There is nothing better than the night sky! But even better is having everything brought hundreds of times closer to you so that you can see it in all its glory. Using a telescope it all becomes possible.

If you are going to buy your own telescope then one thing that’s important to understand is that you are probably going to be better off going for the most expensive model that you can. Smaller, cheaper scopes will certainly get you started but don’t expect too much! Truth is that you might be better off buying a pair of binoculars rather than a cheap telescope, this will save you having to put up with poor quality images and distortion.

You can go to us at telescope reviews for more information about appropriate designs

If you have a budget of $400-$800 then you might want to look at 60mm refractors and reflectors scopes, they will be a good place to start and offer you a good viewing experience. Over and above that price point you can start to look at higher quality and high tech telescopes that are motorized or even computer controlled so they can track stars and constellations.

Magnification – This is something that’s easy to get hung up on, many people want to go for the biggest magnification they can but this isn’t always the best option. At a lower magnification of say 32x, you can still see a lot. You will be able to see some great detail on the moon on a good viewing night, plus see Jupiter, Saturn and the rings. The image will be quite small, but crisp and sharp. 50x really should be your lowest consideration as this will offer some superb detail plus a very clear, stable viewing experience.

The next scale up is 100x magnifications and that will result in a far superior detailed image, but again in a cheaper, basic telescope you will have a much duller image and it will be made worse by any turbulence in the air. Especially over city’s after a hot day the warm air rises and this can cause the image to go out of focus, the more magnification the worse this will be. So whilst magnification is important, it’s not everything at the lower end of the price range!

What’s the difference between refractors and reflectors?

A reflector scope uses a primary mirror and a secondary mirror to bounce the light that comes through the lens. It’s a very simple concept and therefore cheaper to buy. A 4.5″ reflector would be considered a good ‘starting’ scope.

The refractor telescope operates on a closed tube basis and the image is beamed directly into the eye piece which will be fixed onto the telescope body. You will normally find the refractor will be a better performer and 60mm is a good size to get started with.

When it comes to actually purchasing your telescope you are better off looking at a specialised online or high street store. There are some great discounts available online but make sure you know exactly what you’re getting.

Filed under: Wiffle Pitching Resources

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