Reddit Reddit reviews Turn Left at Orion: A Hundred Night Sky Objects to See in a Small Telescope - and How to Find Them

We found 20 Reddit comments about Turn Left at Orion: A Hundred Night Sky Objects to See in a Small Telescope - and How to Find Them. Here are the top ones, ranked by their Reddit score.

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Turn Left at Orion: A Hundred Night Sky Objects to See in a Small Telescope - and How to Find Them
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20 Reddit comments about Turn Left at Orion: A Hundred Night Sky Objects to See in a Small Telescope - and How to Find Them:

u/EternalStudent · 306 pointsr/pics

Things you'll want:
This book: http://www.amazon.com/Turn-Left-Orion-Hundred-Telescope/dp/0521781906/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1324830331&sr=1-3

Teflon pads as it is likely the pads on your dob suck and will make moving it suck as well.

A high field of view set of optics. I recommend any of the following (I have an 8" dob, you want a good wide-angle eye piece as it makes viewing a pleasure. Magnification is far from all important, esp. with a small telescope).

  • http://www.universityoptics.com/eyepieces.html
  • http://www.optcorp.com/ProductList.aspx?uid=30-718-1044-1046 (Baader planetarium)
  • When picking out eye pieces, consider the magnification you'll get with your telescope (equations found online), the eye relief (bigger tends to be easier to use, basically how far your eye needs to be from the lens to be in focus), and the field of view (just how much of the sky you'll see).

    You need to collomate your telescope. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collimated_light. Basically, your telescope's mirror is likely very off center. A dobsonian like what you have is two mirrors, the main mirror (the big one), and the little post mirror that reflects light off the main mirror into your eye piece. You need a laser collomator that will shine a light from the eye piece into the telescope. If your telescope was properly collomated, the laser would bounce off of the post mirror, hit the dead center of the main mirror, reflect back onto the post mirror, and back into the collomator. Look online for more information.

    Lastly, you probably want a Telrad. It makes pointing your telescope very, very simple, and almost eliminates the need to use a finder scope. http://www.amazon.com/Telrad-Finder-Sight/dp/B0000ALKAN (you don't need any accessories for this. Its wonderful).

    Happy stargazing!

    Edit: feel the need to qualify why I suggest Teflon pads. your telescope moves around on two axises, up and down, and left and right. Unlike a "conventional" refractor telescope (the ones that we think of as a good "my first telescope"), a lot of weight is placed on those bottom pads. If you replace the pads that came with your telescope's base with teflon pads, it will make it a lot easier to move it along that particular axis, asthere is less friction.
u/The_Dead_See · 12 pointsr/telescopes

I would caution against spending that much money without going to a local astronomy club star party and looking through some scopes to get a sense of what you can actually see. Teenagers especially can become quickly bored with the hobby when they learn that they're not going to see the glorious Hubble style images of nebulas and such.

The good news is that you don't need to spend that much to get a scope that will give you a lifetime of good service - for around $600 you can get a z10 deluxe or if you're dead set on goto, $1000 will get you an Orion XT8g.

A standard 8 inch dob will only set you back $400 or so - Zhumell, Skywatcher and Orion are the big players but most all dobs are solid from any manufacturer - they're so simple not much can be done wrong.

The books you want are Nightwatch and Turn Left at Orion.

Hope that helps.

u/schorhr · 7 pointsr/telescopes

Hello :-)

There is a lot of garbage around this price point. Sadly most sets are just instable, making focusing and tracking tedious. Or they have flawed optics (avoid the 127eq, 114/1000, 150/1400 shorties, Astromaster 130eq due to a spherical mirror). Or both.

 

$200 Telescope bundle that doesn't suck

  • $180 z130

  • $26 decent planetary eyepiece (1, 2, Don't get a cheap 4mm "Plössl" due to the short eye-relief)

  • A good guide such as "Turn left at Orion" - The missing manual on how to observe, what to realistically expect (Also see this!) and what's currently up and visible.

  • Something to put it on (table, box, Ikea Bekväm $20 step-stool... Still a better solution than something like the 4.5" or 5" telescopes you see on EQ(1/2) mount.

     

    If you can stretch your budget AND/OR willing to wait, check for a used/refurbished 6" or even 8" dobsonian. They will show more and are less of a compromise regarding stability, height, and optics.

