YOUR FIRST TELESCOPE

At this stage, you might be looking to upgrade your binoculars to look deeper into the night sky. Before you purchase a telescope, however, there are a few things you should consider. First, think about whether you’re familiar enough with the night sky, and secondly ensure that buying a telescope will improve your observing experience. There’s little point in spending more money on a telescope when it doesn’t give much more magnification than binoculars or if it’s likely to end up gathering dust in your home. Before buying anything, it’s always best to consider these factors.

Choosing your telescope can be a challenge when you don’t know what you’re looking for, so once again it’s important to know how much you’re willing to spend and what capabilities you want your telescope to have. It’s said that refractors are best for checking out the craters on the Moon and the planets, while a reflector – capable of collecting more light – is best for fainter, more diffuse nebulae and galaxies.

At this stage it’s best not to limit yourself, so go for an all-round telescope that can show you a wide range of night-sky gems. These are often referred to as Newtonian or hybrid Schmidt-Cassegrain, Maksutov-Cassegrain or catadioptric telescopes. It may be tempting to opt for a GoTo telescope, which can point you to any object you wish. However, these can be difficult and time-consuming to set up. Many beginners are attracted to what a Dobsonian – a type of Newtonian telescope – has to offer in the trade-off between price and overall performance. A good sturdy Newtonian should cost you around £200 ($240), while a good refractor could be as little as £300 ($360) with a tripod and eyepieces to start you off. If you ensure you buy from a well-respected telescope dealer, or perhaps even someone experienced at your local astronomical society, you can’t go too wrong.

Go for...

Telescopes that come as a complete package – most come with a tripod, finderscope and an eyepiece or two

An instrument that meets your needs – don’t buy an expensive telescope blindly without doing any research

The higher the aperture, the better. The larger it is, the sharper and brighter your image

Good focal length, depending on the objects you want to view. Get long focal lengths for high-power objects like the Moon and planets and shorter focal lengths for taking in larger areas of sky

A steady, sturdy and smoothly working mount

Avoid...

Cheap, poor-quality models that you can often find being sold in high-street stores or in mail-order catalogues

Telescopes that are particularly difficult to set up

Devices that offer fantastic magnification for very little cost – if it sounds too good to be true, then it most probably is

Telescopes that are too heavy for you to carry

Devices that come with eyepieces with barrels less than 1.25”

A finderscope with a tube hardly thicker than your finger or that gives a dim, fuzzy view