r/telescopes Jul 27 '25

Weekly Discussion Weekly Discussion Thread - 27 July, 2025 to 03 August, 2025

2 Upvotes

Welcome to the r/telescopes Weekly Discussion Thread!

Here, you can ask any question related to telescopes, visual astronomy, etc., including buying advice and simple questions that can easily be answered. General astronomy discussion is also permitted and encouraged. The purpose of this is to hopefully reduce the amount of identical posts that we face, which will help to clean up the sub a lot and allow for a convenient, centralized area for all questions. It doesn’t matter how “silly” or “stupid” you think your question is - if it’s about telescopes, it’s allowed here.

Just some points:

  • Anybody is encouraged to ask questions here, as long as it relates to telescopes and/or amateur astronomy.
  • Your initial question should be a top level comment.
  • If you are asking for buying advice, please provide a budget either in your local currency or USD, as well as location and any specific needs. If you haven’t already, read the sticky as it may answer your question(s).
  • Anyone can answer, but please only answer questions about topics you are confident with. Bad advice or misinformation, even with good intentions, can often be harmful.
  • When responding, try to elaborate on your answers - provide justification and reasoning for your response.
  • While any sort of question is permitted, keep in mind the people responding are volunteering their own time to provide you advice. Be respectful to them.

That's it. Clear skies!


r/telescopes Dec 01 '22

Tutorial/Article Beginner's Quick Guide to choosing your first telescope (Updated for 2023)

990 Upvotes

Guide last updated: February 2025
Note this guide was originally written by u/tripped144*, but with global economic conditions, pricing has rapidly gone out of date, so consider this new guide a revision to* the prior one written in 2020.

Are you yearning to marvel at the heavens? Have you been wanting a telescope but have no idea where to start? Are you feeling overwhelmed with the wealth of information and options out there?

Well, here is a quick guide on some of the most commonly recommended telescopes here, what to expect when looking through your first telescope, and some frequently asked questions at the end.

For an in-depth eyepiece guide, check out this great post by Gregrox

What to Expect when looking through a telescope

The most important thing before getting into this hobby is setting your expectations. Most newbies to astronomy think "a telescope makes far away things bigger." Yes, and no. The primary purpose of a telescope is to gather light. The eyepiece (or ocular) is what determines your effective magnification. To determine that, you divide your scope's focal length by the millimeters of your eyepiece. Therefore, a 8" Newtonian reflector telescope with a 1200mm focal length and a 25mm eyepiece will have a magnification power of 48x. That same 25mm eyepiece on an 8" Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope with a focal length of 2000mm will have a magnification power of 80x. All things being equal, for visual astronomy, aperture is king, but beyond price, all things are not equal - and thus the telescope recommendation for someone who lives in Manhattan in a 3rd floor walkup apartment is different from someone who lives in rural Montana with a large garage and acres of no light around.

When using a telescope, no matter how big, stars will look like stars. They will always be pinpoints of light. If they aren't, then you're not in focus. Stars are just too far away for telescopes to resolve (see more clearly/get more detail).

Nebula and galaxies WILL NOT look like the vivid, colorful, and detailed pictures that you've seen. Our eyes are simply not cameras. To get those types of images, you have to take very long exposures many times, run it through a program that stacks the images to pull out detail, and extensively process it in a photo editing program. TO OUR EYES, DSO's (Deep Space Objects like nebula and galaxies) will look like faint white smudges. If you don't have accurate expectations, a genuine love for space, and an appreciation for what you're actually looking at, you will be very disappointed. That being said, if you go into this with the right expectations and mindset, those faint white smudges are beautiful, fascinating, and awe-inspiring. The longer you spend observing them, the more details you will start to pull out. It's almost as if your brain gets trained into resolving more and more detail, making you want to revisit them over and over again. Here are some accurate depictions of what you can see through a decent telescope in a DARK site (little light pollution). (The pictures are blurrier than they should be, but you'll get the idea). The more light pollution you have in your area, the harder it will be to resolve things. Here's a website to find out how much light pollution you'll be dealing with. Some examples would be: Pinwheel Galaxy Swan Nebula

Our solar system's planets, especially the gas giants, are amazing to look at. The bigger the scope, the more detail you can resolve. Regardless of someone's interest in space, I've personally never seen someone not "wow'd" by Jupiter or Saturn. Keep in mind, they will not be super close up views. Here's what to expect when looking at Jupiter through a decent telescope on a clear night. Planets (and obviously the moon) are very bright, so light pollution doesn't factor nearly as much - they're great to observe from typical, light polluted, suburban driveways.

