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Suggestions please for a beginner book[s]

Saracen Bill

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Saracen Bill

Saracen Bill

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Yep i guess i'm in a similar position as many who started pretty well from scratch, initially (& still) caught in the understandable & amazing child like wonder, even compiling a dream wish list.

Yep, if your asking, a SkyWatcher Skyliner 250P FlexTube SynScan Dobsonian Telescope + associated collimation laser, right angle image finder, eyepieces etc, etc.  :laugh:


But reading the wise words here on the SWL I realised how little I know & how much there is to learn & its not about throwing money at a scope [even if i could afford it :sad: ] I feel as if i need to get a grip & read more so i at least know where to look in the evening sky, get acquainted with the brightest stars, of course the moon [a moon atlas?] . I would imagine a planisphere is a must too? Even without a scope, im thinking i could again, become acquainted with the evening/night sky & get use to using?


Please can i ask members of your vast knowledge & experience, your opinion of 'must haves' books, the criteria being i'm a beginner, who wishes to start with the moon & work my way out [not sure if that's a plan?] if that is wrong, please tell me  :smiley: . At present, just plan on observing, no photography. 

I'm on a very limited budget particularly this time of year, the grandchildren always come first, so only 2-3 books & a moon atlas & planisphere IF you think a moon atlas & planisphere that is the way to go. 


I've ear marked a few books that are on Amazon, please feel free to add others to list or 'shout out' if any inappropriate. I'm sure there are some absolutely stellar books [please excuse pun] but please bear in mind they may not be appropriate for an (elderly) beginner & only 2-3 books max!  :smiley:



Philip's Astronomy Starter Pack

by Ian Ridpath, Wil Tirion (Paperback)     £10.49 


Philip's Moon Map

by Dr John Murray (Paperback)                 £6.99 


Philip's Planisphere (Latitude 51.5 North): For use in Britain and Ireland, Northern Europe, Northern USA and Canada

by Philip's (Hardcover)   £6.99 


Astronomy Manual: The Practical Guide to the Night Sky

by Brian May, Jane A. Green, Patrick Moore (Hardcover)   £18.94 


The Backyard Astronomer's Guide

by Terence Dickinson, Alan Dyer (Hardcover)  £20.40 


Turn Left at Orion: Hundreds of Night Sky Objects to See in a Home Telescope - and How to Find Them

by Guy Consolmagno, Dan M. Davis (Spiral-bound)  £22.49 


Philip's Stargazing with a Telescope

by Robin Scagell (Paperback)               £8.99 


PHILIP'S MONTH-BY-MONTH STARGAZING 2016

by Heather Couper, Nigel Henbest (Paperback)              £2.39 


2016 Guide to the Night Sky: A month-by-month guide to exploring the skies above Britain and Ireland

by Storm Dunlop, Wil Tirion, Royal Observatory Greenwich (Paperback)            £5.24 


The Practical Astronomer (Dk Astronomy)

by Anton Vamplew, Will Gater (Hardcover)     £10.49 



BTW, since leaning towards the SkyWatcher Skyliner 250P FlexTube Dobsonian I've been reading the pitfalls of GoTo's, [again all praise to the SGL & its wonderful members] specifically that they ideally need a full vista of the sky & one still has to know where to point (unless you have GPS I guess) so with the "The dual-encoder design allows you to manually move" the scope? I hope that future proofs & allows for my learning curve. Just the little question we all face, now to save  :p


My sincere thanks again to one & all, you are the proverbial shining lights in a beginners otherwise darkness & confusion. Thank you, thank you. All the very best Bill


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Charic

Charic

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Download Stellarium for your pc. Its a freeware Planetarium. Use the wiki's to learn its setup, then set it for your location, and enjoy the views when the weather prevails . You can learn plenty using this program alone. Its FREE on a pc, but a small fee required on android app.

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Stub Mandrel

Stub Mandrel

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Philip's Planisphere (Latitude 51.5 North): For use in Britain and Ireland, Northern Europe, Northern USA and Canada
by Philip's (Hardcover)   £6.99

Just got one of these. Hardcover means  card folder and plastic wallet!

More detailed than my luminous one with more data, including planets by month and useful guidance.

You should be able to get Patrick Moore's Observers Guide to Astronomy for about £3 second hand. It will make you smile.

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Saracen Bill

Saracen Bill

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Thanks so much guys, really, really appreciated  :smiley:

Download Stellarium for your pc. Its a freeware Planetarium. Use the wiki's to learn its setup, then set it for your location, and enjoy the views when the weather prevails . You can learn plenty using this program alone. Its FREE on a pc, but a small fee required on android app.

Yep, I do have this one know Charic, I only knew of this app thanks to your good selves as i posts another thread on SGL asking about free software so only downloaded it yesterday, i liked it so much i did pay for the android v earlier today & enjoyed trying it out just an hour or so ago whilst waiting in the car for the wife to finish a keep fit class. It's a great app  :smiley:

Philip's Planisphere (Latitude 51.5 North): For use in Britain and Ireland, Northern Europe, Northern USA and Canada
by Philip's (Hardcover)   £6.99

Just got one of these. Hardcover means  card folder and plastic wallet!

More detailed than my luminous one with more data, including planets by month and useful guidance.

You should be able to get Patrick Moore's Observers Guide to Astronomy for about £3 second hand. It will make you smile.

