Questions about beginner telescopes

[ZekeQR]

Hi all,

I had read the links provided on how to buy a beginner telescope etc , searched the forum for information before posting this.

I caught my eye on these two items:
Celestron Firstscope (with the kit that provides extra eye pieces) & the Galileoscope

Which is better in your opinion (the language used in the specifications are still quite alien to me...)

Are they capable of viewing Constellations & other beautiful / colourful stuff (I don't know the name about them... but this is something I'm talking about :http://www.quantumtarot.co.uk/gallery.htm (pictures are right at the bottom provided by NASA)

I understand that the Singapore Science centre do sell these, however, the website strangely does not have a price on the items. Does anyone know the price?

In addition, if these telescopes are really that bad that you guys don't recommend it for me, do you have any telescopes that is around $100~$200 ? (I'm just starting out, so I don't wanna spend too much on it as I'm a student as well and I can't work until the hols).

Thank you so much in advance !

Warmest Regards,
Zeke

[Airconvent]

Hi zekeQR,
I would suggest that you do drop by Astroscientific at the Science Centre to check out all their wide range of scopes (less Meade). All have prices on them. Their premium stuff is higher in price but you do get to try it and have better after sales support before buying it. The prices of their lower end stuff is quite reasonable and not that much more expensive relatively speaking. But I do suggest you join in one of the obs to get a better feel of what you really need before deciding.
Cheers

[Clifford60]

Hi Zeke, Welcome to Singastro, yeap join some ob sessions, feel the equipment, speak to the regulars b4 you commit to any equipment

[ZekeQR]

Oh ok. Offhand, do you guys know when is the next session? =O

[Clifford60]

Hi Zeke, just watch the forum, normally Friday or Saturday night someone will do ob like in Toa Payoh or Science Centre or East Coast or ..... just join the one nearer to you.

[Gary]

Hi Zeke. Welcome to Singastro! Feel free to mentioned those aliens terms and we may be able to help you understand them or refer to you to links with more comprehensive explanations.

As mentioned by others above, you should join star parties and have a feel of the pros and cons of various types of telescopes and mounts/tripods before making your first purchase.

For $200 budget, you may consider buying a good binocular and enjoy binocular astronomy and getting more familiar with the skies which is always useful regardless of what scope you upgrade to eventually. Or you may also consider an 80mm f/5 achromatic refractor like the Orion ST80. Monitor the buy and sell section for potential good deals. One very lucky member recently bought a pre-loved mint condition ST80 with tube ring and dovetail locally for only SGD$100. Search as deep as you can in the buy and sell forum. Some good offers may be still available if you dig far enough. Their sellers may be to busy to bump their sales posts after a while.

Most (not all) of the color your see colorful photos in magazines and documentaries of deep sky objects (DSO) cannot be perceived live through our eyes through a telescope. They are mainly the results of excellent sky conditions, highly sensitive CCD cameras and post-processing work (image stacking and photoshoping). On the other hand, the color of planets and colorful double stars can be seen even in decent beginner telescopes.

Do check out your local library astronomy section (520) for books on telescope and stargazing.

Take your time to do your research for your first telescope purchase and most importantly, enjoy that process! The end of the year is near and we may have more cloudy and rain nights compared. It may be a good idea to really take your time to read up more on this subject and more time to save up for a bigger budget for better telescope. Then you may immensely enjoy reaping the fruits of your patience and research when you buy your first telescope next summer and able to put to it to good and frequent use immediately. In the meantime, join star parties to scratch your astro itch free of charge and make some new interesting friends too!

Good luck!

[ZekeQR]

Oh I guess Toa Payoh will be the closest to where I live (Bishan)

Regarding Celestron FirstScope and the Galileoscope, do you guys have any experience with them ?

[ZekeQR]

I've been doing more research and I've come across these two scopes:

StarMax 90mm TableTop & Orion StarBlast 4.5 TableTop

They are priced around $500 locally.

I understand that StarMax is a Cassegrain type telescope while StarBlast is a Reflector type telescope.

Which type is better ? Especially if I want to view the Nebulaes & Stars (Not really interested in planets)

StarMax does has almost 4X the Focal Length as compared to the StarBlast, (1250 : 450) but suffers from the Aperture by 24mm. Does this really matter ? Especially since I am a beginner and these scopes are "beginner scopes"

[Gary]

You may find these 2 articles useful:

http://www.skyandtelescope.com/equipmen ... wAll=y&c=y

http://www.backyardastronomy.com/Backya ... copes.html

You need to consider the Central Obstruction (CO) of the 3 main types of scope design also. Assuming all things constant for the *same aperture*, a design with a lower CO (generally reflectors) or zero CO (refractors) give higher image contrast and brightness compare to one with a higher CO (generally SCTs and MCTs).