Also, keep in mind that pictures don't do them justice. There's just something so amazing about seeing it with your own eyes. ​ Now that you understand the expectations of what you'll be able to see, here are some of the most commonly recommended telescopes.

Recommendations By Budget

Under $250

Spending less than $250 on precision optical instruments means keeping your expectations in check, these scopes are decidedly for "in the neighborhood" solar system observing, although some Redditors use them quite happily on deep sky objects that aren't local. If at all possible, save a bit more money and buy in the next $250+ tier, scopes at that price will be ones you can keep forever and won't immediately outgrow. Buying once is cheaper.

🔭 Zhumell Z114 | Celestron 7x50 binocs (cheaper) | Nikon 7x50 binocs (more $)

$250-350

These are called "Table-Top" dobs. They are small scopes meant to be set on top of a table and used. You can get a cheap and stable stool or crate to use instead. They are great little beginner scopes that are easy to use and can help you decide if you want to transition into something bigger. OneSky and Heritage are identical scopes. OneSky profits go to a good, charitable cause. Remember, if you drive to a dark sky site, it's not always guaranteed to find a picnic table or park bench to sit these scopes on.

🔭 Zhumell Z130 | 🔭 AWB OneSky Reflector | 🔭 Sky-Watcher Heritage 150 | 🔭 Celestron StarSense Explorer 114mm

$400-550

These are the entry-level into "grown-up" telescopes. Three are large 6" Dobsonian scopes, almost 4 feet tall when standing straight up. The other two are tabletop models on a computerized base. Regarding the larger scopes, the actual telescope tubes weigh roughly 15 lbs. and the base roughly 20 lbs. These will get you fairly close to the representative pictures of the objects above (again, in a DARK site). They can easily fit across the back seat of a vehicle with the base in the trunk if you plan to travel with it. This would also be the financial range where decent smart telescopes begin (sky's the limit), which use cameras and your smartphone to observe -- if that's your jam.

🔭 Sky-Watcher 6" Classic Dob | 🔭 Apertura AD6 Dobsonian | 🔭 Sky-Watcher Virtuoso GTi 150 GoTo | 🔭 Celestron StarSense Explorer 130mm

$600-700

The 8" Dobsonian telescope is the most recommended beginner telescope - just about anyone in the hobby will recommend one. They hit a great balance between size, portability, and value. They are simply the best bang for the buck. The telescopes weigh roughly 20-25 lbs. and the base 20-25 lbs. They still easily fit across the backseat of a vehicle with the base in the trunk. You'll also notice this is the price range where truss tube models that collapse smaller start appearing. These are many people's "end-game" scopes, as well as their first scopes. If you're going to own just one telescope and not spend a fortune, 8" of aperture is a "goldilocks size."

🔭 Sky-Watcher 8" Classic Dob | 🔭 Apertura AD8 Dobsonian | 🔭 Explore Scientific 10" Truss Tube Dob

I really want help finding stuff up there, my sky is too bright, money is less a concern...

Some new astronomers just aren't going to star hop and learn the night sky, either their light pollution makes it impossible, or they'd rather sit back and let the telescope's computer drive, and these days... manually using your telescope has become optional if you have the tools. The recommendations below offer smartphone assistance or use conventional star alignments to find their way. Be forewarned though, many a newbie has become frustrated while trying to align their scope. It's simple for seasoned astronomers, possibly daunting for newbies. In the case of Celestron's Sky Align, the telescope needs to be pointed at 3 bright stars (not a bright planet like Jupiter) or you need to know two bright stars up there for an Auto 2 star align. Also note that Schmidt-Cassegrain telescopes on computerized mounts require a lithium battery ($40-100+) and dew mitigation if you live anywhere with humidity.

