How can you tell what the best telescope is?

Question

And what do you think a reasonable price to pay for one is?

Answer 1

It depends what you want in a telescope.

For example, refractors (a lens does the initial focussing) is considered better for planetary work than a reflector (a mirror does the initial focussing). It offers better contrast and the lack of spider support in the way means a crisper image of bright objects.

The reflector is better for deep sky objects (faint nebulas, galaxies, faint star fields) because you can gather more light: no light is lost going through glass and you can normally get a bigger sized mirror for the same price. But there is this annoying spider support for the secondary mirror and it may cause brighter objects to have 'spikes'.

Hybrid telesces are very popular, like a Schmidt-Cassegrain: an almost flat-lens corrects the light-wave front before it arrives at the primary mirror -- ususally spherical. This is because they allow to do all tasks (bright planets with high magnification and star fields with low magnification) with acceptable quality AND, as a bonus, it is much easier to equip them with special equipment (cameras, spectrographs...).

A good starter telescope could be around 300 dollars (US or CDN). It should have an aperture of at least 3 inches (the magnification is not important -- what is important is the ability to concentrate starlight and for that you need a wide primary lens or mirror)

It shoud be easy to set up and to carry (you do not want to spend one hour to set up the telescope every time you want to use it AND you do not want to carry 30 kg (66 lbs) around the observing site as trees block your way.

I have a 10-inch reflector that allows me to see stars and nebula that are very faint. However, it is exactly like what I'm describing above (1 hour set up, too heavy to move around). Because of that, I use it rarely.

I have a 3-inch refractor with mechanical drive (I have to turn a handle by hand if I want the telescope to follow a star). The whole thing (including tripod) weights less than 10 pounds and can be lifted with one hand when set up. I can plunk it down somewhere else and be set up -- polar alignment and all -- in less than 5 minutes.

The big one cost 1000, the small one 300 (including a full-aperture solar filter -- the only safe kind -- and a separate sturdy tripod).

I use the small one all the time and enjoy it a lot.

Answer 2

Well the reasonable price for a telescope increases without bounds, so lets talk about the lowest reasonable price and what you should get for it.

Generally speaking, you should expect to pay at least around $300 or $400 for a serious telescope.

Most of these telescopes will be newtonian reflectors on dobsonian mounts, usually just called dobsonian telescopes. Their aperture should be no smaller than 4.5" in diameter. This is the diameter of the primary mirror. The larger the primary mirror, the more you can see.

I also expect the telescope to be well made. Orion is very well known for quality, affordable dobsonians. You can visit their website at http://www.oriontelescopes.com

If I wanted to focus on viewing galaxies and other dim, deep space objects, the smallest telescope I'd get would be a 10". It would most likely be a dobsonian. I might buy the 10" Zhumell dobsonian because it's the cheapest, at $500. But I might decide I want something larger and lighter, in which case I might pay $2,000 for a truss tube dobsonian by obsession.

If I wanted to do astrophotography with the telescope I'd get a computerized Schmidt Cassegrain. The smallest I'd buy is an 8" one and I'd typically buy it used and expect to pay around $1000. Maybe a little more or less. New I'd expect to pay double that price, or even triple depending on the specifics of it.

If I wanted to dedicate myself to planetary viewing I'd want a very large apochromatic telescope with a motor drive. The smallest I'd get is 4.5" and I'd expect to pay around $4,000 from a company such as TeleView, Takahashi, or Telescope Engineering Company.

So different telescopes are optimized for different things. It all depends on how much you want to spend and what you want to do with it.

