Ive just bought a telescope..What stars/planets can i look for and where are they in the sky?

Question

Also why is everything upside-down...can i make it normal???

It has 675x magnification. Im in the UK..will this affect the positions?

Answer 1

Welcome to astronomy. There are a number of good books available to help you find your way around the sky. Nightwatch (http://www.amazon.com/NightWatch-Practical-Guide-Viewing-Universe/dp/1552093026 ) is a good one, as is Turn Left at at Orion. As someone else has suggested, your local astronomy club, if there is one, can be a great place to learn and to meet people with similar interests. There are also web sites such as http://www.skytonight.com/ that have some useful information and tutorials.

Since there is no "up" or "down" in the sky, astronomical telescopes do not bother with turning things "right" side up. To do so adds complication and expense, and slightly degrades the image. But there are accessories you can get for terrestrial use. For a refractor, look for a "terrestrial diagonal"; for a reflector, an "erecting eyepiece".

And don't bother with that 675 power. Your telescope will work much better at lower powers. Use your lowest power eyepiece (the one with the highest number on it), without the barlow lens, for locating things, and then try higher power to see if it adds more detail to the view. And be patient. It takes a little time and effort to learn to find things. Everyone struggles a bit at first, but I think it's worth it; maybe you will too.

Answer 2

You will be able to see Venus..of course, Mars, Saturn, Jupiter, the Orion Nebula, and a few galaxies, nebula and star clusters. You will not be able to get a decent view with the magnification claimed. You will be lucky if you get a decent view at 150x. But that is of no matter because your best views will be with lower power.

Use a 25mm eyepiece and you won't be disappointed. The image is upside down because that's how reflectors work. There is no up or down in space so the image isn't actually upside down. If this bothers you you can buy a special adapter that flips the image.

Answer 3

Get a star atlas and study the constellations, learn the names of stars and their positions for any time during the year. Same with the planets. Join a local Astronomy club and go with them to star parties.

Everything is upside down in telescopes -- it's the nature of the optics. There is a corrector that can be used for terrestrial viewing.

Answer 4

Hey, I bought my first telescope just a couple of years ago. This website is great for locating the planets as they appear to move across the sky over the course of a year. You can download and print out easy-to-use updated star maps each month:

http://www.skymaps.com/

Also, I spent 20 dollars to buy an amateur astronomy book that pointed out lots of other cool stuff in the night sky.

Have fun!

Answer 5

Forget about making the image right side up. The reason for that configuration is to make the images clearer. If you look South about 70° up from the horizon just before sunrise, you should see the planet Saturn. If you have a good telescope, you should be able to see the rings.

Answer 6

The stars & planets are up in the sky and they're not upside down you are.