Help on getting a new telescope

[KaLu]

Hi,

I'm trying to improve my viewing experience so I was thinking about getting a new telescope sometime during autumn but I'm not really sure what to get. What I have now was a gift that got me into astronomy, AstroMaster 114 but it has very limited capabilities. I'm hoping to get something that would enable me to have a better glimpse of the deep sky objects, nebulas, galaxies etc.

Now, I am limited when it comes to budget (I have about 1000$ to spend) so something within that price range would be nice. For now the best candidate seems to be the Nexstar 6E, since I'm definitely looking for a computerized telescope. Does anyone have this model and would you recommend it? How much can I get out of it? Of course, if anyone has better suggestions, please post them.

I should mention that I recently acquired a big pack of eyepieces and filters, there are only a few more that I would like to get, so I'm in a good position when it comes to that.

Thanks

[drewzilla]

Hi Kalu,

im no expert but i think the Nexstar is a good choice. But i think thats more sutited to Planets and the moon as it has a high focal lenth. For DSO apperture is King. A big dob would do you right as long as you dont want to do any astrophotography. Anyways good luck in your choice!

[lw24]

8 inch GOTO Dob?

Fits your budget

[drewzilla]

I think it was 1000$ so about £600

[great_bear]

The Nexstar 6 will give you much better quality views of the objects that you're looking at already, but it's not going to show you significantly more objects than you can already see.

In my opinion - and I don't think this is particularly controversial - the best views really start to open up at 8" and larger. Of course you have to feel comfortable about owning a telescope which takes up a fair amount of space - and is somewhat less than trivial to transport - but 8" is where you start to see more intricate detail on the planets, and have a wider range of DSO that can be comfortably viewed.

If you're going to upgrade - you'll want it to be significant.

Naturally it should be remembered - as always - that nothing beats clear skies for DSO. You may want to hang on to the 114 as well for holidays where there's no room for a large scope.

[KaLu]

Thanks, everyone.

@great_bear I was just thinking about that when I saw your post. I've found that an 8" Nexstar is about 1200$ whereas a 6" one is 800$. As I agree with your opinion I guess I should save up a couple of hundred dollars more and buy the 8" one because DSO are really what I'm after.

Thanks for the Dob suggestion as well, will check it out. We actually have a few Dobs open to public here at a local amateur observatory.

[swamp thing]

Hi

IMO If DS observing is your thing then these are the chief considerations:

1/ The sky you observe from. this is THE most important factor in observing DSO. Can you improve where you observe from? A 6" from a dark sky will out perform a 12" from a city.

2/ Aperture this is THE most important factor in telescope choice. Get the largest aperture you can manage.

3/ The mount. must be steady, allow for easy pointing of the scope, be vibration free and dampen very quickly. Because nearly all DS observing is done at low to medium power a tracking mount is un-necessary.

If you cannot get to a dark sky then a Goto mount can be of great help but if you can then spend your money on optics.

Remember you cannot see anything through a mount.

Good luck with your choice

Regards Steve

[drewzilla]

Isnt the nextstar a SCT? Are these any good at DSO? Im a noob here but i think you would be better with a dob or a Newt.

[great_bear]

SCT's are fine on many DSOs, but you can miss out on seeing the wide, sprawling ones in context, as well as the ability to sweep through rich star-fields. Plus with maximum exit pupils of 2-3mm, you won't get much loose change coming out of a UHC filter

[drewzilla]

ahh nice points there. Cheers