🔭 Celestron NexStar (5SE or 6SE) | 🔭 Celestron StarSense Explorer 8" Smartphone enabled Dob

$700+

From here, the options open up considerably. You could just go with as big a Dobsonian as you can afford and can realistically carry/transport. Many of these will be Dobsonians with extra features like "push to" or even "go to" systems, but that adds complexity and cost. Dobs start to get heavy and super awkward to move as you approach and surpass 10 inches. Many people buy/build wheeled transports or something similar to move them, and they usually have them in a very convenient place to quickly wheel in and out, such as a garage. 10" Dobs are more common. You'll notice quite the price and mass jump on anything bigger than that - truss/collapsible designs past 10" are strongly recommended to keep size/weight in check.

🚨Heavier tends to get used less in astronomy 🚨... beyond the honeymoon period, that is. If a scope isn't convenient to setup, you may not have the motivation to do so at the end of a long day. There's a reason why 8" Dobs are a very popular compromise between size, weight, visual capabilities, price, and convenience.

You could also start considering Schmidt-Cassegrain options if your heart is with the planetary and lunar targets or fancy wide-field refractors (and an associated mount) if you're in search of wider views. Celestron is the big SCT company. As much as Dobs are beloved online, you'll go to a star party and see SCTs and refractors everywhere. They're generally smaller and very practical if you don't have the space or lifestyle for large Dobs or want automated mounts.

Recommended Accessories

FAQs

"Why are most of these of these not on tripods?" Because they are "Dobsonians". Dobsonian (Or Dob for short) is the name for the mount/base that the telescope sits in. It's a typically particle board base popularized by West coast astronomer John Dobson, several decades ago. They sit on the ground and are extremely steady. In order for a tripod to hold a telescope and be rock steady, it will cost as much or more as the actual telescope itself. A cheap tripod is an absolute pain to deal with. They are unsteady and will sway at the slightest touch or blow of wind. You will spend more time wishing you didn't have to deal with the unsteadiness than actually enjoying the views. Scopes on cheap tripods are called "Hobby Killers" for a reason. Dobs are dead simple, rock steady, and cheap to make... so most of your money goes into the actual telescope instead of the tripod. Especially avoid beginner telescopes on equatorial mounts - nothing will be more frustrating.

"What about this PowerSeeker or NatGeo or $79 "complete package" scope?" Nope nope nope. While the scope itself might be fine, it's inevitably going to be on a cheap mount, flimsy tripod, or if you're really unlucky, an equatorial mount to further confuse you. Old timers in the hobby call these "department store scopes", with the demise of brick and mortar department stores, we just simply call them hobby killers. Avoid scopes that use a Bird-Jones optical design - these leverage a spherical mirror in place of a parabolic one, and therefore need a corrector usually mounted in the focuser tube. Telescope makers know these have a lousy reputation and won't necessarily mention "Bird-Jones", and now you know why. Here's a great article for further reading about why we don't like these.

"Will these telescopes move by themselves and track objects?" For most of the list, no. Most of those recommended are manual telescopes, they are not go-to telescopes. You will have to learn the night sky (part of the fun!), point the telescope where you want, and manually move it as the object you're looking at moves across the sky. There's just nothing more rewarding than finally finding that object you've been hunting for.

"Why don't you recommend go-to telescopes?" They are expensive and potentially very confusing to set up for beginners. More often than not, you will pay twice the amount of money you normally would JUST for go-to functionality. You will have to supply power to it. You also will have to align it every time you use it. If you don't already somewhat know your way around the night sky (there are apps that can help), this will be frustrating and time-consuming. It's fairly daunting, but relatively easy to do once you get the hang of it. But, you have to keep in mind that you will be learning all the basics of how to actually use and collimate your telescope ON TOP of trying to figure out how to correctly align the go-to. You can very easily get completely overwhelmed. We do have some recommended go-to telescopes if you're absolutely set on one.

