New member intro

[Donald]

Hi All,
just starting out in this hobby and an loving it so far. My first scope is a Celestron Travelscope 70 which I have had for about a month now. Fantastic little scope so far and has driven my interest further. I know that this scope is quite limited, but I got it due to portability, size and price as I am watching the stars with my young children.
I have read through alot of the beginners posts on this great website and have purchased Hartungs book and am now looking at an 8" or 10" dob which from what I have read here, will give amazing views.
Thanks to everyone who has contributed to the website which has answered many questions and provided alot of information to help in starting out.
Thanks
Donald

[JA]

Hi Donald,

Welcome to the forum, please join in on the discussions and enjoy your time here.

Best
JA

[sil]

welcome, glad you're enjoying your scope. don't get too disheartened by your beginners scope though or blame the scope as the weak point is usually the eyepieces that come with them. so even entry level scope get clearer sharper cleaner views often by upgrading to a couple of better eyepieces. gear envy and ill-informed upgrades can be costly to beginners (and old timers).

[AEAJR]

Hi Donald,

Can you tell us a little about your budget and how dark your skies are?

Do you have a book you are using to help you learn the skies? I would strongly recommend, "Turn Left at Orion".

A 10" Dobsonian is starting to get heavy. Where will you store your scope and how will you get it to your observing area? I keep my 8" in an unheated garage and roll it out on a cart.

Have you looked into local clubs. Nothing more fun than sharing the excitement with other like minded people who want to help you be successful.

Do you plan to take this Dob to remote sites? Do you have the room in your car?

Just looking for a little more information. I am from the USA so I can't address local conditions but the questions are universal.

[ZeroID]

Hi Donald and :welcome: aboard,
If you haven't already I suggest you down load Stellarium ( Free) to your computer and start learning the sky from that. Set it up for your location and you can plan your viewing to suit the place and time.

And enjoy ..

:thumbsup:

Brent

[bigjoe]

Hi , and welcome Donald .
If you can afford it , yes get a 8-10" dob ; best bang for your buck out there! And later a 30mm 2" GSO SUPERVIEW, and as suggested download Stellarium.
bigjoe