bambino64's Blog

I have been looking for a new telescope for a few months now.  I have owned telescopes off and on over the course of my life but they haven't been the quality telescope I was looking for now.  With seven kids, my budget was tight so I looked for deals.  I searched catalogs from Orion and Meade and even checked out Wal-Mart.  I almost bought a $300 telescope at Wal-Mart but have heard bad reviews about the quality of their optics.  I wanted to do it right this time.  I finally found a great starter scope in the classifieds.  It was an Orion Skyquest XT4.5.  It is a reflector with a 4.5" mirror and a dobsonian mount.  The Orion catalog listed it for $229 and I was able to pick it up (no shipping charges) for only $75.  It included the standard 9mm and 25mm eye pieces.  I quickly order a 2X barlow lens and moon filter (next to buy: a sun filter).  This is on the small end of scopes, but far a starter scope that is portable and that I can use with kids, it was the perfect size.  My kids, though, thought quite the opposite and commented on how large it really was.  What's more, a lot of the reviews I read stated that this was bought as a second telescope for many and has grown to become a favorite.

The first time I used the telescope I was not disappointed and I readily experienced the quality of its optics.  The resolution was much higher than anything I had ever owned before.  My first target was Saturn.  It was amazing.  With the 9mm lens I was able to clearly make out its rings and even the faint tint of the planet's cloud bands.  With the barlow lens I was able to see one of the cassinni divisions in the ring.  I saw at least one moon, although I can't figure out with the charts I have which moon it was.  I am guessing Titan since that is Saturn's brightest moon.

I then turned to the moon and the clarity of its surface was amazing.  I was quickly drawn to a feature that I found out later was "Montes Riphaeus" -- a mountain chain near the landing sites of Apollos 12 and 14.  There are many moon resources on the web that I plan to check out.  My goal is to observe all of the Apollo landing sites.

After that, I went to look at some nebula and was a bit dissapointed. I could make out the "fuzines" of the nebula, but no details -- probably because there was too much light from the moon and neighborhood.  I'm sure results will be better with less light interference.

Future targets include some more of these nebulas (maybe the Messiers) and in particular, galaxies and star clusters.

Tips for buying a telescope:
- Avoid Wal-Mart or department store telescopes (even if made by a reputable manufacturer).
- You don't have to spend a lot of money for a good telescope.
- Magnification isn't all that it is cracked up to be.
- Intelliscopes take some of the fun out of exploring the sky and may not be worth the price.
- Check out telescope.com and reviews on amazon.com