  • Craigslist

  • Astronomy forums

  • http://www.telescope.com/Sale/Clearance-Center/Clearance-Telescopes/pc/6/c/777/81.uts?&refinementValueIds=4567 (xt8 $300, xt6 $200-230, xt4.5->$170-180; New, the Skywatcher dobsonian have a better finder, the 6" even a better focuser)

  • z8 includes so much accessories, it's well worth it (overview eyepiece worth $70 alone, dual speed focuser, right-angle finder, moon filter, laser collimation tool...); And 8" shows a lot (again, these links) :-)

    Clear skies!
u/florinandrei · 6 pointsr/Astronomy

You know... instead of describing someone how a rare fruit tastes like, better just let them taste it. So go ahead and enjoy your new scope.

A few things to keep in mind:

Do not forget that collimation is an essential part of the maintenance of your scope. A scope that it not collimated is like a car with the oil never changed. Your vendor has some docs and videos on their site, about collimation; read and watch that stuff, then apply it.

You should do a more thorough collimation each time the scope gets bumped during transport. You should do a quick two-minute collimation check every time you use it (e.g. a quick star test with a strong eyepiece should tell you immediately what's going on).

There's a lot to say about collimation. There are many methods, techniques, and devices. There's a lot of stuff about it on the Internet, go ahead and google it. I'm not saying you should become obsessed with it, I'm just saying - take care of your scope.

---

It's not a bad idea to learn a little about star testing. It could be used for collimation, it could be used for a general assessment of the quality of your optics.

http://legault.perso.sfr.fr/collim.html

Plug in the strongest eyepiece you have, point it at Polaris (keep that star exactly in the center), and defocus. Watch those diffraction rings. They must be perfectly concentric (otherwise you're miscollimated), and must look exactly the same inside and outside of focus (otherwise the mirror is not exactly top-rated).

Again, this is a vast topic. You'll learn a lot about it if you keep googling it. Start slow and learn as you go.

---

The mirror in your scope is too thin to require a fan, but nevertheless, your scope will perform better if you take it outside 10 ... 30 minutes before you actually start observing. This is to minimize the distortion in a mirror that is rapidly cooling, and to minimize the convection boundary layer on the mirror.

---

Some theory:

Your scope has 114 mm of aperture (D = 114) and a focal length of 900 mm (F = 900). Therefore the focal ratio is F/7.9 (900 / 114).

Magnification is the focal length of the scope divided by the focal length of the eypiece, or the aperture divided by the exit pupil:

M = F / f = D / d

The maximum useful magnification is 2D = 228x. Really, it's more like 200x. That means the shortest eyepiece that makes sense in this scope is 4 mm (900 / 228), or an 8 mm with a 2x barlow, same thing.

The minimum magnification is around 20x; if it's less than that the exit pupil is too big (> 6 mm means it's bigger than your eye's pupil) and you're wasting light and aperture. That means the longest eyepiece that makes sense is around 47 mm (there are no eyepieces that long in the 1.25" format anyway).

EDIT: Previous paragraph was wrong, I fixed the numbers. Need moar coffee.

So, use any eyepiece longer than 4 mm. Use high magnification for planets and double stars. Use low magnification for wide faint targets like M31.

---

Many people will tell you to "buy moar eyepieces", or "buy a barlow", or "buy a Telrad". A lot of that is bullshit. Keep the scope collimated, have a good set of eyepieces, and you'll be fine. The XT4.5 comes with a magnifying finderscope, which is vastly superior to the Telrad or any other naked-eye finder under the light polluted urban sky. Under a dark sky far from the city, a naked eye finder becomes more usable.

You may not even need the Moon filter if you observe the Moon with plenty of lights turned on around you. A scope cannot make a surface appear brighter than in reality - it only makes it bigger. So if you're not dark-adapted then the Moon may not be a problem. But everyone's different, see what works for you.

---

Buy a book called Turn left at Orion, it will teach you lots of interesting things to see. Install Stellarium on a laptop or smartphone.

These days, Jupiter and Venus are clearly visible in the West at sunset, while Mars is a red dot rising in the East.

Clear skies!

u/[deleted] · 5 pointsr/Astronomy

I'm a budding amateur myself! Here's what I recommend based on their level of helpfulness.

Start listening to Astronomy Cast

They pretty much cover every topic you can think of in detail and they're really fun to listen to. They're probably the best astronomy podcast or radio show in existence right now.

You can also check out Pamela Gay's other project Slacker Astronomy

There's also 365 days of Astronomy

Which are little 5 or 10 minute user contributed podcasts each day.

For general knowledge. Wikipedia is your friend, I also rely on /r/space and /r/Astronomy to keep me in the know and I read Space.com and Universe Today

For books. I have two in my collection so far. The backyard Astronomer's guide

and Turn left at Orion

Both are excellent books.