Answer 3

The best scope is the one that doe's what you want it to do.Regardless of what you want it to do, it must have a stable mount,good optics, and accessories.For beginners the 4"-8" Dobsonian is hard to beat.If you want a research scope for astrophotography a "Catadioptic" with clock drive is the way to go.Meade has the widest selection to chose from so look at their website Meade.com, with Orion Telescopes as another source for scopes that are less expensive.Try Scope City for another source of used telescopes and Astronomy Magazine for different choices.An F/ 4.3 reflector for deep space is a good choice or an F/8 for planetary.You will never go wrong if you make quality the most important.As far as price the Dobsonian at $200 up is the best buy.You can get a nice 8" for $500 but always check the quality of the optics and mount, if you don't have someone more experienced to go with you join an astronomy club and only go to stores that sell telescopes and nothing else.Occasionally you will find a cheap scope at thrift stores but most are junk and only an expert knows which are good scopes.All the manufacturers,Orion,Meade,Celestron, will send you a catalog

Answer 4

First, read this. Ignore that it's from Australia and ignore any money amounts, which are for AU dollars in 2002. The principle is the same wherever.

http://astronomy.concreteairship.com/scope.htm

Then, find a local amateur astronomy club. Everyone there will want to help you make an informed decision. This is not something you should hurry.

Then, notwithstanding what they may tell you at the club, look at these. They are the best general observing scope for the best money, because of the inexpensive mount that they sit on.

http://www.telescope.com/control/category/~category_id=dobsonians/~pcategory=telescopes

Look at the biggest aperture you can afford, and note that the "object locator" is not necessary to enjoy the telescope. A scope like this will be a keeper, regardless of where you go with the hobby. And get a good book of sky charts and/or star-hopping guides, like "Nightwatch" by Terence Dickinson". A scope like this will be a keeper, regardless of where you go with the hobby.

Answer 5

There is no one "best" telescope...it depends on your interests, where you live, and how much money you want to pay. I've owned 25 telescopes over the past 50 years, and every one has been "best" for me at a particular time and situation.

Assuming that you're a beginner in astronomy, then the best telescope for you is likely to be a Dobsonian reflector, such as one of these, which cost between $180 and $1120:
http://www.telescope.com/control/category/~category_id=dobsonians/~pcategory=telescopes/~VIEW_INDEX=0/~VIEW_SIZE=1000000
http://www.skywatchertelescope.net/swtinc/product.php?class1=1&class2=106

If you want a computerized telescope which will find objects in the sky for you, you should expect to pay more for smaller aperture, like these:
http://www.celestron.com/c2/category.php?CatID=13

Generally, the larger the aperture (diameter of primary lens or mirror) the better the scope will be for most purposes, provided you can transport it. Most of us live in cities plagued with light pollution, and have to travel to darker skies, so portability is important.

Answer 6

before the discovery of the telescope, the form of the universe became into unknown. It became into assumed that the completed universe became into concentrated on earth, and that the celebs have been holes interior the outer boundary of the universe, previous which became into the area of God. The telescope proved that this theory is all incorrect. God did no longer positioned the earth on the centre of creation. the celebs are especially further away than the outer boundary of our image voltaic gadget. The area of God would not exist in basic terms previous the orbit of Saturn. God did no longer layout the image voltaic gadget to examine the variety of openings interior the human head. God isn't some human parent siting on a throne in basic terms exterior the image voltaic gadget peering down via famous guy or woman holes onto His creation. With all those primitive misconceptions out of ways, the telescope confirmed us a universe far bigger, lots extra complicated, and lots extra majestic than something that were till now imagined. Cheers!

Answer 7

If you really want to open your eyes then do it with a great telescope. You will be amazed just what you can see with a good telescope. Point it to the sky or point it at something else. A good telescope will bring everything closer and in great detail. This lens will help you pick one.

Answer 8

The best scope is the one you will use the most. That depends on you, your mood, the prevailing conditions, and your objectives. I agree that the dobsonian is a great choice; but, there is no best choice. To my surprise I still keep a few 60mm refractors around, not because they are particualarly good at anything; but, because they are very cheap, light, tough, and much better then binoculars on brighter objects.

I used one to get my first glimps at Comet 17P Holmes. The winds were blowing at around 20mph, with squalls rollong through every 15 minutes; I had no desire to set up a good scope in that mess, but, it was real easy to grab a 60mm and uncremoniously and just plop it down in place for a quick look.

Fortunately we are not limited to one scope, so there is no need to find that one perfect do-everything scope.

Answer 9

Hi. As always, that depends on your needs. But bang for the buck? A high quality Dobsonion.

Answer 10

The Hubble. Pretty expensive.