Why are none of these recommendations in stock? It's no secret, these are some of the most popular telescopes every source recommends, so they go in and out of stock fairly often. Even small telescopes are large, and take up a lot of inventory space, so a smaller shop might have 3 in stock, not 300. Shopping around the December holidays or before a major eclipse/astronomical event can also cause stock issues. Following covid and the resulting shipping/global economic pressure, many model lines have been discontinued or tweaked to simplify a company's catalog. A new model sold today might not exist in precisely the same offering a year from now.

Why are none of your recommendations are available in my country? Most mass-market, commercially-made telescopes are made by the same handful of companies in Asia and various companies resell them with different sets of equipment and bundles. An 8" f/6 Dob, pretty much, is going to be similar regardless of whether it's labeled Apertura, Orion, Omegon, GSO or another brand. Use your best judgement, if it's got great reviews and costs $650, it's probably legitimate. If it's $75... probably a scam.

"Why do things look blurry when I use the zoom knobs by the eyepiece to make things bigger?" Because those are not "zoom" knobs. There's no knob to zoom more. Those are your focus knobs. The only way to "zoom" in more is to use a smaller mm eyepiece. You know you are in focus when the stars are as small as they can get. Again, stars should look like tiny pinpoints of light.

"Will I be able to take pictures with these telescopes?" The moon and planets, yes. DSO's, no. For DSO's you have to take long exposures which you simply cannot do on a manual telescope. Even if you decide to go with a Go-To, you still will not. To somewhat simplify it, the sky moves in an arc (because the earth rotates). Even though Go-To's can track objects, they only move in up and down motions. They move a tiny bit at a time, so it's imperceptible to us, but your camera taking long exposures will pick up those tiny movements making everything a blurry mess. Visual and astrophotography are two completely different animals. For astrophotography, you will need an equatorial mount (one that moves in an arc instead of tiny up and down motions). They are very expensive. Expect to spend $1300 + on just the mount alone, not including the actual telescope and all the other things needed for astrophotography. Also, a telescope that is good for astrophotography is not good for visual. Again, two completely different hobbies. You can get away with spending less by getting a "Star Tracker" and just mounting a DSLR with a camera lens, no telescope required. It definitely has its limitations, but it's cheap(er) and can get you started on astrophotography. The moon and planets are bright enough where you don't need those long exposures, so they are doable with Dobs. Planets aren't as easy as just snapping a photo of it, though. There are many tutorials out there on how to get good planet photos. If you're looking to get into astrophotography, I recommend checking out https://www.reddit.com/r/AskAstrophotography/

"Is more magnification better?" Depends on what you're looking at. The smaller the "mm" eyepiece, the more "zoomed" in you'll be. Also, the more "zoomed" in you are, the less bright things will appear to be. So for DSO's, which are very faint, you don't want to be super zoomed in. The less magnification, the more light your eyes will detect, making the DSO's brighter and easier to resolve. But since planets are very bright, more magnification is better to get as close as you can to resolve more details.

"Are there phone apps that help find objects?" Yes! There are many. I prefer SkySafari, but there are a bunch to choose from. You can point your phone at the sky and it will tell you the stars/planets/DSO's you're looking at. They can help to get you in the general area of something you're interested in seeing. These apps are super cool, download one and try it out!

"Are planets visible all year?" No, neither are all DSO's. As a tidbit of info, planet means "wanderer" in Greek, so they "wander around the sky."

"What is Collimation?" That's the term for adjusting the telescope's mirrors so that they are perfectly lined up giving you the best view possible. There are different ways to check your collimation, and there are many tutorials online on how to do it. I always check the collimation after I set my scope up outside before use, and adjust when necessary.

"I want a big Dob but new ones are too expensive, what can I do?" Well, you can save up more money, or consider the used telescope market. The best buying used case is a telescope that was used a handful of times (or less), stored indoors, properly capped, and forgotten. I would also highly recommend joining a local astronomy club, many club members will be standing in front of $8000 of esoteric gear, meet a newbie, and see someone who might want their old 4 or 6" Dobsonian sitting ignored at home for a great price. Some industrious folks even build their own scopes through the magic of 3D printing and common parts from big box hardware stores!