I also do not own a telescope. Since I'm just beginning I picked up a pair of Celestron 15x70s which are kind of the go to "beginner" binoculars.

u/Big_Brain · 3 pointsr/Astronomy
  • Grab your copy of Stellarium
  • Learn these astronomy basics
  • Then look high at the brightest stars first, check their names,
  • Find the story behind them (constellations got stories in greek, roman, american, asian mythology...),
  • Ask yourself how big is that star, what temperature is it on surface, what's the difference between a blue star and a red giant star.
  • Whenever you see an object in space, try to find what it is it made of, its distance...
  • Find out the answers - many good websites provide this info.
  • Don't try to locate as much objects as possible (forget about the galaxies for now). Discover them slowly. Aim for the moon/planets and the brightest stars first. One object per night.
  • Plan your nights. Stellarium and here at /r/astronomy will help you.
  • As you advance, read about astronomy actually... Turn Left at Orion and more books...
  • Then it will be time to go deeper in space for the clusters, nebulae and galaxies. Fellow astronomers at Reddit are already recommending how to upgrade your equipment to a telescope.

    Welcome aboard.
u/wintyfresh · 3 pointsr/Astronomy

Both Nightwatch and Turn Left at Orion are great for beginning astronomers. As for equipment, I'd start with a pair of binoculars while you determine whether or not you're serious enough about the hobby to invest in a telescope.

u/bluelite · 3 pointsr/telescopes

Hello, fellow Sacramentan here.

Our light-polluted cities limit what we can see. But even a small telescope can bring out details that are completely invisible to our eyes. I assume by now you've looked at the Moon and planets like Jupiter and Saturn. They never cease to amaze.

The ETX-70 doesn't have a very large aperture, so it won't suck in the photons like a larger reflector or SCT. But you'll still be able to make out deep sky objects (DSOs) like the Orion Nebula, some globular clusters, Albireo, and some galaxies (faintly, on a good night).

Your scope is light and portable. Take it away from the city lights! Even a few miles outside the cities makes a huge difference.

Getting eyepieces to increase magnification doesn't always help. It makes the image larger, but also dimmer. They work better on planets and the moon, but for DSOs you want all the light you can get.

Get your hands on a copy of Turn Left at Orion. It's a fantastic guide to the night sky and includes details about what you'll be able to see through a small telescope.

Finally, think about attending one of the monthly star parties hosted by the Sacramento Valley Astronomical Society (svaa.org). They are up at Blue Canyon where it is very dark on a moonless night.

u/kukkuzejt · 3 pointsr/Astronomy

Basically, the larger the diameter of your telescope, the more light it collects and the more distant and fainter objects you can see. Also, more light means you can magnify the image more (by changing the eyepieces of the telescope) without it getting to faint to see properly.

I'm only at the research stage into my astronomy hobby at this point, so I can't really help much, but go onto youtube and there are lots of videos of sights through telescopes. Start by searching for "my telescope" and take it from there, and look up prices for the scopes you see.

Turn Left at Orion and NightWatch: A Practical Guide to Viewing the Universe seem to be the go-to books for understanding what objects you can see through different telescopes and where to find them, though I haven't bought either of them yet.

If you're really good with your hands, you might want to try building your own telescope for cheap.

u/EorEquis · 3 pointsr/Astronomy

Not knowing what your budget is, I'll start small and work up :)

  • Turn Left At Orion is the bible of star hopping and familiarization with the sky. Since he's already demonstrated enjoyment of pointing out this star or that, it's right up his alley.

  • Maybe a nice pair of binoculars. I know he has a scope, but good binocs can offer really stunning views in their own right, and are much more portable and easy to "grab and go" on a hike, or a neighborhood walk, or whatever. Doesn't have to be the pair I linked, that's simply one fairly well regarded brand/model.
  • Maybe something as simple as a gift certificate to his favorite astronomy store?
  • Is he a tinkerer or DIYer? If so, then introduce him to Stellafane and maybe take a trip there for one of their ATM workshops, or maybe buy him a starter mirror grinding kit. I've had great success with the folks at First Hand Discovery but there are plenty of other top notch companies that can hook you up as well. :)
  • Not sure where you live, but a trip to dark skies could be amazing. /u/KaneHau has already provided you with lots of info about a trip to the islands, but if CONUS is more in your budget, then there are LOTS of great trips to the SW USA for dark skies. My personal favorite are the fine folks at Marathon Sky Park in Marathon, TX. They are an amazing group of people, service is first rate, facilities are amazing, and the skies are gorgeous. :)


u/seladore · 2 pointsr/askscience

Turn left at Orion is what I always recommend to amateur astronomers starting out.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Turn-Left-Orion-Hundred-Telescope/dp/0521781906

u/Red-Fawn · 2 pointsr/telescopes

Always going to recommend the book Turn Left at Orion for beginners. It'll give you a good idea on how to star hop, what time of the year is best for viewing what, and a feature list of night sky objects to look at. It also has a conservative view at what you're going to see - what's drawn is what you're going to get.

