[mic_m (Michael)]

The first piece of advice I would give any beginner looking to get their first telescope is to join an astronomy club and attend a couple of star parties, this way you will have to opportunity to look through a variety of telescopes and develop a sense of what is important to you and what kind of views you can expect. However, baring that for now I will give you some more specific advice.

As has been noted by some above, there are often trade-offs in choosing a telescope, these are typically between aperture, portability, computerised features such as GOTO, as well as optical design.

The larger the aperture of a telescope the more light from astronomical objects the objective mirror or lens gathers and the brighter the images and the greater the resolution that is attainable. This implies that you should get the largest aperture possible; however, this is only true to a point. And that point generally comes down to size and weight considerations. You don’t want a huge telescope that is too big to move nor do you want one that is too small to produce the kind of images you are after. So all else being equal, it is best to get the largest aperture that you can easily move and store.

In terms of value for money you would be hard pressed to go past a Newtonian reflecting telescope, in particular a dobsonian mounted (alt-azimuth) Newtonian reflecting telescope. Newtonian reflectors are far cheaper than Catadioptric telescopes for a given size, however, they are often more heavy and bulky than catadioptric telescopes; which use a folded light path and mirrors to magnify the focal length of the telescope. All reflecting telescopes (i.e. catadioptric telescopes that use mirrors such as the Schmidt–Cassegrain (SCT) and Newtonian reflectors) require periodic collimation (aligning of the optics). Here is a short video describing the collimation process for a Newtonian reflector and here is a short article about collimating an SCT. At first collimation might sound a bit daunting but with practice you will get the hang of it quite quickly. If you choose a reflecting telescope you will need to purchase a collimation device like this unless it is already included in the telescope package.

A refracting telescope, on the other hand, does not typically require collimation; many refractors don’t have lens cells with collimation screws; their collimation is permanently set at the factory. A refractor does not have a central obstruction, which allows refractors to produce higher contrast images than an equivelent sized reflector, such as a Newtonian or an SCT. However, a well made refracting telescope will generally cost substantially more than a reflecting telescope for a given aperture. The reason for this is because of the number of high-quality lenses that are used to counteract the optical aberrations otherwise present in the refractor design. So while at a given aperture you can achieve greater resolution and contrast with a well made refractor, for the amount of money a decent refractor costs, you can easily afford a much larger reflecting telescope that would have greater image resolution and brightness than the smaller refractor. The dimensions of refractors vary greatly; some are short and light, while others are long and heavy (though not too bulky due to their typically small objective diameter); they exist in these sizes because thay are used for different observing applications; wide views of star fields (short and light refractors) and close observation of planets (long and heavy refractors).

In terms of GOTO and tracking, there is a premium payed for the convenience of this technology. So if you have limited funds to devote to a new telescope, it may be the case of trading aperture (brightness and resolution) for GOTO and tracking. For some people, i.e. those interested in observing planets (which are already relatively bright) or those that are interested in astrophotography, this may be a fair trade. (Note that for long exposure astrophotography you will either need a wedge (for an alt-zimuth mounted tracking telescope) or an equatorial mount). However, for those interested in the visual observation of faint deep sky objects (e.g. nebula, galaxies), aperture is considered to be much more important than GOTO or tracking because it greatley enhances the visability of these objects. Only you can determine whether trading aperture for GOTO is worth it. However, if you decide that GOTO and tracking is for you, you will likely need a power supply like this to power the mount of your telescope.

In addition to your telescope, a collimation device and power supply (if you choose a GOTO telescope), the only thing you will need are some quality eyepieces and perhaps a Barlow lens. In case you don’t know, the magnification of a telescope is calculated by dividing the telescopes focal length by the focal length of the eyepiece. See here for more details on this subject. What you really need is a low power eyepiece, a medium power eyepiece and a high-power eyepiece. A convenient way of choosing your eyepieces is through the exit pupil they produce with your telescope. For example, if you decide to get a 10” dobsonian telescope (1200mm, f/4.7), a good combination of eyepieces might be: 20-25mm (low power, large exit pupil) (you will likely get an eyepiece of about this focal length included as a part of the telescope package you buy), 17-10mm (medium power, moderate exit pupil) and 8-3mm (high power, small exit pupil). Some high-quality eyepiece brands and series are TeleVue, Orion Stratus series and Baader Hyperion, though, there are many others. Once you decide on a telescope you can start another thread to get some good eyepiece recommendations.

So what are your telescope options? I won’t recommend a telescope outright but I will give you some alternatives to consider that are within your $1500 budget.

A Sky-Watcher 10”Autotracking tracking dobsonian. These are $1499 at Andrews Communications. This telescope incorporates many of the features you are after. The great thing about this telescope is that you can move it by hand or use its automatic tracking feature, (according to some vendors it is possible to upgradable this telescope to GOTO with the addition of a SynScan hand controller-check this to confirm before you buy). The optical tube of this telescope can be collapsed to reduce its size for transport and storage (here is a video that demonstrates this feature), which might make it a better alternative to its solid tube counterpart. Because of the open strut structure connecting either end of the optical tube this telescope would require a light shroud to ensure that stray light does not enter the light path.

A midground design between a telescope with tracking and GOTO and one without it might be the Orion XT10i with digital setting circles. These are priced at $1115 at Sirius optics. This telescope mount has a computer that directs you to the object you are looking for through arrow diagrams (up, down, left and right); however you must move the telescope manually to the object and track the object yourself. This telescope does not require a power supply other than a 9 volt battery.

Another alternative is the Celestron Nexstar 6SE. This telescope sells for $1499 at Andrews Communications. It also has full GOTO and tracking. However, it has a smaller objective lens and a larger central obstruction (by percentage) then the two telescopes above. Though, due to its folded optical path and smaller aperture it is lighter and more compact.

I can’t make a suggestion for a refractor because I am not too familiar with any specific refracting telescope. However, I do know that Sky-Watcher and Celestron make quality refractors (some with GOTO mount packages), so if you decide you want this kind of telescope check with you local Sky-Watcher and Celestron dealers to see what they have in stock.

If you decide that GOTO and tracking is not important for the kind of observing you will be doing you may like to consider getting a larger telescope, for instance...

A 12” Saxon dobsonian telescope. These are $1,395 from OZ scopes. However, a 12” f/4.9 solid tube dobsonian telescope is very large and very heavy, which makes them challenging to move arround and to fit into standard sized vehicles, so if you are considering this telescope (or one like it) it would be worth seeing one in person before making a purchase decision.

If the size rather than the weight of a large solid tube dobsonian telescope is an issue for you, you may like to consider a 12” Sky-Watcher Flextube. This telescope sells for $1299 at Andrews Communications. Like the first telescope I noted above, this one also has an optical tube that can be collapsed to reduce its size for transport and storage, however, like the Sky-Watcher telescope above, this telescope will need a light shroud.

Good luck with your decisions, let us know what you decide....

Michael.