I would like to purchase a hand held telescope, but i don't know just what specifics I'm looking for.?

Question

HAND HELD TELESCOPE, CAN ONE SEE THE STARS WITH IT?

Answer 1

A hand held telescope is just like a pair of binoculars, not enough power to see even the moon, I would buy a telescope you can put in a tripod and then you can see the stars..☺

Answer 2

Defiantly get a tripod mounted model. Buy an issue of Astronomy magazine, or Sky & Telescope. They are full of ads for telescopes. You can spend under $100 or thousands (the sky is the limit haha!)
I have a 4 inch Schmidt-Cassgrain reflector that I enjoy, but it is a bit on the small side. Also, don't think you will look through a scope and see the kinds of things you see pictures in books and magazines. Yes, you can see them, but they won't look the same. The images you see in publication were taken with timed exposure to pick up the subtle details and color.
It takes lots of time and practice to be able to find the things in the sky. A telescope only looks at a tiny slice at a time, and it's hard to figure out where you are looking and which way to move the scope to get a desired object into view. My scope has a clock drive to help with tracking.
If you have binoculars, you can start stargazing with them! You can see an amazing amount of objects through binoculars, especially if you have a good dark sky location. The very first step is to buy a good beginner's book on general astronomy, and a star map. These will be necessary so you will know where and what to look for. If you live in an urban area, stargazing can be frustrating. Light pollution is everywhere! I live in a very rural area, but the sky here isn't as dark as it was 20 years ago.
If you have an astronomy club in your area, you will have a great source of information and support. At our local college, they have star parties from time to time. Beginners are encouraged and invited to come see what it's all about.
Good luck, astronomy is a very enjoyable and rewarding hobby!

Answer 3

If you're looking for hand held, binoculars are really the way to go. Most amatuer astronomers have at least one quality pair of binoculars (bought at a telescope, camera, similar optical retailer) which they use for star field viewing, amongst other things.

The binoculars would be superior to the telescope for hand held viewing, but, if you insist on a telescope, most refractor type telescopes can technically be held by hand, but you'd never be able to hold it stable enough to use high magnification.

Answer 4

Check out Orion Telescopes. They have very user-friendly tutorials on-line.

http://www.telescope.com

Here are a couple of "executive toys" in hand-held telescopes.

http://www.telescope.com/shopping/product/detailmain.jsp?itemID=81416&itemType=PRODUCT&iMainCat=4&iSubCat=13&iProductID=81416
http://www.telescope.com/shopping/product/detailmain.jsp?itemID=61544&itemType=PRODUCT&iMainCat=4&iSubCat=13&iProductID=61544

They have several "spotting scopes," also.

If you want something to hand-hold and look at stars, please look over their selection of binoculars. They are far easier to use than hand-held telescopes and generally a much better quality.

You would want a magnification of at least 10X and can probably hand-hold up to about 20X if you are really steady and lean on something or lay on the ground.

Read this bit of info. (See links below) I think the 11x70 Little Giants would be great, but if they are too expensive, look at the Mini Giants. The big deal about binoculars for astronomy is the lens size. Most regular binoculars have only 40-50 mm lenses. 50 mm is actually decent for astronomy (I've got 15X50 myself.), but bigger is better, because it gathers more light and shows you more stars.

http://www.telescope.com/shopping/product/detailmain.jsp?itemID=319&itemType=PRODUCT&RS=1&keyword=

http://www.telescope.com/shopping/product/detailmain.jsp?itemID=310&itemType=PRODUCT&RS=1&keyword=

Answer 5

Try these websites I've found, hopefully you'll find something!

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?guideID=1043363093646&type=page&id=cat12077

http://www.actonastro.com/telescope.htm

http://www.sipe.com/starcruiser/observatory/html/fg_telescope.html

http://www.watzkeonline.com/astrosite/howto_equipment-2.html

http://www.themoshstore.org/learn/meadeguide.asp