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Thursday, January 19, 2012Telescope locationOkay, when it comes time to setup & use a telescope in, say, your backyard, just where should you set it? The seemingly obvious answer in terms of a physical location is where you can see the biggest expanse of the sky, but that may not actually be the best location. Other factors come into play and you sometimes have to get a bit creative to deal with them. If you are in the suburbs or the city, street lights and/or your neighbor’s yard lights can make or break you when selecting a place to observe with your astronomy binoculars or telescopes. Putting an object, any object, such as a tree, between you an offending light source can make a tremendous difference in how much you will be able to see. When there is no convenient object to block an annoying light, I’ve draped a towel over my head when looking through the telescope eyepiece. Your neighbors might give some odd looks when they see you doing this, so you may want to explain it to them. I know, because I used to drape a towel over my head as I sat outside my patio apartment when I was observing with the binoculars, often in my bathrobe, no less. I’m sure that was quite a sight to see. One of the time-tested Telescope Observing Tips is to always setup your telescope from any radiating heat source, such as concrete, pavement, rocks and, yes, even buildings such as your house. These objects absorb heat by day and release it back into the atmosphere at night. This release of heat produces air currents that can degrade image quality in your telescope. Unfortunately, a lot of us simply have to make-do with what we have for a telescope location. I’ve been known to use telescopes on a wooden deck, for instance, even though it puts me too close to the house and even though it limits the magnification I can effectively use, thanks to a deck surface picking up every footstep and jiggle you make. Comments: |
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