Which telescope is better for viewing planets and stars?

Question

SpaceProbe 3 EQ Reflector
http://www.telescope.com/control/product/~category_id=reflectors/~product_id=09843
Or this one:
Observer 70mm Altazimuth Refractor
http://www.telescope.com/control/product/~category_id=refractors/~pcategory=telescopes/~product_id=09881

Answer 1

The 3eq.
It has a better Optical diameter. objects will be brighter and have better color.

The 70mm Altazimuth Refractor will be a little ezer to use at first. but go with the 3eq.

Answer 2

Inch for inch of aperture, refractors give you a more crisp, clear view when viewing planets or the moon. That's just the fact of the matter. The reason why reflectors are more widely used is because they can be made bigger for alot less than a comparably sized refractor. You can get a 10" reflector for $500, whereas a 10" refractor runs into the tens of thousands.

For a starter telescope, I would recommend the refractor. It will be easier to use, and the views it gives will be good. Of course, as other reviewers have stated, the telescopes you are looking at are quite small, and you won't see alot of detail on any planets, though the moon will look great.

I got my son a 60 MM refractor (Meade) and the views are very nice. We've looked at Jupiter, Saturn, Venus, and of course the moon. We've watched the comet this week (couldn't make out much beyond a bright fuzzy spot with a bright dot in the middle, but still, how cool is it to look at a comet!). We've even looked at a few deep space fuzzies, however, with such a small telescope, that's all they were to us: faint fuzzies. However, it's been a great, easy-to-use "starter" telescope and now we're saving for a big 12" Dobsonian reflector.

There is some good reading to be found on the subject at:
http://www.skyandtelescope.com/
http://www.space.com/nightsky/

Hope that helps!

Answer 3

I've personally tested this 70mm refractor and found that, while the optics are quite good, the mount and finder are of poor quality. I've not tested the reflector, but I know from having used it on other scopes that the mount is really terrible: shaky and very hard to use; also a 3" mirror is just too small to provide any long-term satisfaction.

Sky & Telescope magazine tested these scopes along with a number of others in this price range. The 70mm got fairly good marks, but the reflector was disqualified because of its terrible mount. The telescope which came out on top in this test, which I owned for a while myself and highly recommend, is the Orion StarBlast:
http://www.telescope.com/control/product/~category_id=dobsonians/~pcategory=telescopes/~product_id=09814

This scope has excellent optics on a smooth and steady mount. If you can possibly afford it, consider this instead. The Orion SkyQuest XT4.5 or XT6 are only a bit morre expensive, but better still. In this price range, even $10 or $20 makes a significant difference in the quality you get.

Answer 4

The refractor will be easier to work with. It moves up and down and side to side.

The reflector, however, is a more "professional" instrument but you have to learn how to set it up and work with the Equitorial Mount. Once you master this it will be easy to work with and you can find objects easiwer using the setting circles.

There is also a clock drive available separately for the reflector which will track stars and planets automatically once you set the scope up correctly.

On the plus side both have 1 1/4" eyepieces which is the pro standard.

You might want to invest in a high quality 4, 5 or 6mm eyepiece for a bit more magnification. The scope as is gets about 70x or so.

The EQuitorial has to be pointed at the North Star, adjusted at the tripod mount for your lattitude and then you arc the scope around the cellestial equator (hence the name, equitorial). The scope and counterweight have to blance out so the scope sits there without movment with everything unlocked.

As I said there is a bit of a learning curve on the Equitorial, but once you get an object in view you keep it there with one small turn of one control.

Answer 5

Both telescopes that you have chosen are in the low priced beginner's market class of products and while they will work, it is important to understand that neither one of them will
provide outstanding views of the planets and stars will only appear as pin points of light in the deep sky views.

Of the two, the reflector will probably perform the best. Once
again, however, a three inch mirror isn't going to show you much in deep sky work.

Views of the surface of the Moon will be pretty god if you pick up a Moon Filter to use with either telescope. You will also begin to appreciate how fast the Moon is moving when you observe it with high magnification as opposed to viewing it with the naked eye.

In all cases, one should not be fooled by the adjectives used by sellers when talking about 100 to 300 dollar optical products. "Really Good" optics cost a "lot of money." Eyepieces for my 6 Inch Refractor cost me as much as $400 each...whereas beginner level eyepieces that might be supplied with either of those telescopes usually cost about $20 - $25 each.

If it is at all possible, I would encourage you to wait and collect more money before making your purchase. This will allow you to go for a bigger telescope like a 6 or 8 inch reflector. Then you will begin to get really good views of deep space, Jupiter, Saturn, etc... And the Moon will be defined in clarity that is just unbelieveable to a newcomer.

By all means, join and attend meetings at a local Astronomy club. They often have Star Parties where new comers may look through members telescopes and allow you to evaluate the performance of different kinds of equipment before you make any purchase decisions. Other things which are also important are the possible chance to pick up a used telescope and accessories from one of the members at deep discount. Astronomers often trade scopes often until they find one or two that they are happy with. I, myself, am just drooling over a 14 or 16 Inch reflector that I saw advertised used in:

http://www.astromart.com

Regards,
Zah

Answer 6

Geoff is absolutely right.

The Observer 70mm was my first scope but I had it on an EQ mount not the Alt-Az. It was very surprising what that little scope could show. I gave it to my son-in-law this summer and he is having a ball with it. He loves looking at the comet. And he has seen Saturn rings and Jupiter moons and he is hooked by the astronomy bug now.

For now, join a club and look through the scopes of other people to see what kind of scope you like the best. Be patient.

Answer 7

Reflectors are always better than refractors.
Even a small mirror (114mm) will gather 4-5 times more light than a 70mm lens.
Refractors perform very poorly on deep sky objects.
Reflectors also have far less problems with chromatic aberration.