Buying advice · 7 minute read
Choosing your first telescope
Ignore the magnification on the box. What matters is the width of the opening and how steady the stand is.
Start with binoculars
A pair of 10x50 binoculars, the kind many people already own, shows the craters of the Moon, the moons of Jupiter, star clusters and the Andromeda Galaxy. They also teach you your way around the sky, which every telescope owner needs.
What actually matters
The aperture, the width of the main lens or mirror, decides how much light you collect and how much detail you can see. Magnification is set by the eyepiece and is easy to change; a box promising 500x is a warning sign.
- Aperture first: 130 mm or more if you want galaxies and nebulae.
- A steady mount: a wobbly stand makes any telescope frustrating. Simple Dobsonian bases are steady and cheap.
- Something you will carry outside: the best telescope is the one you actually use.
- Leave astrophotography for later. It needs a very different, much more expensive set-up.
Try before you buy
Come to a telescope night and look through the instruments on our roof deck: a refractor, reflectors of different sizes and a Dobsonian. Our astronomers are happy to talk you through what would suit you, and nobody is selling anything.
