I Want To Buy A Telescope Eyepiece That Can View Planets More Clearly, Any Suggestions?
Saturday, December 5th, 2009 at
8:58 pm
I have an ETX-60AT-BB telescope and 25mm, 12 mm eyepieces. I'm a beginner to astrology so I'm still learning about these things.
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US $19.88






The ideal “eyepiece” for ASTROLOGY used to be a six inch diameter crystal ball. Not sure what they are using today.
For ASTRONOMY, you might want to consider upgrading to a larger telescope. The ETX-60 is a nice instrument but just lacks the aperture. How about an eight inch Newtonian? They are not too expensive.
Because of the small aperture and short focal length of this telescope, it is not really well suited for planetary observation, but more for wide field views of deep sky objects. Your 12 mm eyepiece will only give 29x, which is just enough to see Saturn’s rings and Jupiter’s moons. You might consider buying a 2x Barlow lens, which will double the magnification of your eyepieces…58x will give you a better view without pushing the telescope so far that the image becomes blurry.
If you can afford it a plossl 6 mm otherwise a H or K 6 or 7mm will do.
That’s pushing the limits of your scope but it will work.
Also consider getting some filters. Red, blue and green. They work very well on mars, Jupiter and Saturn to resolve the clouds and darker areas.
Hello Sir:
Well, I don’t know the ETX-60 series personally (have not owned one) but I can assume the eyepieces you were fupplied with are one of three formats:
0.965 Inch Format
1.25 Inch Format
2.00 Inch Format
These sizes refer to the barrel diameter if you measure
with a ruler across the metal end of the eyepiece where
it enters the telescope. If you are using 0.965 Inch
EP’s, there is a world of difference in going over to the
1.25 Format EP’s, some of which are truly wonderful. See
http://www.telescope.com or http://www.telescopes.com for an
adaptor from 0.965 telescope to 1.25 Inch Format Eyepiece…
estimated cost $20.
The utility of a 60 Series telescope is somewhat limited in
that the total light gathering capability of the scope is based
upon the opening where the light comes in and nothing
can alter that. Desireing to see better, you could go over to a used 35 to 40 mm EP which would give you wider views so that you would see more sky at once – possibly useful in some views of the Moon. Used price in 1.25 Inch Format
estimated $35 or less.
A 17 to 18mm EP would provide you with a middle of the
road EP, roughly halfway between the two that you have now. Estimated used cost about $30 – $35.
I would not recommend (though you could certainly try) use of anything smaller than 10 – 12mm in that telescope because of the very small objective lense. Chances are that you will not see anything worth viewing with that high power EP.
Having only two EP’s to work with, my last recommendation will sound silly to most folks…A good quality Barlow 2X could be used with OTHER EP’s to double their magnification. however, the double power of a 25mm EP is about 12mm which is the size you already have. Hence the sillyness. However, Barlow Lenses are also available in 3X which ouuld provide you with essentially an 8mm EP with the 25mm you already have, and a 5mm (*****) if you bought the 17 to 18 mm I discussed earlier. (*****) = do not think this will be a
good match for your 60 series product. And finally it would make about roughly a 13mm EP out of the 35 to 40 mm EP I also recommended to you…which you already have in the existing 12mm EP.
Now all of the preceeding information presumes that you wish to stay with inexpensive Eyepieces = Plossl types.
Should you wish to purchase some really good EP’s, the next step would be to go for EP’s with a large eye relief and higher optical quality such as Pentax EP’s or Televue Naglers. I use Televue Nagler EP’s on my 6 Inch Meade Refractor to opotomize its capabilities. These fine items may be had in the vicinity of $200 used. Again, for a 60mm main lens or mirror, I would not try to purchase anything more powerful than 10 to 12mm.
By all means contact a local Astronomy Club near you and join it to meet other Astronomers in your area. By doing this you will most likely meet folks who have a wide assortment of equipment and could let you plug one of their eyepieces into your telescope to try it out. Then you could see for yourself what is possible to achieve, and what exactly the product is called.
To obtain used eyepieces such as I have discussed, go to:
http://www.astromart.com (one time user fee of $12)
http://www.cloudynights.com (free registration)
Purchasing the EP’s new presents a very wide field of
supplier sources. Among them are:
http://www.telescopes.com
http://www.telescope.com
http://www.meade.com
http://www.handsonoptics.com
to name just a few…
Were you to desire to move upward into a larger unit, you could use Astromart or Cloudy Nights classifieds or try
talking about a trade to Hands on Optics, or other retailers. Some shipping and insurance costs will be paid unless you pick the items up yourself. I would recommend going to something in the 6 to 8 inch mirror category as a next step
up, and these size scopes generate views which are far away and above those delivered by products in the 60
series product line, regardless of manufacturer. In most cases you will also be looking at a Mount for the Scope
since the next jump up in quality is a heavier device. Unfortunately this will also add to the cost of your purchase.
Happy viewing,
Zah
Your telescope has a focal length, or a distance from the front lens to the place where the image is focused. Find out what that length is — it may be marked on the scope or it may appear in the owner's manual.
Divide the focal length by the eyepiece measurement. This will give you the power of the scope.
So, for instance, if you have a 1000mm focal length telescope, using the 25mm eyepiece, you'll be magnifying things 40 times (1000/25=40). Using the 4mm eyepiece, you'll be magnifying 250 times (100/4=250). Again, this is dependent upon your focal length.
More magnification is often not better. Usually it means less light, more distortion, and a telescope that's tougher to point accurately. A 25mm eyepiece is a good general eyepiece. I usually don't use more than a 9mm eyepiece with my 2000mm focal length telescope.
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Refraction is the bending of any wave. In this case it is light waves that a telescope refracts.
