<br /><br />The amount you're likely to see is dependant upon a lot of factors. Light pollution, seeing conditions, quality of the instrument (infinitely better than that Tasco <img src="/images/icons/wink.gif" />), size of the instrument, etc.<br /><br />That 'scope isn't all that bad for a first telescope. You're going to have some fun with it! <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p>.</p><p><font size="3">bipartisan</font>  (<span style="color:blue" class="pointer"><span class="pron"><font face="Lucida Sans Unicode" size="2">bī-pär'tĭ-zən, -sən</font></span></span>) [Adj.]  Maintaining the ability to blame republications when your stimulus plan proves to be a devastating failure.</p><p><strong><font color="#ff0000"><font color="#ff0000">IMPE</font><font color="#c0c0c0">ACH</font> <font color="#0000ff"><font color="#c0c0c0">O</font>BAMA</font>!</font></strong></p> </div>

 

[deapfreeze]

I think you should have no problem seeing things like Mars, Venus and the Messier objects as I have a small Tasco and I have seen Mars, Venus, Jupiter, the Moon looks great. I think you should have alot to see with this scope... <img src="/images/icons/smile.gif" /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><font size="2" color="#0000ff"><em>William ( deapfreeze ) Hooper</em></font></p><p><font size="1">http://deapfreeze-amateur-astronomy.tk/</font></p><p> </p> </div>

 

[garfieldthecat]

Welcome!<br /><br />A Celestron 114 is a good scope to start with. Celestron are good optic, and you can see a lot of interesting things with a 114. What you will see will greatly depend on the quality of your night sky, though.<br />For planetary, no problem, you'll have access to all sorts of interesting things:<br />_You'll be abble to see mars as a tiny red disc, and on good nights you could be abble to see some of the biggest surface formations (in the form of darker areas).<br />_You'll have access to Saturn rings and the Cassini division, which is always quite spectacular (probably one of the most beautiful things you'll see, in a small or in a big telescope). You will also be abble to see one or two satellites, like Titan.<br />_ the most spectacular planet, to my mind, is Jupiter. First because it has the biggest apparent diameter in a scope, but also because it offers a great number of details even in a 114: cloud layers, great red spot, but also 4 satellites that change position from a day to another. You can also observe their transit in front of the planet and see their shadow reflected on the planet's clouds (quite a nice experience).<br />_you'll also have access to Venus phases, but no much other details;<br />_and of course, you'll have access to thousands of craters and formations on the moon (if you're interested in that you can get a moon atlas which will be very helpfull to find them).<br /><br />for deep sky, it depends as I said on thequality of your sky. If you can access naked eye to 5 magnitude stars, then it starts to be really interesting:<br />_first, there are a lot of double stars which are accessible even under poor skies, and which provide nice shows. Albireo, notably, is one of the most spectacular, because the two components show very strong and differenciated colors even in small telescopes.<br />_messier objects are all accessible to a 114. But not a lot of them will provide you great details. The most spectaculars in a small telescope are,

 

[billslugg]

I can't see anything with mine, in spite of buying bigger and bigger ones. I'm up to a 36" Dob now, and when I look down into the tube all I see is a giant eyeball. Am I doing something wrong? <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p> </p><p> </p> </div>

 

[garfieldthecat]

<img src="/images/icons/shocked.gif" /> <img src="/images/icons/laugh.gif" />

 

[MeteorWayne]

You're looking with the wrong end.<br /><br />You're supposed to sit on the tube <img src="/images/icons/shocked.gif" /> <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>

 

[adrenalynn]

<font color="yellow">You're supposed to sit on the tube </font><br /><br />Youch. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p>.</p><p><font size="3">bipartisan</font>  (<span style="color:blue" class="pointer"><span class="pron"><font face="Lucida Sans Unicode" size="2">bī-pär'tĭ-zən, -sən</font></span></span>) [Adj.]  Maintaining the ability to blame republications when your stimulus plan proves to be a devastating failure.</p><p><strong><font color="#ff0000"><font color="#ff0000">IMPE</font><font color="#c0c0c0">ACH</font> <font color="#0000ff"><font color="#c0c0c0">O</font>BAMA</font>!</font></strong></p> </div>

 

[gebotodd]

wow wasnt realy expecting people to respond so quick.ok i live in the northeast of pa about a hour in a half from allentown.and my back yard is pretty dark.and even better i can jump in the car and in about 5 min be up the mountain in the country no lights.what eyepieace would you recomend for veiwing plants?and what eyepieces would you use to exsplore messier objects?i have the following--20mm erecting eyepiece,25mm,10mm,12,5mm and a 4mm eyepiece.and i also have a 3.3x barlow lens and a 2x barlow lens and one moon filter.i want to buy that lens and filter case from telescopes.com it has a assorted lens and filters.and one other thing should i waste my money on buying a UHC/LPR Filter to reduce light polltion?thank you so muchfor your info.