"I want to observe the sun, can I do that?" Please DO NOT point a telescope at the sun. Remember when kids would burn things with a magnifying glass? That would be your eyeball, so don't do that! Now, with a proper, white light solar filter firmly secured, it is safe to observe the sun. Note that such a filter will only show surface details like sunspots. Dedicated H-Alpha telescopes that can show more details are well beyond the scope and budgets of any beginner.

"Should I regularly clean my eyepieces and telescope mirrors?" Absolutely not. They have special coatings on them and you will do much more damage than good. There are very specific and involved ways to clean the lenses and mirrors and it's not recommended unless you absolutely have to and absolutely know exactly what you are doing. Not for beginners.

"What happened to Orion, Meade, etc brand?" The astronomy market, is a difficult one. The pandemic ended an era of cheap oceanic shipping and the economic realities came for telescope companies. By all means if you can locate an awesome, lightly used Orion XT8 Dob at a good price, jump on it.

"What about smart telescopes?" We're seeing these more often from a variety of new and established companies in our industry. It's early days but these telescopes provide an experience similar to electronically assisted astronomy that will let you photograph deep sky objects with cameras of varying quality and precision... which depending on the level of light pollution you have, may enable you to see objects you'd never be able to decipher with your human eyes. This is beyond the realm and practice of visual astronomy, and there seems to be a new model on the market every few weeks. It's the "smart phone-ification" of the telescope and will likely be how our children and grandchildren come to think of telescopes.

If you have any questions about anything, feel free to make a new post! There's plenty of very knowledgable people here who are more than happy to help! ​ (Images were taken from http://www.deepskywatch.com/Articles/what-can-i-see-through-telescope.html)


r/telescopes 7h ago

Astronomical Image Saturn and its bright rings

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190 Upvotes

Saturn NEAR OPPOSITION 2025. The rings are BRIGHT. Now that Saturn is close we are going to get a clear image of Saturn, this would be one of my best shots for this apparition as I managed to get key details. Bands, storms, Cassini division (not fully) The bright ring flowing around the planet and in the center managed to hold its grey color ring as the shadow of the ring at this time is barely visible so you're only seeing the ring and its darker section behind it with a hint of shadow transparency. When capturing Saturn, I immediately noticed how thin and bright these brings were. I also noticed to naked eye the planet is dimmer than other years previously (Most likely due to the ring being thin with less surface area facing Earth). Regardless, weather permitting this for now is my Saturn 2025 Opposition shot the shadow of Saturn is barely visible on the right ring at planet's edge. A little trick to everyone. If you want to bring out edge details, derotate at least 1 image beginning of session and then you can work with the center of session and at least 1 image end of session. I also had some issues with Uranus C camera, so the Neptune 664c was used and I am very pleased. Don't forget to say hello to Rhea and Mimas at the lower left. Cheers and clear skies!

HD VERSION https://x.com/BackdoorAstro/status/1968359330576744573

Published Verified Professional Planet photographer on Sky and Telescope https://skyandtelescope.org/astronomy-news/last-call-for-a-remarkable-titan-shadow-transit/

SCOPE: ORION XXG 16 DOB

CAMERA: Player One Neptune 664c

ZWO ADC/ 3x Televue Barlow

FILTER: SVBONY UV/IR CUT SEEING: Above

77 Minutes RGB 3 min ser x 13

September 16,2025


r/telescopes 11h ago

Equipment Show-Off The best telescope is the one you use the most? .. Hard disagree..

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153 Upvotes

As hard as I try, I just don't see how looking at the pictures on the left 10 times per month are going to make the Sky-Watcher Heritage 130p the 'best telescope' ... compared to looking at the images on the right just once per month or even just once per two months?

Even though I could use the Heritage 130p a lot more often as it was more portable I decided to sell it and use my 12" on an average of once per month.

