Astrophotography/stargazing on the cheap?

[Rob_B]

My son has taken an interest in space and is like to surprise him with a set of binoculars or a spotter scope so we can stare at the sky.

I'm leaning towards a spotter scope for the better magnification and larger lens. Also it seems that smartphone mounts are easily available.

As usual I'm looking to spend as little as possible in case its just a passing phase and so I'm drawn to the cheap scopes on ebay, 25-70 x 70mm for under £50 - either that or a similarly priced 2nd hand scope seems about right budget wise. I'm aware better quality is available but prices seem to skyrocket pretty quickly.

Has anyone had experience and have any suggestions? Especially when it comes to what might be a good buy on the 2nd hand market. I'll be catching up on AstroBiscuit videos to see what I can get from him!

Thanks!

Rob

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

You need to think if you want something more widefield so you can take more of the sky in,or more narrowfield if you want to focus on one area.

However,I would make sure you have at least a 50MM objective to make sure you can get enough light in the scope.

The only issue with the 70MM objective binoculars is that you really need a monopod or tripod to stablise them. They are not ideal for handholding.

Other things to look at ideally,would be nitrogen filled and sealed pairs,so you can minimise any condensation issues inside the optics. Dew and condensation can be issues at night.

[g8ina]

Rob, if you are in Facebook, look out for UK Astro Imaging group. Old mates of mine from when I was doing astro photography. They'll have the latest info.

Basically, for planets you need a long skinny scope (high f number) and you take a 40 second movie and stack it.

For deep sky you need a tracking mount like an EQ5, and a wide mirror scope like a Skywatcher 200mm F5.

Theres often decent scopes turn up in Fabebook Marketplace too.

[Rob_B]

I'm not on Facebook anymore, think getting a few planet shots would be most interesting for him.

[g8ina]

In that case, an 80mm F10 on a decent tracking mount with a webcam on the eyepiece. He may need additionmal Barlow 2x or 3x lenses. Then take a 40 second video and use Registax to sort and stack the individual frames to a single image

To whet the appetite, heres one I did erarlier (About 20 years earlier !)

Jupiter.jpg