A few telescope shops sell refubished telescopes – that might be your best bet for a decent scope under $100. Don’t go to WalMart!
Actually, if that’s your budget, I’d recommend a good pair of binoculars instead. You can see as much as you could with a small telescope, and you’re not paying for all the extras like eyepieces and mounts.
I believe Mars reached it’s brightest point a few weeks ago, but it will be back around in a few years. Plus, you’d be hard-pressed to notice a difference in brightness without a big scope. With a pair of binoculars or a telescope smaller than an 8-inch diameter mirror, you’re not going to be able to see much of Mars besides the disk. No polar caps or dust storms.
johnbonnechappe Said,
Blimey, you’ll be struggling!
A telescope is (or should be) a work of precision optics.
Think how much a decent camera lens would cost.
If you get an el cheapo scope it will probably put you off astronomy for life. Your only hope is second-hand. Try eBay, try second-hand outlets. You might be lucky.
laurahal42 Said,
If that’s your budget, buy a good pair of binoculars. Which are good instruments to start with, in any case.
Good planetary views cost more than $100. You might want to hook up with a local astronomy group to see what’s on offer before making any decisions.
Larry G Said,
Save your money until you’ve done your homework. There is a book called “StarWare” which is about telescopes, accessories, what you can see with them and how much they cost. You should check it out of the library and read it before going further, otherwise you risk disappointment, and the loss of your money.
While you can see Mars with your unaided eye, to get a decent image of Mars for even casual viewing takes a lot of optical horsepower, and several months of experience at the eyepiece to actually see much of anything.
Unless you have a really good BIG scope (EXPENSIVE), and good skies to match, you won’t see anything resembling the spacecraft images you might be familiar with. Through a small telescope (8″ diameter or smaller) Mars is a difficult planet to observe. The details are fine, faint, and fleeting. The contrast is low, and the local atmospheric conditions make it seem as if you were looking through a swimming pool.
So, save your money, find an astronomy club, read books and magazines, and then get a telescope. And binoculars are a really good way to start with basic stargazing.
Starr Said,
You will have to save up for a better one, most telescopes under $100 dollars are crap . If you want to learn about the right one for a higher but not too pricey one contact me from my profile , my email is either listed there or on my website.
Geoff G Said,
You are asking the impossible.
A telescope is a precision instrument, and you need to spend at least $200 to get the most basic model with acceptable optics and mount, such as these:
Any telescope under $100 is a children’s toy (and a poor one at that).
Mars is one of the most challenging objects to observe, because of its small size. It takes a telescope of at least 8″ aperture to show any detail, and even then you will require a lot of eye training to detect much. It was at its closest to Earth for this apparition in mid-December, and is rapidly receding and shrinking in size.
Comments
A few telescope shops sell refubished telescopes – that might be your best bet for a decent scope under $100. Don’t go to WalMart!
Actually, if that’s your budget, I’d recommend a good pair of binoculars instead. You can see as much as you could with a small telescope, and you’re not paying for all the extras like eyepieces and mounts.
I believe Mars reached it’s brightest point a few weeks ago, but it will be back around in a few years. Plus, you’d be hard-pressed to notice a difference in brightness without a big scope. With a pair of binoculars or a telescope smaller than an 8-inch diameter mirror, you’re not going to be able to see much of Mars besides the disk. No polar caps or dust storms.
Blimey, you’ll be struggling!
A telescope is (or should be) a work of precision optics.
Think how much a decent camera lens would cost.
If you get an el cheapo scope it will probably put you off astronomy for life. Your only hope is second-hand. Try eBay, try second-hand outlets. You might be lucky.
If that’s your budget, buy a good pair of binoculars. Which are good instruments to start with, in any case.
Good planetary views cost more than $100. You might want to hook up with a local astronomy group to see what’s on offer before making any decisions.
Save your money until you’ve done your homework. There is a book called “StarWare” which is about telescopes, accessories, what you can see with them and how much they cost. You should check it out of the library and read it before going further, otherwise you risk disappointment, and the loss of your money.
While you can see Mars with your unaided eye, to get a decent image of Mars for even casual viewing takes a lot of optical horsepower, and several months of experience at the eyepiece to actually see much of anything.
Unless you have a really good BIG scope (EXPENSIVE), and good skies to match, you won’t see anything resembling the spacecraft images you might be familiar with. Through a small telescope (8″ diameter or smaller) Mars is a difficult planet to observe. The details are fine, faint, and fleeting. The contrast is low, and the local atmospheric conditions make it seem as if you were looking through a swimming pool.
So, save your money, find an astronomy club, read books and magazines, and then get a telescope. And binoculars are a really good way to start with basic stargazing.
You will have to save up for a better one, most telescopes under $100 dollars are crap . If you want to learn about the right one for a higher but not too pricey one contact me from my profile , my email is either listed there or on my website.
You are asking the impossible.
A telescope is a precision instrument, and you need to spend at least $200 to get the most basic model with acceptable optics and mount, such as these:
Any telescope under $100 is a children’s toy (and a poor one at that).
Mars is one of the most challenging objects to observe, because of its small size. It takes a telescope of at least 8″ aperture to show any detail, and even then you will require a lot of eye training to detect much. It was at its closest to Earth for this apparition in mid-December, and is rapidly receding and shrinking in size.