Celestron StarSense Explorer 150mm Smartphone App-Enabled Tabletop Dobsonian Tel - Page 12

YOUR FIRST NIGHT OUT WHAT TO EXPECT You can observe literally thousands of objects with the larger aperture of the SSE Dobs: The Moon Observing the lunar surface is a great place to start. You'll easily see craters, maria, lacus, valleys, mountains, and other features. The Moon is so bright that you might want to consider using an optional Moon filter. It threads onto bottom of the eyepiece to dim the view. We also recommend a higher-power eyepiece to help you explore the Moon up-close. Planets The best planets to view are Jupiter, Saturn, Mars, and Venus. A higher-power eyepiece will help bring out the fine details. You'll be able to see the rings of Saturn, surface detail on Jupiter along with its moons, the phases of Venus, and perhaps some surface detail on Mars if it is near opposition (i.e. when it is closest to the Earth). Stars and Double Stars Stars will appear like points of light regardless of the magnification used. However, a telescope can reveal a star's color and also "split" double stars using higher magnifications. For variable stars, see if you can detect a star's change in brightness over a period of days or weeks. Open Star Clusters These are star groups that formed together within our Milky Way galaxy. They can appear spectacular in the telescope eyepiece, even from somewhat light-polluted skies. Astronomers often describe star clusters as resembling "crushed diamonds on black velvet" in the telescope's eyepiece. Clusters are generally best viewed with low-power eyepieces, as they usually require a wide field of view to see the entire cluster. Globular Star Clusters These are tight clusters of hundreds of thousands of stars that coalesced early in our galaxy's formation. These clusters appear like globes of light. The brighter ones can be resolved into individual stars in good conditions. Most globular clusters are best viewed with a medium-power eyepiece, as they are not nearly as wide as open clusters, yet not bright enough for high power either. Nebulae You'll generally need to be under dark skies to see gaseous nebulae, which appear as a faint glow around stars. Don't expect to see any nebulosity from urban skies except for perhaps the brightest ones, like the Orion Nebula and Lagoon Nebula. Galaxies Perhaps the most fascinating of all objects to view, galaxies are like "island universes" unto themselves. While you can detect the brightest galaxies, like the Andromeda Galaxy, from somewhat light-polluted skies, they are best observed from dark skies. Literally hundreds of galaxies are well within the observing reach of the SSE Dobs. The best ones display fine details like faint spiral arms and dust lanes. Many, however, will just appear as non-stellar "streaks" or "blobs." Even so, just being able to detect the light from another galaxy outside our own is rewarding in itself. One thing to keep in mind is that the SSE Dobs are not motorized. This means that they will not automatically track celestial objects as the Earth rotates. As a result, you will notice that objects drift a bit as you observe them and will exit the eyepiece's field of view within a minute or two, depending on the magnification you are using. Objects will drift out of the field of higher-power eyepieces faster, since their field of view is narrower. You will need to manually push the Dob along to keep objects centered over time. This is easy to do. Grab hold of the telescope's panning knob and move it slightly up-and-down and left-to-right as needed. 12 I ENGLISH