How Do Telescopes Work - Amateur's guide to Telescope-making

by John B. Mayall

When Galileo made his telescope, he was far from the expert he became later. He was just a layman, who found the sky and its stars fascinating and wanted a device that would take him closer to the object of his fascination. It was this desire that led him o devise the first ever telescope that changed the face of history in more ways than we can imagine.

In today's age, a person is able to buy a telescope, readymade, from the market. But for one who is not experienced, constructing a telescope is akin to an adventure. Although the procedure is complex and technical, and quite long, it is quite possible to make a telescope for oneself, by oneself. For the amateur who holds a keen interest in the telescope and the way it works, constructing it by oneself can be quite adventurous and fulfilling.

The construction itself is not very difficult, and it is made easier if one can enlist the assistance of another person who has himself constructed telescopes earlier. Even someone who is an amateur astronomer would make a good mentor, if it's no possible to find one experience in telescope construction. Astronomy clubs generally have at least one member who has prior experience of building telescopes, and such people are quite accommodating towards amateurs.

For an amateur, telescope construction can be a cumbersome task. Patience and calm are advisable for a first-timer. The greatest inventions of all time came from blind experiments and unexpected results. When starting out, it is always best to have some references and manuals handy, as they can explain the technical aspects in the clearest ways. A local library is a good source for material to an amateur just starting out in telescope building.

The basic elements of a telescope are the mirror, two lenses, the housing for the whole structure, and materials that will be used for polishing the mirror. These parts can all be bought at local stores or even online. The mirror can be ground at home as well, but is a tiresome process.

The construction of a telescope is a long and drawn out process. Careful planning is required to ensure that there is minimal cleaning up left after all the work is completed. Is advisable to lay out newspapers to ensure clean work as well as to ensure correct placement of all the equipment. Maintain a logbook if possible to keep track of the task completed and the duration of each task. In later stages, the logbook is a good record to refer to understand the tasks completed and how long each task required. Also, it helps one to remember what work has been completed and what remains.

Once the construction is complete, it is quite natural for the amateur to be pleased with himself for the work he has accomplished. It is however, easier to buy a telescope kit from the market instead of purchasing individual component and constructing the whole structure. Assembling a telescope from a kit is easier, takes less time and is a better financial option. Such telescope kits are intended for the amateurs, and not directed at the professionals.

About the Author

Get free lessons on how to build a telescope as well as professional advice on how to buy a telescope when you visit http://www.howdotelescopeswork.com, the premier portal on how to use telescopes.

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Choose a Good Beginners Telescope - Cut Through the Information Overload

by Aidan James

So you've been bitten by the astronomy bug and want to get started with your very own telescope, but you're confused by the vast number of possible purchases? You are not alone, astronomy stores are accustomed to dealing with the confused beginner though of course not everybody has the opportunity to visit a specialist store. This article is intended to help cut through some of the confusion.

It's important to choose a telescope that is right for you, for example there is no point having a great big Dobsonian if you rarely get the chance to assemble it in a good dark sky location.

There are several factors to be considered from practical considerations like size, weight and portability to the price you can afford and indeed where you'll be doing the majority of your observing. Ignoring more advanced uses like astrophotography we might think along the following lines.

As a general rule, the larger the aperture the more you can expect out of your telescope. Refractors will generally outperform similar size reflectors. Refractors however are more expensive than reflectors, due to the extra high quality glass involved. They can also be impractical to handle at larger apertures where they can also reach very long tube lengths.

Large aperture reflectors can have comparatively short tubes and be very easy to handle as well as inexpensive. There is a little extra maintenance involved as you may need to clean and align the mirror from time to time, this procedure is known as collimation.

Catadioptric telescopes are a combination of refractor and reflector and are quite portable even at large apertures. A great many amateur astronomers who have access to good dark sky sites, ultimately end up with catadioptric telescopes because the offer a range of possibilities including astrophotography. The large ones, like most large aperture scopes, are not ideal in light polluted areas like the city and suburbs.

Those big Dobsonian telescopes are really just big reflectors mounted on simple turntables and their attraction is their huge light capture and simplicity of use, making them ideal for visual astronomy in a good location (again they are not so good in light polluted areas).

If you do not relish the thought of learning to find your way around the skies you could consider purchasing one of the models that come with a computerized mount. These 'Go-To' telescopes have made finding targets a breeze.

With those facts in mind you can now think about where you are going to do the most observing and choose a suitable beginners telescope. If you live in the city and are unlikely to get to a rural location for observing then perhaps stick with the small to medium size refractors, reflectors or catadioptrics, with or without the go-to function, your budget will probably start to dictate the choices here! If on the other hand you live in a dark sky area then my recommendation is to buy a great big Dobsonian. These offer so much viewing pleasure and are so simple to use it is difficult to fault them.

About the Author

See my Squidoo page for more on how to choose a good beginners telescope and some specific recommendations and absolute bargains! Telescopes for Beginners, a site helping others get a start in astronomy. Telescopes for Beginners

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