Hello just dropping in to say HI

For people new to astronomy who want to ask those questions that they were afraid to ask. Receive helpful answers here.
jimmyleong
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Hello just dropping in to say HI

Post by jimmyleong »

I have always love and fascinated with the night skies....

However I did not have the opportunity to learn and have proper training in astronomy. Another reason is pure laziness....

While I was at National Geographic store Vivocity the other day, I was tempted to purchase a telescope on sale there. But I did not.

Honestly I do not have a lot of free time for star gazing and budget for fantastic equipment. By joining this forum, I hope to relight my interest and passion for astronomy and to make new friends and learn from the experienced hobbyists here....
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Gary
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Post by Gary »

Hi there! Welcome to Singastro.

Not buying the scope at NatGeo vivocity = great decision! :) I am glad you did not succumb to the temptation of the the cutout Straitstimes "review" of the scope inside the glass display behind the scope. :)

The beauty of this hobby is that you can decide how much time you want to spend on it. There is no one right way to approach this hobby. You can even take a long hiatus and as and when you feel like it, come back to the hobby again.

As usual, these are time tested suggestions for newcomers to this hobby:
- Join star parties
- Read/loan library books/magazines on stargazing and telescope (section 520)
- Read Singastro wikipages
- Read fantastic amateur astronomy book - The Backyard Astronomer's Guide (http://www.backyardastronomy.com)
- Search/monitor buy and sell classifieds forum in Singastro, CloudyNights, Astromart for good deals
- Ask questions in this forum. No question is consider stupid so don't be shy.

Have fun and good luck embarking on this wonderful journey!
http://www.astro.sg
email: gary[at]astro.sg
twitter: @astrosg


"The importance of a telescope is not how big it is, how well made it is.
It is how many people, less fortunate than you, got to look through it."
-- John Dobson.
jimmyleong
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Post by jimmyleong »

Ok thanks will get some reading done first. Another thing, what's so not good about the telescope sold at national geographic?
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Gary
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Post by Gary »

Hi Jimmy. In my very subjective opinion, those scopes are not value for money. The quality of the optics and build is poor for the price they are selling them at. Thus, it may frustrate newcomers instead of encouraging them to continue the hobby.

It is a pity NatGeo store choose to value price at the expense of brand dilution in this case. They should have collaborated with any one of the major serious telescope manufacturers. Now any department stores can claim that the telescopes they sell is as "good" as those sold in NatGeo store.

By the time you start reading up about what kind of beginner scopes to avoid, it will be more apparent to you why.

You may find these 2 articles useful:

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

http://www.backyardastronomy.com/Backya ... copes.html
http://www.astro.sg
email: gary[at]astro.sg
twitter: @astrosg


"The importance of a telescope is not how big it is, how well made it is.
It is how many people, less fortunate than you, got to look through it."
-- John Dobson.
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Airconvent
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Post by Airconvent »

Welcome to Singastro!
The best way to check out the scopes are at Astro Scientific at the science centre or a Joo Beng's (astrobargains.com) house. :)
Do check out the faq under the faq section here as I consolidated all the useful info there.
Regards
The Boldly Go Where No Meade Has Gone Before
Captain, RSS Enterprise NCC1701R
United Federation of the Planets
jimmyleong
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Post by jimmyleong »

i have been reading the various articles written and especially on the not buying of telescope first. it states i should get a binocular instead. or i should just get a cheap and decent one, be it new or resale?
Robin Lee
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Post by Robin Lee »

jimmyleong wrote:i have been reading the various articles written and especially on the not buying of telescope first. it states i should get a binocular instead. or i should just get a cheap and decent one, be it new or resale?
The rationale for doing so is exactly why you shouldn't buy the scopes from NatGeo store. Beginners do easily make the bad purchases from departmental store and later found out that inadequacy of the telescope put their enthusiasm into dismay.

Binoculars are recommended to newcomers as they offer a wide field of view and great portability. It also helps you to learn the sky pattern quite effectively. Though, I myself find learning via the GOTO controller works better for me.

My recommendation is to join the Singastro members for stargazing. There you will get access to different types of telescopes. Then you will have a better understanding on how they work.
Clear skies,
Robin.

Cyclops Optics - QHYCCD, William Optics, Televue, STC & Optolong filters
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jimmyleong
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Post by jimmyleong »

point taken thanks.
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Gary
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Post by Gary »

jimmyleong wrote:i have been reading the various articles written and especially on the not buying of telescope first. it states i should get a binocular instead. or i should just get a cheap and decent one, be it new or resale?
If you have put enough effort to find out more about telescopes and a good deal comes along, there is no need to "force" yourself to stick to a binocular first.

Most amateur astronomers have at least 1 binocular and 1 telescope. So don't worry too much getting which one first as long as you spend enough time to learn about them and know what you buying instead of making uninformed impulse buys.
http://www.astro.sg
email: gary[at]astro.sg
twitter: @astrosg


"The importance of a telescope is not how big it is, how well made it is.
It is how many people, less fortunate than you, got to look through it."
-- John Dobson.
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orly_andico
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Post by orly_andico »

IMHO the best beginner scope is a fast Newtonian (dobsonian). Something like a 6" f5 or 8" f5 would be ideal.

why? the usual recommendation in this list is a Mak. But Maks have a rather narrow FOV and a long focal length, making them beginner-unfriendly. plus, with the dobsonian you don't need to pay extra for the mount.
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