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Binoculars
For those starting out in astronomy binoculars will prove more useful than a telescope. A good size binocular will allow you to see delicate star clusters, bright galaxies, the Moon, planets and nebula.
 For astronomical use, I recommend purchasing a 10x50 binocular or above, meaning 10 times magnification and 50mm aperture. They usually weigh 800 grams or more, so you might need to use some stability support.
 Advantages Of Binoculars
- relatively inexpensive
- highly portable and compact
- a wide field of view makes objects easy to find
- right-side-up images
- observing with two eyes feels more natural and comfortable.
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Telescopes
Telescopes are more expensive and cumbersome than binoculars, but will allow for a much greater level of detail when observing the craters and mountains of the Moon, Saturn's rings, the Galilean moons, globular star clusters, galaxies and nebulae.
 For astronomical use, the mimimum useful aperture recommended is 3" (80mm) for refracting
telescopes, and 6" (approx.150mm) for reflecting telescopes.
 Accessories
Astronomical telescope are usually supported on a tripod or stand, which have the ability to move along in a curved line so as to track the motion of celestial objects in the sky.
Other telescope accessories include finder scopes, which will allow you to pinpoint objects to a narrower field of sky before viewing, eye-pieces, filters, dew shields, star charts and planispheres.
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Optics |
