what to look for with 8x40 binoculars and 10x50.

[lennoxlude]

hello. i got 8x40 binoculars at the moment, and will be getting the 10x50 soon.

so far with the 8x40 i have seen orion and nebula, which is just like a little cloud in the middle. very nice. mars is just like a bright star. i saw pleadius, which is a great view. i even saw andromeda, which took me a while to find. it's just like a very faint cloud. i can't see many open clusters though. i'm not sure if i'm looking right, but the clusters i can't find, or if i am finding them, then i'm not getting that wow factor that i'm expecting.

what will i be able to see with the 10x50 that i might not be able to see with the 8x40? thankyou very much.

what should i look out for?

[yeti monster]

You'll get a bit more magnification, and a wider field of view with the 10 x 50s. You should be able to pick out open clusters no problem, although with the full moon it'll be difficult to locate them just now. But if you can observe away from the moons effect, and allow your eyes to become adjusted, then a lot of stars will begin to pop out of the murk.

Even a small pair of field glasses will be an aid to wide field viewing. If you can sheild your eyes from any unwanted lights, with either eyecups or by sitting in a shadowed area, even try putting a blanket over you head, this will help heaps.

[Capricorn]

Hate to say it but I expect you to be able to see the same.

50mm objective is 25% bigger then a 40mm objective so 1.5625 times as much light is collected.

10x mag is 25% bigger image then the 8x mag so collected light is 1/1.5625 as intense at the image.

They cancel out nicely.

So the final image is the same intensity (brightness) but a little bigger.

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

Capricorn's remark holds for extended objects (up to a point, more objects become extended at 10x). You will see fainter stars with the 10x50, so star clusters become richer. I have spotted many in my 10x50 binoculars. The best to my mind is the double star cluster in Perseus. But just sweeping through the milky-way region should show up many objects.

[lennoxlude]

thanks for all the advice.

well i've had a good night so far observing. i found cluster M44, which was very clear not far from mars. i also found some clusters that i've been trying very hard to find, and that's M36, and M34. both were very faint. M36 i could barely see, but i was quite happy with myself that i found them in the end.

[pvaz]

Try M38, it's bigger then M36. Also M45 (Pleiades) is big and very good in binos. The orion nebula is small but shows nicely on binos too.

This free monthly map is good and haves a list with objects for binos:

Skymaps.com - Publication Quality Sky Maps & Star Charts

[lennoxlude]

Try M38, it's bigger then M36. Also M45 (Pleiades) is big and very good in binos. The orion nebula is small but shows nicely on binos too.

This free monthly map is good and haves a list with objects for binos:

Skymaps.com - Publication Quality Sky Maps & Star Charts

cheers, pvaz. i see the M45 and orion on my first night viewing a few weeks ago. spectacular sight especially M45 because it's so bright and clear. orion is great to look at because you know what it really looks like, but in my bino's, it's basically just a little cloud in the middle. not sure if i've seen M38. i'm going to have a quick look now. lol

thanks.

[DarkerSky]

Tracking some of the brighter minor planets can be fun with 8x40s or 10x50s. Vesta for example is in Leo at the mo and is around Mag 6 through February. With a good star chart or prog like Stellarium you should be able to identify it against the background stars and track its progress through Leo.

[glowjet]

A pocket star chart is very useful with binos, I take a copy of Sky and Telescopes Pocket Sky Atlas, by Roger Sinnott, together with a small red torch and a tripod out into the country when the Moon is down.

John.

[lennoxlude]

A pocket star chart is very useful with binos, I take a copy of Sky and Telescopes Pocket Sky Atlas, by Roger Sinnott, together with a small red torch and a tripod out into the country when the Moon is down.

John.

i got the phillips star chart. i'm not sure how you guys rate that, but it's not pocket size that's for sure. it's ok, i worked out a couple of constellation lines using it. most of the handy work has been done by stellarium. that free software is excellent.

[jimhaleysscomet]

M36 is much easier than M38 due to its more compact / concentrated light. But M38's stars seem to resolve easier "out of the cloud". 10x50's will give you a bigger image with probably a smaller field of view. I find my 8x32's (8 degree FOV) much easier for star hopping and locating objects. 10x50s will make the dim ones a bit brighter and larger.

Since you did most of your observing on a full moon night, try again when the moon is further away.

[lennoxlude]

M36 is much easier than M38 due to its more compact / concentrated light. But M38's stars seem to resolve easier "out of the cloud". 10x50's will give you a bigger image with probably a smaller field of view. I find my 8x32's (8 degree FOV) much easier for star hopping and locating objects. 10x50s will make the dim ones a bit brighter and larger.

Since you did most of your observing on a full moon night, try again when the moon is further away.

i went out first feb, the moon wasn't totally up at the time i viewed. i saw M38,37,36, not far from eachother. in the 8x40, it looked like a little cloud, couldn't really see the cluster too well. the cluster M34 near mars was very clear. saw the double cluster in persues, but with 8x40, i do feel it's not enough magnification to get that wow factor. i'm very happy finding these clusters now though.