binoculars

[lesbehrens]

hi everyone . i was interested in getting something portable to view with and well i thought of binoculars. can u see the cloud band of Jupiter with good sized binocular? or the rings of Saturn?
les

[Ian Robinson]

Not really all that good for viewing Jupiter and Saturn.

[lesbehrens]

what r they really good for? i haven a pair and just looking for something portable.
les

[dannat]

you should be able only to see the moons of jupiter as light dots surrounding the planet.. no detail of the planet, as for saturn in big bins like 20x80 you can make out the round planet has handles, not really the rings distinctly.

what are they good for? learning heaps about the sky, constellations, & most importantly open star clusters. the open clusters are best viewed with binos, as telescopes have too narrow fov.

Binos are also very comfortable & good for quick looks - they serve different purpose to a telescope

[lesbehrens]

how r they with nebs?
les

[Ian Robinson]

Most everything else .... a good pair of 20x80s will impress you no end.

The star fields and bighter nebs of the Milky Way and the Magellanic Clouds are great with mine.

[lesbehrens]

thats very cool. i didn't think u could see all that through binoculars.
les