SOS

[Jingguo]

Hi people of singastro, happy chinese new yr. i'm Jingguo back from my chinese new yr holiday, back to astronomy. I recently read on something about Sunspot. I would like to ask if other stars have sunspot?? since our sun is a star. I'm interested in getting a scope but no idea which brand to choose. Any brand 4 beginner? I've try out a refractor, newtonian n smg but can't come to d conclusion which is best 4 me. I'm into deep sky n variable stars. so i guess a big apperature would be needed. my budget is between 1000-2000++. i'm thinking of getting a cg5 mount n a newtonian or a televue refractor. anysuggestion or comment 4 that?? Is a dob too bulky n isit travel friendly/?? hope that u guys can help me with all these qes. thanks

[weixing]

Hi,
Since sunspots are actually regions on the sun surface that have lower temperature than the rest of the sun surface. As a result, it seem to be darker. This should be common on other stars too.

Your requirement is: Observe Sun, Variable Star and Deep Sky Objects. Any scope will be suitable for observing Sun and Deep Sky Objects, but Variable Star observation should require a fast scope since you would normally use the lowest magnification and widest field of view.

So, in my personal opinion, your choice of telescope type in preference should be:

1)a fast newtonian - a fast newtonian may be the best telescope for your requirement and it is the cheapest. But the problem of a newtonian is that it require more frequent maintanence and collimation than a refractor or SCT/MCT, so may not be very suitable for beginner.

2)a refractor - a fast APO refractor is the best choice, but your budget won't allow it. So your are left with achromatic refractor. A fast achromatic refractor may not be suitable also, because the false colour may affect your ability to compare brightness in variable star observation. So a f/8 achromatic refractor, such as the SkyWatcher 120mm f/8 achromatic refractor, may be the most suitable. Also, a TeleVue refractor should be out of question for your budget...

3)a SCT/MCT - normally got a very long focal length, so not very suitable for variable star observation, because hard to achieve a low power and wide field of view.

As for choice of mount, if you get a fast scope, any mount should be OK, but a EQ mount is better. Because you need time when your are comparing brightness for variable star and without a EQ mount, you may be spending more time in tracking the target... (a EQ mount only require to move the RA slow motion control during tracking when it is polar align, but a Alt-Az mount require you to move both up/down and left/right direction during tracking).

Also, remember to get a Solar Filter for your scope if you want to observe the Sun, unless you are doing projection observation which is more suitable for a refractor and of course, the safest.

Hope the information help you in selecting a suitable telescope. Have a nice day.

[MooEy]

variable? u mean double stars or are u really interested in variable stars?

i think it's better to start off with a lightweight grab and go scope and maybe get something larger later, unless u have personal transportation. small scopes get used alot more than big scopes.

~MooEy~

[acc]

Any brand 4 beginner? I've try out a refractor, newtonian n smg but can't come to d conclusion which is best 4 me. I'm into deep sky n variable stars. so i guess a big apperature would be needed. my budget is between 1000-2000++. i'm thinking of getting a cg5 mount n a newtonian or a televue refractor.

Hi
I think u have a very nice budget to work with... Since u are into DSO, aperture IS important. So refractors aren't really suitable. Some will say that many DSOs can be seen with small refractors and while that is true, the image cannot compare with the detailed views u can get in larger (5" or more) scopes.

I suggest the Meade SN8/SC8 on GOTO equatorial mount if portability is not an issue. Costs about S$2000/$2500 with shipping. Its great value for money and good if you like GOTO and may want to dabble in astro-photography. But you must be a handy-man ready to get ur hands dirty fixing potential mount problems that may arise due to Meade's poor quality control.

For something cheaper, try the 127mm mak avail from McGill.

cheers
cc

[blurblock]

Alternatively you can wait for Samuel to complete his evaluation of the APM 130mm telescope with cg4 mount . That should be an interesting one, since it is not supposed to be very much more expensive then the 127mak, but come with a stronger mount, more eyepieces and a slightly wider aperture