Greetings all,
I've been living in Burketown (far NW QLD) for the last 18 months or so and the night skies out here are nothing short of magnificent. There's very little light pollution and we don't get a much cloud for about 70% of the year. I've always been interested in astronomy, and have been toying with the idea of getting myself a telescope for some time. Christmas is approaching and I'm thinking this would be a good present to buy myself.
The catch: I don't really know what I should be looking for in such a scope, or what I should be paying.
A few points:
- I'm going to need something I can get posted/trucked up here
- In the absence of any kind of society in the area, I'm going to need something that I can learn to use myself (with a little help from internet forums/youtube and the like)
- While there's not a huge amount of light in my backyard, I live in town and I would probably look to get something reasonably portable that I can put in the back of the car and take a few km down the road.
- While the idea of astrophotography appeals to me, I'm not going to make that kind of commitment/investment just yet, so that capability (while nice) isn't necessary.
- Under $500 would be nice, but I can stretch the budget (again, I'm not sure what a reasonable beginner setup should set me back).
- Totally happy with 2nd hand (I've seen the classified forum here, but - again - don't really know what I should be looking for).
Any wisdom that you would care to impart would be massively appreciated. (Links to parts of the forum/other sites which you think make for good 'Stargazing for Dummies' resources are also totally appreciated.)
Thanks in advance,
Nils