Telescope?

Question

I have a celestron telescope and the magnification is about 95 times. But I was wondering what and where to look at. So far all we've seen is some bright white balls (stars). Is that mostley what you see?

Answer 1

If the stars look like bright white balls, your telescope is not focused correctly. With correct focus, every star should look like a tiny dot (just like without a telescope) only brighter. Turn the focus knob until the stars look as small as possible.

Once you've got a good focus, try looking at the moon. It's a great object to start with. You should easily be able to see a lot of craters, mountains, etc. That will also give you practice in getting a good focus (which can be tricky, especially at higher magnifications).

Five of the planets should look like little disks. Jupiter usually looks the largest, although sometimes Venus looks larger depending on how close it is to the earth. Venus and Mercury go through "phases" like the moon, so they may look like a disk or a crescent, or something in between. Mars will look like an orange disk, but smaller than Jupiter. You should be able to see the rings of Saturn , and the four major moons of Jupiter (the moons will look like little dots).

You can also see Uranus and Neptune, although they're so far away that they'll just look like greenish stars. You won't be able to see Pluto.

You'll be able to see some of the bigger asteroids; they'll look like stars.

You should be able to see some of the nebulae and galaxies, but they're dim, so it's hard to see them if you live near a big city with a lot of lights. One of the easiest to see is the great nebula in Orion; but it's not out until the Fall.

Comets, like nebulae, are easiest to see where the sky is very dark, away from cities. Also, comets come and go, so you have to monitor the astronomy news to learn when one will be visible.

Finally, don't make the mistake of thinking that higher magnification will automatically make things look better. Experiment with different magnifications (this involves changing out your eyepieces and/or your Barlow lens (if you have one).) At lower magnification things look brighter, often sharper, and are easier to focus.

Answer 2

Look, people will tell you that it's a child's toy, and in comparison to telescopes some of us have used or built, it is. But it is far better than the naked eye. I would say if you are thinking about a telescope that size, you might consider a pair of binoculars. I don't know what price range you are talking about, but you should be able to find some decent second-hand ones with at least 50 mm lenses for the same price. Check it out on e-bay some time. I have seen lots of them there.

Answer 3

Try your telescope on the moon and make sure you are getting a sharp image. I'm concerned that you have a focusing problem. The stars are never 'balls," even in the Hubble telescope.

I don't know much about your scope, notably its size, but you ought to be able to see Jupiter and its moons just after sundown and Mars in the east after 2 a.m. The Pleides (a tight cluster of stars not far from Mars) is a beautiful sign in a small telescope.

Try using a lower magnification. What you lose in size, you may gain back in clarity.

Happy looking!

Answer 4

Stars are so far away they always appear to be points of light, even when viewed with the biggest telescopes.

The moon is easy to find and 95x magnification should reveal good detail. You might also try finding some other planets. Jupiter will look like a reddish-white disk with a row of "stars" following it around. Saturn will be a white disk with "ears." Also, you'll be able to see the phases of Venus clearly.

Other than that, you can try locating some deep sky objects: nebulae and galaxies. But these can be difficult unless the sky is very dark. If you live in an area with light pollution, you won't be able to see such faint objects.

Answer 5

At low power, star clusters and nebulae are interesting, even beautiful. Try the Pleiades, or look at some of the Messier objects. The Astronomy Picture of the Day archive has some great items at which to aim.
Some planets may show detail, such as Jupiter (and its moons). The sun is a good target BUT requires special screens and filters to prevent immediate blindness. Even so, there are dangers: I was using a small (3") reflector with a sun filter which cracked; I was very luck to be able to see hours afterwards, probably because the crack was not wide and I moved quickly.

Answer 6

search the web for Scobee Planetarium in San Antonio. They have a star chart that will show you what stars are in the sky this month, and where they can be found. You will probably be able to see Jupiter's moons and Saturn's rings. Also Mars' polar ice caps may be visible! There is also a nebula that you may be able to view in the constellation Orion. You are going to love this!! Did you see the Meteor shower earlier this month? Cool viewing!