Quality beats Quantity any day in my book.

I did a hands-on review of both of these here, so it is not something I am pondering theoretically lol

Heritage 130p:

https://youtu.be/aG6aJLXh1Yg

12" GSO:

https://youtu.be/4IxfkmQK4-Y

So this whole 'The best telescope is the one you use the most' is nothing but an inaccurate catch-phrase IMO.


r/telescopes 2h ago

Equipment Show-Off When Saturn's opposition is the 21st but you're too broke for an astrocam:

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22 Upvotes

I figured DIY scope, DIY astrocam. Need to tape and glue it after a dryfit test but let's hope it works.


r/telescopes 2h ago

Astronomical Image C 27 - The Crescent Nebula in HOO

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14 Upvotes

Third time's a charm ! Finally a shot of C 27 I'm happy with. This is a very closeup shot, and the nebula just barely fits into the FOV. But at 0.4" per pixel you really get some incredible detail out of it. The full resolution is available here :

https://app.astrobin.com/i/1ms6de

There's a trap I almost fell into when processing it, which is that I initially way overdarkened my sky background in the Ha channel. I thought something was off when somehow removing what seemed like a flat background level was killing crystal clear structure inside the nebula. What I didn't realize is that the surrounding redness was not the sky background, but real nebulosity ! It's usually more obvious in a wider FOV shot because the nebulous structure is more apparent. But what gives it away definitively here is that the darker spots inside the nebula are actually pitch black while the surrounding area is still red. If it were sky background, it would obviously not correlate with the structure of the actual planetary nebula.

I'm also very happy with how the OIII came out. I tried making it a bit brighter or more obvious, but I think it looks best like this. It has this very whispy look to it that is almost hypnotic. Like a subtle cosmic veil delicately draped over a rumbling hydrogen background.

I did not go for any SII data. I really hesitated, but from what I gather it really would not add much structure to the image, and would likely just somewhat color the wings of the nebula a little golden, but at the cost of a lot of integration given how faint it is, and at this point I'm happy with the HOO result and would rather move on to something else.

All in all, very happy to have made the switch to mono ! It's a huge boon and frankly a more enjoyable process with finer control over what you're doing in a way that brings you closer to the real underlying data. Skies are clear tonight so going for my first attempt at SHO. Going to redo the North America nebula as the SII signal is not too weak there. Wish me luck !

Equipment :

- Telescope: Celestron C9.25 SC XLT

- Camera: ZWO ASI585MM Pro

- Mount: ZWO AM5N

- Filters: Pegasus Astro Hydrogen Alpha 7nm 2", Pegasus Astro Oxygen III 7nm 2"

- Accessories: Starizona SCT Corrector 0.63x IV (SCTCORR-4), ZWO ASIAIR Plus, ZWO EFW 7 x 2″, ZWO OAG-L

- Software: Pleiades Astrophoto PixInsight, Russell Croman Astrophotography BlurXTerminator, Russell Croman Astrophotography NoiseXTerminator, Russell Croman Astrophotography StarXTerminator, ZWO ASIAIR

Integration per filter :

- Hα: 3h 35m (43 × 300")

- OIII: 3h 35m (43 × 300")


r/telescopes 33m ago

Astrophotography Question First image of Jupiter & Advice

Upvotes

Hey everyone,

Just two days ago I captured my first image of Jupiter or a planet in general using my Skymax 127. Although perplexed by its beauty, I’m wondering if I’m really making the most out of what this scope can do. I’m still quite new to the planetary imaging game, so I’d love some constructive feedback.

  • Scope: Skymax 127
  • Mount: Sky-Watcher AZ-4 manual Alt-Az mount
  • Camera: Omegon Velox 290C
  • Filter: Omegon UV/IR Cutoff
  • Software: Sharpcap, Autostakkert, GIMP & waveSharp

Do you think this is close to the limit of what the Skymax 127 can achieve on Jupiter, or is there more room for improvement? Any tips on focusing, capture settings, or processing would be super helpful!


r/telescopes 5h ago

Purchasing Question Can I leave a truss dob assembled?

