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Telescope for children
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My 6 year old is space mad. He is desperate to be able to see the stars and planets and moon up close.
Any recommendations for a good telescope?
Any recommendations for a good telescope?
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http://forums.digitalspy.co.uk/showthread.php?t=1894744&highlight=telescope
He will never be able to see "stars up close" from a personal telescope.
Planets, from a typical starter telescope will be very underwhelming too. Also impossible for a 6 yr old to find i would guess.
Why not take him to a local meet of amateur astronomers?
Yep, a few of us posted some good info in that thread as well as in this one:
http://forums.digitalspy.co.uk/showthread.php?t=1785361&highlight=astronomy
Basic gist - avoid cheap telescopes, buy some good binos instead and see how he gets on from there.
I have a pair of binoculars (will post the details here later) which can just n just show the planet Jupiter as a big star like object, + with perfect or corrected eyesight on a perfect night can just about show 4 very tiny pin points of light next to it which are Jupiter's biggest moons. While it Works very well showing our moon in good detail and very clear it can't show any details of the planets Eg rings of Saturn or atmosphere colour or stripes (planets look just like big stars).
In its favor the depth of field on them is fantastic, looking at what looks like a blank part of the night sky reveals its full of stars.
I had a pocket telescope (brass type thing) as a kid and the magnification on it wasn't much behind the bincoulars I have but it had very poor clarity and you couldn't hold it Still enough-and the rubbish build meant it would go off focus at the.slightest thing. Avoid this sort of pocket telescope at all costs.
Lastly, anything more heavy than my binoculars will require a tripod to keep the image Still and inside the eyepiece.
So to make planets look like planets you r going to need a proper telescope, with a tripod (expensive).
http://www.telescopehouse.com/acatalog/Revelation_Premium_20x80_Binoculars.html
(you can use a camera tripod)
I have a pair of Celestron 15x70's which are also good, still heavy but you can get away without using a tripod. Or you can use an upturned broom, which I do sometimes.
They could put a picture of stars on the end of it
this is another option
since when as the sun been out at night :rolleyes:
There are these things called eclipses that can involve the sun and folk like to look at them. Also, sun spot observation.
Warning not to look directly at the sun through a telescope or binoculars is perfectly valid.
10x50's are a good starter size.
... and there's nothing worse than an expensive 'proper' telescope lying dusty and unused after a few uses when a beginner gets a bit disheartened after spending time setting it up and either finding it takes too much time or it's suddenly cloudy and their efforts have gone to waste. This is a very common situation.
Which is why so many amateur (and pro) astronomers recommend good binos to the beginner to get them started because they're quick to pick up and go and it helps them get to grips with getting to know the sky. They're also much more cost effective than cheap (and naff) telescopes and the initial outlay is much less than a 'proper' telescope if the user loses interest.
Personally for young children with a keen interest in the stars I wouldn't yet be looking at a telescope as most of the low cost ones aren't worth the money. I'd be looking at buying a pair of Celestron binoculars maybe start off with a nice 15x70's like these...
www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B00008Y0VN/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?qid=1383484261&sr=8-3&pi=SL75
It may sound expensive but in terms of how much these things can cost when you start getting serious then £50 - £60 is actually quite reasonable for a decent starter pair. If he starts getting serious you can then buy him a tripod and adapter. Depends on how much detail you want to see but you can see Saturn's rings with these albeit not in amazing detail. If he gets really interested then maybe move up to something more powerful when he's a bit older.
These come with a nice rubberised finish so they wont slip out of little hands so easily and will be a bit more resistant to knocks and water/rain.
A friend had a "go to" telescope, that had gps and was motorised, you simply told it where to look and it found the star its self, you can get them for under £300.
I do have a fuji hs20 bridge camera, that has equivalent zoom of 800mm lens, i got some "OK" pictures of some planets, and some great ones of the moon.