Do we have any serious astronomers here..?

Question

What interested you..What keeps you interested..what level of enjoyment do you get out of it?

Im interested in this stuff and been thinking of getting a telescope, I would just like to hear what enthusiasts say about this hobby?

Answer 1

I find it to be an expensive hobby to start off. You need a decent scope (good binoculars would be better). Then you need the time...and the weather...

I actually love looking and learning, though it's a hobby beyond my means... I have sat for nights on end when I was younger, mapping out the moons around Jupiter...even with a cr@ppy scope...so to think what I could have seen if I had the correct gear...well that's awesome.

I just have to rely on the Pro's putting it all together for me and watching on TV or the 'net.

Answer 2

The beauty of the stars is what first interested me in astronomy. As I became more familiar with the stellar patterns (constellations) I began noticing the movements of the planets. Knowing that I wanted a better look, I found a local astronomy club. This allowed me to opportunity to look through a variety of member's telescopes. My enthusiasm greatly increased as time went by and my knowledge of all the little "fuzzies" grew exponentially. At last I felt I was ready to invest in my own telescope. Through advice from club members and personal experiences I settled on a light-bucket that suits me. The scope I currently use is a 13.1" F4.5 dobsonian. Since I'm not incredibly interested in astrophotography, this scope works just fine. It collects a fairly large amount of light and gives a good wide field for seeing all those little fuzzies I love so much.

This is probably the best place to start, find your local astronomical club or society. The folks there will be more than happy to give you a tour of the night sky through their optical instruments. They will also be the very best resource in determining a good telescope for you to buy. Some clubs even have telescopes that you can borrow. The Albuquerque Astronomical Society allows members to "check out" the club owned telescopes.

I hope this helps. Good luck and clear skies!

Answer 3

get a basic telescope first. Most of amateur observational astronomy is time spent first searching with a star chart, and then reading the stars like a roadmap...it takes time to get acquainted with the canvas.

Depending where you live, you might fight the mosquitoes, the cold, the wind, .......all for the best few hours you can imagine. The most important thing to remember, that disappoints most new telescope owners, is that you will not see what is depicted form the Hubble, etc.

Except for the planets, the universe is black-and-white to amateur viewers. The rods of our eyes do not have the sensitivity to see color at low light levels.

I first looked through an old telescope nearly 50 years ago and was immediately hooked. It is a hobby where we have far more discoveries to our credit than do the professionals, simply because of the much greater number of eyes looking upward by the amateurs.

Join in and good hunting......

Answer 4

If only a tiny bit of the information you have picked up has interested you, you will be blown away by what is really out there in total.

Go to

http://www.takahashiamerica.com

They have two Image Galleries there which will begin to show what one can see with a medium to good telescope.

Go to

Findascope.com

To read one authors comments on what telescopes to purchase. Recommend you join an Astronomy Club as soon
as possible. Purchase a "good" used scope first. i would suggest a 5 or 6 inch Refractor, or a 6 or 8 inch Reflector.
Leave off all that computerized steering stuff for now. Get into that later. With any luck, between $500 and $1000 could get you started. Add to that as time progresses, and you learn more about what you want to see and get involved in.

Your biggest problem will be portability of the telescope from your home to a good "DARK" sky viewing site that is free of street lamps and house illumination. Really big telescopes which give unbleieveable views are also just unimagineable to transport, unpack, set up, then tear back down, repack, and take home again.

There will be a combined process going on if you get into this with any degree of seriousness...One phase is reading the latest news and information (see how it relates to you and your activities)...The other phase is your actual time out in the field doing your own viewing.

Mix in with that some Star Parties with local Astronomy Clubs, and attendance at meetings to learn techniques, locations of interesting objects, current space events, and add in tracking of the ISS and the Shuttle for possible quick views... And hey that is cool. A "show" for free... Follow what is going on With NASA on their Web Site...

Many Space Probes are out there and still traveling ...
Where are they? What are they doing??? What can we see?
What does it all mean??? That is all there for you to learn about and add to your volume of personal knowledge.

What do you get out of it? A better understanding of the things around you, and a better appreciation for all that stuff learned in high school and college... You do need to understand chemistry and physics, math does have a purpose...etc. Here is your chance to use it. Some of this stuf is so somplex you can't begin to comprenend it until you start...somewhere.

Do not waste your time purchasing some junk little telescope.
Look through them first and get a full and complete understanding of how they work...begin making up a list of everything you will need for this system, or that system, this model or that model...Can you lift it??? Can you transport it??? and how??? Some of this stuff (WARNING) is very expensive.

Answer 5

I suppose i would consider myself an astronomer. It is a fun hobby in my opinion. I just like to be able to see things that have nothing to do with earth.

Answer 6

I don't know what you mean ( her ) is it in the group .
if out side of the group sure there is .