Hi everyone

[liamii (Liam)]

Hi everyone my name is Liam and I have always loved astronomy, it's interesting for me, I just want to buy a telescope, Can you help me with which thread in this forum have the best topic for buying or reviewing about telescope So I can gather more information to what is the best choice for me?

[m11 (Mel)]

Hi Liam,

If you are starting off and not planning on doing Astrophotography or EAA then the recommended telescope would be a 6" or 8" dobsonian.

iceinspace and cloudynights are the ideal resource to research on all aspects of the hobby.

When I started I decided to go goto for my dobsonian which I have never regretted.

Hope it helps,

[mura_gadi (Steve)]

Try TASOS if there close by, people here will recommend some great scopes and be right.

But we all see differently and have different preferences, the best advice is to go try before you buy.

Try TASOS .org or the facebook page, looks like they have a meeting this Friday.

[Crater101 (Warren)]

Welcome!


I have to agree with what's been said - deep sky viewing / photography has different needs to planetary viewing. Ask a dozen different astronomers which is best and you're likely to get a dozen different answers.


If you can, find a local astronomy club and see if you can go and try viewing through a few scopes before you buy. If not, there are dedicated companies like Bintel and Testar who will offer advice (with a view to selling you a 'scope) but ultimately it comes down to what you want to do.


If I may...astronomy is a bit like swimming; don't jump straight into the deep end! Start simple, build up your knowledge and skills, learn from the mistakes, and ask plenty of questions. The only dumb question is the one you don't ask!

[alw50 (Andrew)]

Lots of good advice already, I'll just try to add a little bit to it.

I see you're in Singapore. That means that you have a lot of light pollution to contend with, consequently you will probably want to take your telescope to a darker sky site sometimes to get better viewing. So portability is a factor, especially if you have to lug it around for ages on the MRT!

You might to want to consider binoculars as a starling point. They open up the sky a lot compared to just your eyes, and have a wider field of view, so it's easier to find your way around the sky.

There is a very good book with a lot of practical advice about these points and a lot more, especially different kinds of telescopes and their use. It is "The Backyard Astronomers Guide" by Dickinson and Dyer. I've read it from start to finish and learnt a huge amount. It really helped me start from the basics and build up knowledge on a solid foundation. The latest (fourth) edition is best.

But, as has been pointed out, talking to other people about what they're using, and why they chose it, will be really helpful. TASOS seems to be quite active, I'm sure they'll have meetings for getting people started.


Regards, Andrew

[liamii (Liam)]

Many thanks for sharing your knowledge and helping me understand what to do is better for me. TASOS is an excellent suggestion, and I will contact them soon. Honestly, you have a great community here guys, clear and straightforward answers, I appreciate it.

Originally Posted by m11

Hi Liam,

If you are starting off and not planning on doing Astrophotography or EAA then the recommended telescope would be a 6" or 8" dobsonian.

iceinspace and cloudynights are the ideal resource to research on all aspects of the hobby.

When I started I decided to go goto for my dobsonian which I have never regretted.

Hope it helps,

Perfect recommendation about 'cloudynights', They have a forum. I'll register there and ask their opinion too, thanks.

[m11 (Mel)]

Hi Liam,

Feel free to post or pm directly as well.

Happy to help as I have been in this hobby for a short time compared to others.

[Rod-AR127 (Rod)]

Hi Liam, welcome to IIS.
I'm new here as well and have learnt a lot from people sharing information.
I have spent a lot of time in Singapore, mostly Sembawang and Yishun, and l loved walking to the top of Bukit Timah Hill, from Yishun, and back.
Where are you going to use your telescope?
You will need the biggest diameter telescope you can get and still be able to get it to a playing field. Moving any telescope from an apartment or HDB to a playing field really needs a car.
A goto mount and some good binoculars would be a LOT easier, even a cheap camera tripod and some binoculars would be good.
If you can travel into Malaysia then you could fine some darker skies to use a telescope.
If l was still in SG, l would be getting some Celestron 25x100 binoculars and the best tripod and mount l could afford, which can all be taken on public transport, carried to the top of Bukit Timah Hill and used for looking at day time stuff like ducks and trains and ships and stuff like birds


My biggest mistake when l started is not getting a better tripod and mount.
Best of luck.
Rod.