Thanks Stub, I had no idea about the difference tween luminous & standard, a great heads up, awesome.  :smiley:

I'll keep an eye out for the Patrick Moore book, sounds good, I know he has a wicked sense of humour, i've a paperback, "The Twitmarsh Files" its written by Patrick More under the pseudonym 'RT Fishall', its a wry look at bureaucracy & how to confound the anonymous person in gov.

Thanks again Stub :smiley:  

My favorite one from the list you have is The Backyard Astronomer's Guide. Very well written and I find it very useful. I found the section on astrophotography helpful for starting out. 

Thanks Ken, i;ll keep that one on the list, many many thanks.  :smiley:

A great moon resource is The Virtual Moon Atlas, and it's free:- http://sourceforge.net/projects/virtualmoon/

When I started out "Turn Left @ Orion" was very useful.

Ah, thank you, i did see somewhere in my long perusing in the early hours this volume mentioned in a SGL post, so its good for a beginner , thanks Astro, much appreciated, brilliant. 

I'd suggest:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Light_%28Preston_book%29

it is absolutely no use at all for observing tips, but a great read about astronomers.

P

I'll put it on the list, a good read is always good & a volume i had not come cross, many thanks P, and thanks to all, most most grateful.

all the very best Bill

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BritAngler

BritAngler

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A notebook & pen. Also a good A5 sketch pad for (surprise, surprise) making sketches through your 'scope; something for making circles without leaving a gaping hole in the centre (I use the metal bit from the bottom of a Pringles tube), a range of pencils from B6-H6, set of blending stumps, pencil sharpener and eraser :)

Also, the Cambridge Star Atlas and Norton's Star Atlas, both very good books with (IMO) the best star-charts available in print.

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Saracen Bill

Saracen Bill

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A notebook & pen. Also a good A5 sketch pad for (surprise, surprise) making sketches through your 'scope; something for making circles without leaving a gaping hole in the centre (I use the metal bit from the bottom of a Pringles tube), a range of pencils from B6-H6, set of blending stumps, pencil sharpener and eraser :)

Also, the Cambridge Star Atlas and Norton's Star Atlas, both very good books with (IMO) the best star-charts available in print.

Wow, just looked it up on Amzon what a book, it looks to have some excellent maps of the moon also, now that's up there at the top, thanks BritAngler, a most excellent call, awesome  :cool:

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Saracen Bill

Saracen Bill

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For a star atlas, you can not beat the Sky and Telescope pocket atlas. Much more durable to use at the scope and maps are at a very useful scale

Another good one, afraid Amazon doesn't let you have a peek at this one, but by the description its a classic.

Thanks guys, there are so many books out there, you've really helped to focus things down, fantastic, thanks again.  :smiley:   :cool:

thanks guys

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kendg

kendg

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Another good one for beginners and/or advances stargazers alike...

Night watch by Terrance Dickinson

http://www.amazon.com/NightWatch-Practical-Guide-Viewing-Universe/dp/155407147X

Cheers

Mattiman

I quite forgot about that one. It came with my scope and I read it cover to cover a few times. A great companion to The Backyard Astronomer's Guide. And both authors are Canucks  :grin: and used to our cold winters.

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Saracen Bill

Saracen Bill

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I quite forgot about that one. It came with my scope and I read it cover to cover a few times. A great companion to The Backyard Astronomer's Guide. And both authors are Canucks  :grin: and used to our cold winters.

im a beginner to this exciting hobby in the last few months and i have got to say that that book is one that i always go to along with Stellarium to find my way round the night sky! :)

Thanks guys, i'll definitely look into those two, a big thank you to my Canuk cousins  :grin: .

all the very best Bill

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Saracen Bill

Saracen Bill

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I second this- The Backyard Astronomer's Guide

by Terence Dickinson, Alan Dyer (Hardcover)  £20.40 
 
It has proven immensely valuable for a wide spread of topics for the beginner. 

Thanks Tyson, awesome :cool: .

I've been reading the feedback on line & it shines & looks to be one to get.

many thanks again, im most grateful   :smiley:

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Saracen Bill

Saracen Bill

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Thank you guys for your kind help, patience & sharing your treasured knowledge.

I've just made a preliminary order of what was going to be just 2-3 books, well, that plan went belly up!  :rolleyes:  :grin:  :p

I've gone for:

 #  Patrick Moore's Data Book of Astronomy                                                                                                                   
 #  The Cambridge Star Atlas                                                                                     
 #  Turn Left at Orion                                                                                                
 #  2016 Guide to the Night Sky                                                                          

 #  Philips Month By Month Stargazing 2016 

 #  Philip's Astronomy Starter Pack  [Planisphere etc] 
 #  Philip's Moon Map [Paperback]  
 #  Sky & Telescope's Pocket Sky Atlas  
I've earmarked the other volumes kindly suggested so the 'heads up' for those were not wasted  :smiley:
Its the big wait now, then the the big read hopefully next week :grin: 
my utmost thanks & respect guys  :cool:
all the very best Bill
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Saracen Bill

Saracen Bill

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Some magic words, which in this modern world seem to have been be lost in the past....... " Visit Your Local Library "  :wink:

see what's available through the system, the price is right.

Some disparaging words I sorry to say, due to gov cuts local libraries shut whilst others have reduced opening hours, now with easy parking [i'm disabled]   :sad:

all the very best Bill

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