Buying a Telescope

With all the action planned in the sky for 2011 (see previous post) you may want to arm yourself with your own telescope if you weren’t fortunate enough to land one in your Christmas stocking.One of the first things you should do though before heading to the store with a wallet full of cash is join an astronomy club where you can access an array of other telescopes by members to experience first-hand what some of the features and benefits of each model/type may be. You’ll be with like-minded people and they’ll be happy to tell you what they think about their equipment. Take it all in. To find a local club do some online research or ask at science stores, museums or science and astronomy departments at your local college or university.You might want to also start reading Astronomy and Sky & Telescope magazines (which you should be able to find at your local library) since they very often publish reviews and listing of clubs and associations. After you’ve done all of this you should drill down on what you will really be using your telescope to do there’s no point in paying for more than you’ll use and likewise, you’ll be bummed if you buy something that does not truly perform to your full needs.Sky & Telescope magazine suggests asking yourself the following questions: What do I most want to look at? How dark is the sky where I’ll be using my equipment? How experienced of an observer am I — honestly? How much do I want to spend? What storage space do I have? And how much weight do I want to carry? Once you’ve done all of the above you’re ready to start researching models that are best suited to your needs.This process should take several weeks it is not something that can be carried out on a whim one afternoon in anticipation of a meteor shower that night. We suggest you get cracking though so you’ll be ready when you need one. There’s no time like the present.