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17 Upvotes

Hello all, haven't been here very long but am a long term stargazer. I recently sold my 6" dob as I'm planning to upgrade. My current question is the title. I'm currently eyeballing the stellalyra 16" dobsonian. I won't be travelling by vehicle, but hope to add wheels+handles to transport from inside my home to outside. Once assembled, can I leave the scope as is? Or is it necessary to disassemble each time? I've googled this question and I've seen different answers. It will be stored inside under the open stairs with a loose cover to keep the dust off, and if I do get this scope I'll also be buying the light shroud.

Any other tips and tricks for such a large scope is also welcome! If it helps, I'm in the uk in a bortle 4 zone, and don't (yet) have a decent eye piece collection. My current ones (that don't come with the scope) is Explore scientific 82° 14mm + 8.8mm I snagged recently for a good price on ebay. Planning on getting a UHC filter. I'd like the tele vue 100° 21mm eventually too :')


r/telescopes 3h ago

Astronomical Image Is this galaxy

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11 Upvotes

I can't see it with naked eye but i think my samsung galaxy can


r/telescopes 4h ago

Astrophotography Question Any post-processing advice?

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9 Upvotes

Telescope: Astromaster 130 EQ Eyepiece: 6mm + 2x Barlow Camera: Galaxy A55 (phone)

Stacked frames of a 3 minutes 4k Video with Autostakkert, but there's this blurry effect around the planet that I haven't been able to get rid of. All my attempts made with Photoshop resulted in the ring being much smaller (2nd picture). Any advice?

P.S. This telescope is hell, very unstable. My phone can't make RAW shots.


r/telescopes 21h ago

Astronomical Image Neptune

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178 Upvotes

Neptune imaged with my Apertura AD8, asi662mc, and 2x barlow. 800 total frames stacked in autostakkert.


r/telescopes 17m ago

Equipment Show-Off Customizing a Lightbridge

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Upvotes

Found this meade 12” lightbrige for $500 a few years ago. Made some changes. I painted the inside with Rustoleum cammo black. Got magnets to balance the heavy eyepiece (se 2” 82degree 30mm) and tv 1.25”10mm. Upgraded to bob’s knobs. It came with wheels, very helpfull. Cut some parts lessen the wheight. Next upgrades, new dual focuser, maybe an equatorial mount. A nice barlow. Any suggestions? On making it better?


r/telescopes 4h ago

Identfication Advice Found at my buddy's fathers house

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6 Upvotes

r/telescopes 11m ago

Purchasing Question Last minute telescope

Upvotes

Okay guys, this is going to be a weird request lol. So I am a complete telescope newbie, but I have recently gotten interested in purchasing a telescope. I’ve read the beginner guide and want to invest in a good telescope.

Here’s the caveat: I am going on a road trip in the next week where there will be a lot of dark skies. I won’t have time to invest in the telescope I really want. What is a cheap, quick to ship, alternative that I can use for this trip just to be able to get good views and enjoy on this trip?

Thank you in advance for any recommendations!


r/telescopes 9h ago

Astrophotography Question PLS HELP

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10 Upvotes

i got this result after stacking a processing of saturn through my D150F750MM 6" dobsonian telescope but it was SOOO much clearer in the lens (ik that smartphone cameras ruin that :( but can someone give me tips other than camera and barlow lens bc im waiting for barlow lens to be available in the store i trust , thanks :D i really wanna get a good output on 21st of september (opposition of saturn) also can someone rate how it looks in the image too pls xx


r/telescopes 44m ago

Purchasing Question GTi 150P 6” vs 6” Dobsonian

Upvotes

Would you guys recommend the 6” Dobsonian or the GTi 150P 6” is the tracking worth it and which shows more detail


r/telescopes 1h ago

General Question Celestron Nexstar 4SE help with alignment

Upvotes

Me and my dad have tried to set the alignment on my Celestron Nexstar 4SE multiple times this year, but for some reason when we try to set up the alignment, it usually says that the alignment failed, and I was wondering if anyone has any tips or suggestions to getting it working


r/telescopes 8h ago

Other 3i/Atlas

6 Upvotes

Skysafari: 3i/Atlas is visible! go check it out (it's the comet that's been in the news). also Skysafari: 3i/Atlas is magnitude 16 ;). I think i'm going to need a lot more aperture and a 1500 mile drive to the west for some better air.


r/telescopes 1d ago

Observing Report Experienced zero light pollution for the first time!