A magnifying glass uses light refraction to enlarge an image. A refracting telescope uses the same type of lens. Usually one large lens at the front which is called the Objective lens. The larger the objective lens the brighter the image will be because it can gather more light. Just like the pupil in your eye widens when it is dark. There is another lens group at the aye piece where the image can be focused. As the image comes through the objective lens it is turned upside down, some telescopes have a lens in the eye piece group that corrects this. Telescopes are usually classified by the diameter of the objective lens and the focal length. For example An average amateur scope would be 60×700 mm. This would be a 60mm objective lens and a focal length of 700mm. The longer the focal length the higher the magnification. The other type of optical telescope is the reflector. This uses curved mirrors to bend the light and refracting lenses in the eye piece
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Guerrilla warfare (harder targets and greater mobility), the Atlantic Ocean (most supplies and replacements had to be shipped from Britain), and Britain's war with France (drew resources away from the fight with the colonies.
Hope that helps.
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There are several different kinds of telescopes and all of them have some excellent features. Refractors and Reflectors, plus Schmidt-Cassegrain, APO refractors, Mac-Cass, and many more. There are also several mounts to chose from and the mounts are just as important, if not even more important, than the scope is. All of the different scopes and mounts have some features that some people like and do not like. No two eyeballs are the same and the perfect scope for one person might be completely wrong for another person.
There is no one scope that is "better" than another —except for the junk scopes out there which are all just a waste of money. Never, ever buy from Walmart, Costco, Target, or any other discount store like that. Junk scopes are flooded into the market from those stores. You will be buying nothing but bad optics and plastic.
If you are new at this, then stay away from anything used from any site. If you don't know what you are buying and who you are buying from you will most likely be getting someone else's headache—with no warranty either. Buyer beware you know. Some great deals on used equipment, by people who know how to use and take care of scopes, are out there but if you don't know what you are doing, you might be spending a lot of money on junk.
______________________________________…
I recommend:
Orion is the very best for value and for customer service too. I have 2 of their scopes and I will only buy from them from now on. My first scope was a manual controlled scope and I am very glad that it was because it forced me to learn where things are in the night skies. Go-To type scopes can be frustrating to use. If you do not have them aligned exactly perfect, they do not find the targets. If you are a beginner, you will be frustrated unless you spring for a GPS Go-To. An object locator is just that—it will locate objects for you (must be aligned first) but an object locator is not a tracking motor. It will not keep the scope on the target.
The Orion site has some excellent diagrams and explanations of all types of scopes and mounts.
Things to consider are size–can the user lift and transport the scope to the viewing site easily? Does it fit in your car? If not, then it will gather dust in a closet. I recommend a carrying case too so it is protected in storage and transport. Can the viewer reach all the knobs and buttons? I have a long tube large manual refractor and it is very difficult for me to reach the knobs when I am pointed to Zenith. I am not a tall person.
Take your time in making your decision.
+++ I would like to suggest that you join a local astronomy club or astronomical society BEFORE you spend your money on a scope. There are many different kinds of scopes and what is perfect for one person is not perfect for another. Everyone has their own set of eyeballs and no two are the same. If you join a club, you can attend a few of their star parties and try out members scopes to see what works best for YOU, before you buy a scope. The members can also help you when you get your scope and show you how to get the most out of your new scope as well as to help teach you where the treasures in the sky are located. Most clubs have loaner scopes and extensive libraries that you can gather more information from too. Most clubs will have monthly membership meetings with informative presentations given by members and by guest speakers. You can really learn a lot from these clubs and an added plus is all the great new friends you make there too.
Some people will suggest that you purchase binoculars. Not a bad idea but don't buy anything less than 10×50 and you must have a tripod too or you will not be happy with your astronomical views because they will be too shaky from your movements. Personally, I prefer a scope to binos because if binoculars are not aligned properly at the factory, then you get double images and distortions that cant be fixed. Most of the cheaper binoculars are not properly aligned. That is not as important for terrestial viewing but it is a killer for astronomical viewing. Binos can also be bumped out of alignment and become useless for astronomy.
When you buy go Orion and you wont be disappointed. Don't try to learn everything all at once or you will be overwhelmed and discouraged. Patience is the key to Astronomy.
You will need a good star chart program too.
This is great freeware that you can download. Tell it where you are and it will tell you what you see. Ask it where something is and it will show you.
I wish you all the best! Enjoy!
Use low power. 50 to 100 power. Saturn looks great at 100 power. The Moon and many galaxies, nebulae and star clusters look great at 50 power. Higher power just makes it harder to find things and focus clearly. Oh, and the guy above is right about the dark sky. Except for a few exceptions, all those "deep sky" objects, especially galaxies, are really dim and cannot be seen well (or maybe cannot be seen at all) in the bright sky of a large city, no matter how good your telescope. The Moon and planets are different. They are bright and look fine in even the brightest city sky.
Learn the sky. Know at least a few bright constellations and stars. You have to know where to point it to see anything.
Outside looking at Saturn through my 20 dollar telescope
can you use a diagonal on a reflector?
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OK, so you have a box on the tube that is near the axis of rotation? Consider where your head is going to be, and how difficult it will be to keep it there. IMO, even the best designs often don't get this right.
One home made Newtonian Dob has a longer than required tube. The finder is mounted in front of the main eyepiece so that the 90 degree finder eyepiece is right next to the main scope eyepiece. That way you can go back and forth easily. I wonder if the owner is left eye'd or right eye'd.
I'm left eye'd. My finder scope is clearly mounted for right eye'd people. How would I fix it? I'd put the focuser on the right side of the tube and put the finder above it and slightly behind.
Which eye'd are you? Which eye goes to the eyepiece? That's all.
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