Stargazing Celestron Astromaster 114EQ Reflecting Telescope: A Beginner's Guide

[MotoH]

I am starting to get into looking at far off objects in space, and have decided to purchase a reflecting telescope.

I am looking at a Celestron Astromaster 114eq. http://www.telescopes.com/telescope...ackageastromaster114eqreflectortelescope.cfm" The explorer package

Does this seem like a pretty good deal for getting started out? I don't want to spend a lot of money, but I would like something that is easy to use and has moderate quality.

This one look pretty solid?

 

[sas3]

It is a good price but, if you plan on using it for nebula and galaxies you will probably want a larger one if you have the money, this one only has a 4.5 inch mirror.

 

[Astronuc]

I've used 8-inch and 14-inch Celestrons. After using a 14-inch, it's hard to settle for anything less.

Seeing Saturn and it's rings with the 14er was amazing. I've used them to look at galaxies and nebulae. Besides the Grand Canyon, a great place to observe is Davis Mountains in W. Texas, as or near the McDonald Observatory. Kitt Peak is another great site - well so are any sites near the major observatories.


If one has the money, look at Dobsonians like
http://www.telescopes.com/telescope...umellz10deluxedobsonianreflectortelescope.cfm

http://www.telescopes.com/telescope...lightbridge16inchtrusstubedobsoniandeluxe.cfm

Or look at these beauts
http://www.obsessiontelescopes.com/

Do a lot of research first.

 

[Chronos]

Its a good price/performance choice. Portability is very important. A huge dob or Newtonian is not fun to lug around and will rack up a lot more closet time than a user friendly cat. I would, however, suggest you try to save up for a scope in the 6" aperature range. That is the peak of the price point. It will hold more value, you will enjoy it more, and easier to trade up for a bigger scope in the future.

 

[turbo]

Find an astronomy club, and attend any meetings and star parties that you can before you spend a dime. Read this post to see why.

https://www.physicsforums.com/showpost.php?p=2556588&postcount=6

 

[russ_watters]

I like it. It's a very good price for a starter Newtonian on an equatorial mount (motorized!). Celestron has a good reputation. I'd get the "explorer package". You probably won't use the filters, but you'll like having the versatility of the extra eyepieces and Barlow.

This will be very good for getting your feet wet with the planets and can even be used for star clusters and a few of the brighter nebulae and galaxies.

 

[MotoH]

Thanks for all of the information everyone!

Turbo it would be awesome if there was an astronomy club in my area, but unfortunately there isnt! I have talked to some teachers at my school, and we plan on getting the schools observatory up and running by next fall for an astronomy club then!

Picture of observatory:

It has two reflectors in it, one is a Newtonian and the other is a schmidt-cassegrain which both work fine. The motor drives for rotating the dome, and for opening the slit are currently not working but from the looks of it, she shouldn't take long to fix.

 

[sEsposito]

I have a 4.5" Newtonian by Celestron and I love it. Accessories are easy to come by and I've seen some fairly deep objects with it. Go for it and enjoy!

 

[MotoH]

I got my scope today! The motor drive that came with it was not working properly, so they are sending me another one free of charge which is awesome!

I plan on taking her out tonight and checking out some stars!

 

[russ_watters]

Awesome - make sure you hit Jupiter low in the west right after sunset. You won't have another chance for 6 months. Then Mars high in the south after sunest and Saturn in the east late in the evening.

 

[MotoH]

With my current location, I can just get Venus right when the sun goes down. I will try for Jupiter tonight in a new location. I tracked Mars for a while, I need to collimate my scope though, she was a little blurry on 166x

Saturn tonight though!

Edit:

Looks pretty risky to try and get a glimpse at Jupiter right?