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QF Focus Magazine Stargazing with binoculars
Are you are a stargazer with binoculars? There are many advantages to using binoculars for our hobby. Every amateur astronomer, including those with an expensive telescope uses them.
So what can binoculars do for you that a telescope can’t? Their big advantage is that they give you a very wide view of the sky. Telescopes are essential for giving close up views of planets, but binoculars show you the big picture. The good news is that binoculars need not cost you very much. You can buy a reasonable pair for less than 100€. A popular choice is 10 x 50. This means the magnification is 10 and the main lens is 50mm in diameter.
Go outside on a clear night, relax in a comfortable reclining chair and look at the moon. You can see the most obvious dark markings on the moon with your naked eye, but with
binoculars you’ll see mountains and lots of craters, especially near the shadow line [the terminator].
The best time to look is when the terminator is more or less central. The craters are particularly obvious along this line. See if you can find the area where Apollo 11 made the first moon landing in the Mare Tranquillitatis. A quick look on the internet will guide you to the area.
A superb binocular object is the star cluster called the Pleiades often called The Seven Sisters. You may see 6 or 7 stars with the naked eye but through binoculars you will see too many stars to count. The Pleiades is in the constellation of Taurus.
We recommend that you look online for a free program called Stellarium which a great way to find your way around the night sky.
Vega Baja Astronomy Group meet at Casa Tom on Avenida Jaca, San Luis Torrevieja, second Wednesday of each month at 2.30pm. For more information email us at:-
vegabaja.astronomygroup@
gmail.com.
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