People in west kent tonbridge sevenoaks area

[Shroomy]

Is there anybody in this area who knows about telescopes etc and regulary goes out star gazing that wouldnt mind offering a newbie like me some advice on telescopes

thank you

[knobby]

If you get no other replies ... You could pop into f1 telescopes in sittingbourne for a chat , they're pretty helpful

[Dreamweaver]

Hello Shroomy,

I’m new to stargazing myself, and observe quite a lot from Kent.

I live in SE London so if I want quality dark sky viewing then I have to grab and go with my little scope when the mood/weather allows and go out of London. One of my favourite spots is the Isle of Grain as it's not too far. If I want a quick session, as it’s only half hour drive I go there but if I want a longer, darker sky observing session, then I go near to Staplehurst (between Tunbridge Wells, Maidstone and Ashford) as it’s a bit darker there.

I have a Skywatcher 90mm Maksutov on an EQ1 mount which has/is serving me well as my first scope for under £200. It’s fine and has given me a fantastic introduction to astronomy. I have seen excellent views of Mars, Saturn, Jupiter, Venus and of course the moon. However my interest is now turning towards Deep Sky Objects (DSO)s and open star clusters. I have located quite a few of the Messier objects and want to see them now in better detail. Binoculars are an excellent way to see the night sky, it’s surprising what you can actually see!

My 90mm Mak however cannot resolve stars in globular clusters. My favourite cluster is M13 in Hercules which is one of the brighter globular clusters. I am at the stage where I’m wondering what telescope to buy next that would suit my needs.

A bigger/better scope would mean more detail in DSOs and planets of course. It appears that there is not one telescope that does everything without getting expensive.

I have asked some very knowledgeable and helpful people on this site about the merits of the Skywatcher Startravel 120 or 150 compared to a Skywatcher 8” Dobsonian scope or even a 150mm Mak. - It would appear that the Dobsonian is favoured as you get much larger aperture for your money but there are other factors with the Dobs such as size, ease of transportation, culmination issues etc etc which put me off a bit. The best thing is to try and look through as many telescopes as you can before you buy anything. But you have to start somewhere!

I’m often visiting friends out of London and it’s so easy just to pop my 90mm scope in the boot with the EQ1 mount plus my adjustable observers chair which, I must say, is the next best thing to the telescope itself, and off I go.

It’s a fantastic hobby.