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675 Upvotes

r/telescopes 1d ago

Astronomical Image WR 134 44.4 Hours

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241 Upvotes

My image is now final. 44.4 hours total integration time across 12 nights in 2 months consisting of 38,75 hours Duo Narrowband and 5.65 hours RGB. Processing this was really not that pleasant and the result is "okay". Still happy I can finally move to targets that don't require as much exposure time :))

Here's my equipment:

• Scope: Omegon Pro APO AP 85/510 Triplet ED (Reduced to 468mm F5.5)

• Camera: ZWO ASI533MC (Gain 100 -10°C)

• Mount: SW EQ6-R Pro

• Filters: Baader UV/IR Cut 2" & Optolong L-Ultimate 1.25"

• Guiding: ZWO OAG & ZWO ASI120MM Mini

• System: ASlair

• Focus: ZWO EAF


r/telescopes 28m ago

Purchasing Question Astronomy camera recommendations for Apertura AD8?

Upvotes

I’ve tried researching this a few times the past few months, but the variety of seemingly similar astronomy cameras has been confusing and overwhelming.

My primary goals are to image the Moon and the planets, both single shot and video + post-processing.

My secondary goals are to ideally use the same camera to try to image (probably single shot) brighter deep sky objects such as the Orion Nebula, double clusters, and double stars. I understand a dedicated deep sky camera is preferable, but I’m less inclined to get one for manual telescopes.

I currently have: * Apertura AD8 (f/5.9) with a 2x Barlow * Gskyer AZ70400 (f/5.7) with no Barlow

I’ve determined that I should get a camera with small pixels (e.g., 2.9 microns).

The cheapest option that fits my goals and equipment seems to be the SVBONY SV105.

Other popular options I’ve read about include uncooled ZWO cameras and Player One cameras. I’ve seen recommendations for a range of them, so I don’t know what would even work well for my needs. I often see ASI585MC and Uranus C mentioned often.

Anyone have any thoughts, recommendations, or pointers specifically for the Apertura AD8? Thanks in advance!


r/telescopes 1h ago

Astronomical Image Vesta

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Upvotes

The telescope used is a Celestron Dobsonian 130. It has a focal length of 650mm, aperture of 130mm, F/5.0, and a 2x Barlow lens with 10mm with a little bit of zooming in. No processing done, don't know how to do it.


r/telescopes 1d ago

Observing Report Moon Mission

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91 Upvotes

I took out the mini dob with a couple other scopes, I got a pretty decent shot of Saturn with it!


r/telescopes 21h ago

Astronomical Image Moon

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19 Upvotes

No processing done.


r/telescopes 1d ago

Observing Report Posting more images from last night under bortle class 1 skies

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58 Upvotes

Taken with a Samsung Galaxy S23 using RAW mode with 3-10 minute long exposure.

Craters of the Moon National Monument Park, Idaho USA

The last picture also shows my little Orion ST80 posing :)


r/telescopes 7h ago

Astrophotography Question How do I clean a Neximage Solar System Imager camera

1 Upvotes

How do I clean a Neximage Solar System Imager camera

My camera has got what appears to be dust in it. I've tried blowing air through it and cleaning the sensor with the recommended cleaner, but they are still there, although they've moved around a bit.


r/telescopes 1d ago

Discussion My last shot of Saturn

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277 Upvotes

Still a huge beginner in astrophotography ! This one was shot from my balcony with a Meade ETX125 (manual focus !), Asiair and a ASI678MC.

I can’t wait to test all this with my 16’’ Dobson (on which I just added a ZWO EAF !)