u/SaganAgain · 2 pointsr/Astronomy

2 good books to get you set:

  1. 'Nightwatch' by Terence Dickinson :
    This will get you oriented with everything astronomy.

    http://www.amazon.com/NightWatch-Practical-Guide-Viewing-Universe/dp/1552093026

  2. 'Turn Left at Orion' :
    This book will show you how to actually find nebulae, double stars, and galaxies in the night sky. It will also show you what each looks like through the eyepiece of an amateur telescope.

    http://www.amazon.com/Turn-Left-Orion-Hundred-Telescope/dp/0521781906

    *You can probably find the e-book version of each of these online if you look. But then again, having a physical book in front of you is 10x better.



  3. Software

    Stellarium :
    Pretty much a software planetarium thats free. All you have to do is type in your location and it'll show you exactly whats in your sky at the moment. Three useful keyboard buttons: 'pg up' = zoom in, 'pg down' = zoom out, 'n' = shows deep sky object locations.

    http://www.stellarium.org/

    Last but not least:
    Try to get yourself a used dobsonian telescope (8 inch or 6 inch). You can definitely get one for $200 used. Its a good investment b/c its something that lasts a lifetime and it retains its value extremely well. Remember astronomy is about actually seeing and experiencing the sky, and not just learning about it from a book.

    Hope you get hooked on astronomy like I did last year.
u/ieGod · 2 pointsr/space

Turn Left at Orion is specifically aimed as a guide to seeing tons of objects from regularly light polluted cities. You'd be surprised what you can resolve.

u/Grunchlk · 1 pointr/Astronomy

Oh, gotcha. I understand now. Then yeah, get him a telescope and he'll appreciate it. More than anything it shows that you pay attention to him and care about his hobbies. Also, be sure he has a copy of Stellarium (it's free) and for future presents you can get him copies of The Backyard Astronomer's Guide and Turn Left at Orion not to mention the countless accessories that are available in the astronomy world. Just pop back over to /r/astronomy if you need more ideas!

Edit: Stellarium link

u/Benisar · 1 pointr/pics

You should start with using your finder scope, so make sure it's aiming correctly, this is very important and will save you time later! I would also highly recommend a book like Turn Left at Orion. Its a great book to teach you how to find things, plus its a great guide on the best things to find year round.

For finding things you can't see, you use finder stars, starting with a star you can see and using the finder scope to jump from star to star on a path to your target.

However, you mentioned wanted to view planets, most of those will be visible to the naked eye during different parts of the year, Jupiter in particular is lovely and bright right now. Stellarium is an excellent tool to find out whats visible in your area at any time.

Of course, things are more difficult if you live in an urban area with loads of light pollution, this link might help you more with that.

If you have more questions, /r/telescopes or /r/Astronomy might be able to help you out more than I can.

Good Luck and dark skies!

u/Stubb · 1 pointr/Astronomy

Whatever telescope you end up getting, pick up a copy of Turn Left at Orion. It's a step-by-step guide to finding and observing a hundred different celestial objects with a small telescope.

I've had great luck using the book with Starmap Pro to find my way arond the night sky.

u/TeenBear · 1 pointr/IWantToLearn

If you're just aiming to look at things in the sky:
http://www.amazon.com/Turn-Left-Orion-Hundred-Telescope/dp/0521781906

u/johnholmescock · -6 pointsr/todayilearned

As utterly retarded as the catholics are, I have to say they are pretty clued up on science. Instead of the typical USA 'tard evangalist denying the simple facts in front of them, the pope simply moves the goalposts and accepts what reality is, but makes out the "big-bang" is "god-diddit".

There is also a brilliant book for kids (and I admit myself too!) by the Vatican astronomer Guy Consolmagno

There is no religious rubbish in that book and it is excellent. I would love to see a "tea-party" right-wing christian guide to the stars... hohoho...

(Atheist here BTW, but I don't have a problem with religious scientists who stick to the science!)