Good deep space scope

[Jazza11 (Jeremy)]

i have only been doing observational astronomy for about 3 months now and i am getting a 10" dobsonian on the 11th of april im sure i will get some good views out of it but i want to also get a deep space telescope because of my scopes 1200mm focal length i believe it would not be as good as scopes with shorter focal lengths so can anyone recommend me a good deep space scope?

[norm]

Hi Jazza11

The 10" will give your good views of DSOs such as nebula, globular clusters and nebulas - especially if you have good dark skies. But even in suburbia you will get reasonable views of such objects, albeit, practice viewing techniques as as averted vision etc. Down the track you may consider a filter such as an NPB filter.

The 10" will give you yrs of satisfaction. I'm no expert so I'll let the gurus jump in, but its not so much focal length being the issue of seeing deep space, but aperture, ie size of your primary mirror. The next jump for you would be a 16", but we're in a different league now when it comes to portability etc.

to the forum.

[KenGee (Kenith Gee)]

Hi Jazza11, Don't be in a rush as Norm says the 10 inch dob should give you great views and will give you years of service. The next thing you should get is some EP's, learn the sky, and have fun. Good luck

[White Rabbit]

I agree with all the above, 10" is a great size. It's the sweet spot for size and portability. I have a 12" light bridge and whilst the views are amazing it's just that little bit too much of pain in @!#$ to get out the door that I use my 8" instead.
Another good aspect about the 10" is that later if your feeling flush you can buy a mount like the EQ6 and put the scope on a mount.

I've only been doing this for a couple of years now so still relativly new but things you want to get first are a 2x barlow and a 3x barlow, 6mm, 14mm,26mm,32mm ep's. Get reasonable quality from the start and save your self some money because eventually you'll ditch the cheap ones and have to start again, may as well do it properly the first time. I have two sets of the above mentioned because I went the cheap route first lol.

After that you'll be wanting the Argo Navis computer for the dob, that opens up the universe (and wallet) and takes some strain off the old neck as well.
Another good aspect about the 10" is that later if your feeling flush you can buy a mount like the EQ6 and put the scope on a mount but again that’s a story for another day lol. .

Clear skies
Sandy