 

[gebotodd]

besides the street light on my street only one and its up about 4 houses its realy not to bad here.and since the weather has been cloudy i been reading and getting books from the library on astronomy to learn more on stars and the constellations.and my father in law gave me a pair of 7x35 binoculars.so i have been realy busy studying everything before i go out with my telescope.now if i can only learn to use my eq2 mount lol.i kinda understand it.cause i wanna track objects with the dec & r.a..is it true i can use those with the messier catalog?like if i set it at ra 00 40.4 and dec at +41 41 and that would be name m110.does that realy work?like where do you point the scope when put those in??and my eq2 mount only has sigle numbers no 00 40.4.you know what i mean?how do i set it to be around the object i want to see???? any help would be great.and thanks for the welcome to the board.this is gonna be fun

 

[gebotodd]

two other ?????? i would like to ask out there.first can i up grade the stuff on my scope like say the focuser.like buy a better one or wont it fit right same as my finderscope when its turned on all i see is red lol.can i buy a new one to replace or am i gonna run into trouble with it fitting.and for my 2nd ?? i wanted to buy a motor for my eq2 mount.do they make them for the eq2?there isnt much on the eq2 mount on the internet highway.so if anyone out there has any good upgrades that i should do please feel free to let me know.like i heard if i buy good eyepieces it will look better in my scope.true false???but i would like to buy a new focuser mine is very tricky you move it a pub hair and you loose your site or it bounces around.so if there is someone out there that knows scopes take a look at my 114eq astromaster and tell me what i can do thanks to all..happy star gazing.

 

[adrenalynn]

You're going to point your mount to true north. And set your scope up, typically by aligning on Polaris. Do a search on +equatorial-mount +polar-alignment <br /><br />and then do a search on +equatorial-mount +drift-alignment<br /><br />from google.<br /><br />Once you have it aligned, yes - you can use your setting circles to get in the rough range. You'll still need to use your finder and "star-hop" to zero in on what you're looking for. It's more of an approximation to get you into the right neighborhood.<br /><br />For Messiers, you generally want to use your lowest power eyepiece, or close to it. Lowest power is the biggest number. Your 25mm is a great place to start. Deep Space objects tend to be somewhat large in the view - with some exceptions. (Like M57, for example).<br /><br />Start by checking-out the open cluster Pleiades (M45). It's beautifully bright, being naked eye, tends to have a good aspect most of the winter from where you are, and should get you started for using the RA/DEC setting circles since you can naked-eye it under nearly any sky.<br /><br />M39 is another fun bright open cluster to get you used to working with your scope. Here's one of my photographs: http://jlrdesigns.com/messier/albums/userpics/M39-1.jpg<br /><br />For an advanced challenge, see if you can find Comet Holmes. It's fading, but under a good sky with that scope, it should be impressive. Your 25mm is perfect for it as well.<br /><br />For a much more advanced challenge, try Comet 8/P Tuttle.<br /><br />I doubt your focuser is bouncing around much. I'd tend to blame your mount and tripod's vibration. What have you tried to confirm that it's your focuser?<br /><br />I would be somewhat cautious upgrading your scope much. Those first scopes are wonderful first scopes. But the money that goes into upgrading isn't all that well spent, other than good eyepieces. I would start saving for your next <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p>.</p><p><font size="3">bipartisan</font>  (<span style="color:blue" class="pointer"><span class="pron"><font face="Lucida Sans Unicode" size="2">bī-pär'tĭ-zən, -sən</font></span></span>) [Adj.]  Maintaining the ability to blame republications when your stimulus plan proves to be a devastating failure.</p><p><strong><font color="#ff0000"><font color="#ff0000">IMPE</font><font color="#c0c0c0">ACH</font> <font color="#0000ff"><font color="#c0c0c0">O</font>BAMA</font>!</font></strong></p> </div>

 

[gebotodd]

ok great.thank you for the info.awsome pic you took.ans about the focuser i thought it was that cause the tripod my scope came with is pretty heavy duty.i was shocked how well built it was compared to my tasco telescope.but i will start getting more eyepieces and filters.your right about the upgrades better off saving for my 12inch dob.i wanted to make one but i added everything up to make it and i was saving about a 100 bucks compared to buying one.so i think i will just buy one.thank you so much on all the info.we should have a place on here where everyone tells what kind of scope they have and how good it is along with pictures.i think that would be great for people out there wanting to buy a telescope.they can get a first hand look at someone eleses and here what they have to say about there scope.that would be great.

 

[adrenalynn]

Start the thread - and I'll certainly participate.<br /><br />Briefly, Celestron Nexstar 5 on a wedge, Nexstar 9.25 on an Atlas GEM, Orion (original) 12" Dob, 12" RC on a pier.<br /><br />Currently shopping for a 16-20" RC.<br /><br />If you're thinking of getting a good scope later - look into good eyepieces. They make a tremendous difference.<br /><br />I'm not all that fond of Zhumell. I've never had any luck with them. I'm a lot more attracted to Orion's scopes. But that's just my experience. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p>.</p><p><font size="3">bipartisan</font>  (<span style="color:blue" class="pointer"><span class="pron"><font face="Lucida Sans Unicode" size="2">bī-pär'tĭ-zən, -sən</font></span></span>) [Adj.]  Maintaining the ability to blame republications when your stimulus plan proves to be a devastating failure.</p><p><strong><font color="#ff0000"><font color="#ff0000">IMPE</font><font color="#c0c0c0">ACH</font> <font color="#0000ff"><font color="#c0c0c0">O</font>BAMA</font>!</font></strong></p> </div>