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Starting Astronomy need help!

stargazor36

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stargazor36

stargazor36

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Hey everyone, i've always been facinated with the solar system and recently decided to scrape some money together to buy a telescope. but seeing as i dont have any idea on what is and what isn't a worthwhile telescope i thought i'd join a message board to see if i could find any assistance! i came across this one product which i'm impressed with due to the price http://www.scopesnskies.com/prod/telescopes/sky-watcher/newtonianreflectors /explorer130incramotor.html and this is the maximum price i want to pay for the time being. if someone could help me with this dilema i would most greatful!

thanks guys, :)

Stargazor.

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stargazor36

stargazor36

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Hello, thanks for replying so fast!

yes thats the exact model, i've had a look at numourous reviews for this perticular telescope and found the same answer, that its a great starter scope. seeing as i currently know nothing on using telescopes i am wondering how strong the lense will actually be and what would i be able to actually see given the date and clear skies etc?

Thanks,

Stargazor

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BazMark

BazMark

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Hi Stargazer,

Check out the supplier reviews section of this site before deciding who to buy from. Sometimes an apparent good deal can turn into a nightmare when dealing with some traders. I can personally recommend this sites sponsor FLO (click banner at top of page) and I've also had good dealings with Harrison Telescopes.

I've also had some terrible dealings with others, the store mentioned in your post being one of them.

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astroimpulse

astroimpulse

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Hi,

To get a rough idea of what you'll see go to http://www.12dstring.me.uk/fov.htm

Select your scope (if not there enter details - 130/900) and then submit. Click "switch to visual view" and select an eyepiece (maybe the SW 25mm). Then select a planet from the object list.

I'd ignore the majority of the messier items as you need long exposure to see what it shows.

It's going to give you a decent idea of what to expect I'd say.

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E621Keith

E621Keith

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Have you consider getting a pair of binoculars instead of telescope. They are great for learning your way around the sky. A pair of 7x50 or 10x50 is a good starting point.

I have no experience with the 130 Newtonian, but I'm not too happy with EQ1/EQ2 mounts. I've seen more broken ones than working ones. May be Universities societies aren't very nice to their scopes, but personally, I would start with a pair of 10x50 and save a bit longer to buy a scope with a more beefy mount.

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stargazor36

stargazor36

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thanks astro thats an excellent tool to help me with, although i can't see any of the planets (which didn't suprise me) i can have a nice view of the earths moon and other pretty pretty's in the system. keith thanks for the mention of buying binoculors but i think i would like to buy a telescope (even a begineers one) i want to get used to use a telescope to find objects so i think a telescope would be my best option. thanks all to the help so far!

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astroimpulse

astroimpulse

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You'll not see the galaxies etc like it shows as you'd need long exposure photography.

But with a higher mag eyepiece, and maybe a Barlow, you'd get to see planets for sure. But there's a limit to how much a scope will magnify before the image just degrades too much.

Try the 10mm EP (like you'd get with the scope you're considering).

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sixela

sixela

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I think the Explorer 130M's optics are nice, but it really is a light mount for such a tube, so I'd personally rather have a 114mm scope on a slightly sturdier mount (like this one) or, even better, one of the tabletop Dobs like the Skywatcher Heritage 130p Flextube.

And if you have the room, just 30 GBP more than an Explorer 130M buys you the Skywatcher Skyliner 150P Dobsonian. It's not motorised but it's a lot more stable, and at the magnifications that you tend to use on these scopes I find manual tracking on a Dob not that bothersome.

If you get a 130M (motorised), once you have managed to get e.g. a planet in the field of view and focused, the fact it tracks does let you observe with more concentration. But I find that only really relevant for observation of the moon and planets, at least with the drawbacks of these light mounts; for deep-sky objects I'd rather have a much sturdier mount (at least a NEQ3) even without drives or a Dob and manual tracking.

That's very much personal, though. I like GEM mounts, but when they're motorised and sturdy enough. Otherwise, I personally find them extremely frustrating, more than I find nudging Dobs along irritating.

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stargazor36

stargazor36

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Thanks for all the help guys, was a pleasure to sign up too the forum just for some help! i'll be starting my journey at end of this week and will be off to the libary for some lessons on astronamy for dummies! haha. if anyone could reference good material for star navigation i'd be most greatful! :)

thanks guys,

Stargazor

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bcfcciderhead

bcfcciderhead

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I still have and use my 130P, it was my first scope and i realy like it, very good views of the moon what i consider great detail, Jupitar also very good clear bands and colour.

I did change the mount to a supatrak and now to a goto so i have all options to me, I found the EQ2 mount that came with it a little mind blowing when first out the box but after a while it's not to bad, tracking Jupitar and moon with it was not to bad, the slow motion controls on the mount work very well, once set up correctly.

Its a great scope and you will have great fun with it...best of luck, oh and as for a supplier FLO are tops and good prices, if you can find just the OTA (scope on its own) for sell at a good price (try the bay) i have the supatrak mount for sell:D

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brantuk

brantuk

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Srellarium is a great piece of planetaria software and it's free to download. Similarly Cartes du Ciel. For books consider Turn Left at Orion - it'll show how to navigate to your first 100 objects with full explanations, diagrams, and object info. It's aimed at small to medium sized scopes. Also The Illustrated Guide to Astronomical Wonders is another good book that offers more object guides/diagrams/info etc, for when you want to take the next step. :)

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Astro_Baby

Astro_Baby

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If you want an idea of what you would see I did a review if the scope. I am on a mobile phone at the mo so can't copy and paste a link but if you go to Astro-Baby Astronomy Website and have a look at the reviews you will find it easy enough. ........about halfway down the age these some pics which give a fair representation of what you would see.

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stargazor36

stargazor36

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hey all, hows your weekend coming along? thanks everyone for some of the fantastic references especially that review pge by astro_baby and Stellarium from a couple of others. some real awesome stuff there! as im a university student i appolagise for not getting back (due to coursework and stressful work in general!) on the plus side i looked at my bank account and found an extra £100 pound so my new budget is actually £250 pounds! does anyone have a telescope in mind which is much better for this extra hundread pound?

Thanks all!

Stargazor

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stargazor36

stargazor36

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wow, that looks excellent alot better than the 130 series. im always happy with the fact it has a camera adapter for the photo album moments :) in terms of the diferences between the two scopes. is this worth the extra 100 pound? or is it just an update 130 series?

thanks,

stargazor

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brantuk

brantuk

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Well - it's the size I started with (but the older model) which I sold on my first upgrade. The extra aperture is well worth it because it gathers considerably more light and brings more deeper sky objects into view. It gave me 2yrs of great service before I got aperture fever lol

Smashing model to get started with if you can afford the small stretch in budget :)

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stargazor36

stargazor36

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right now the specifications mean diddly squat to me, only because i've literally just started with astronamy :) but judging by how much more i get off this telescope for the extra £100 is quite good. especially the 2x burlow lense with camera adaptor. as well as looking at the stars the thought of having the ability to take photographs has deffinatly pointed my attention more to this 150 series

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brantuk

brantuk

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Your enthusiasm comes over well but just a word of caution - astro photography whist very rewarding is also highly technical and can get incredibly expensive. That said - you can achieve some quite amazing results with the right webcam and some free processing software. However you'd be limited to solar system objects mostly.

Having been a student on a budget way back when - I'd recommend sticking with observing and learning the sky for a while - try webcam AP by all means if you come into a bit of extra cash - but imaging is adictive and probably best left till you have the income to support it.

Also read up on the 150P and learn the basics of what the specs mean - it's really very interesting and stimulating and will get you well on the way in astronomy :)

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