Guest Vicky Buckley Posted January 19, 2012 Share Posted January 19, 2012 Hi My name is Vicky, and I have been interested in space since school. I am now 24 and am looking into taking my interest a little further. I plan on getting my first telescope soon, as I want to see things with my own eyes. My torch for space as been reignited by Brian Cox and his programming for the BBC! I am living in Nottingham, so will hopefully be finding some good dark areas to gaze when I have saved for a telescope. I'm welcome to any advice etc, and am looking to find new friends to learn along with, and hopefully get some tutoring/help, because I'm sure I will need it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Craig Posted January 19, 2012 Share Posted January 19, 2012 Hi Vicky, Welcome to EMS! You'll find plenty of advice here, some of these guys have been doing astronomy for a very looooooooooong time. The planned meeting on 28th Jan might be just the ticket, http://www.eastmidlandsstargazers.co.uk/topic/444-an-evening-with-east-midlands-stargazers/, with some of the members doing talks on various astronomy related subjects. We also have two dark sites which we use for observing, one at Sawley (near the power station at junction 24A) and one near Belper. Both offer great dark skies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catman161 Posted January 19, 2012 Share Posted January 19, 2012 Hi Vicky, welcome to EMS ). I am Also a relative newbie. I work in Nottingham but live in Leicester. I have always been interested in astronomy but only started at Christmas. I now have a great pair of Binoculars and a beautiful Skywatcher 200p Dobsonian Telescope. This is a really friendly forum and the experienced members will sort you out with advice on purchasing your first scope. I went for the Skywatcher Skyliner 200p 8 inch Dobsonian as I wanted to observe deep sky objects and planets. Is best if you have a think about what you want to view as it will affect your decision about what type of scope you get. Felix Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Vicky Buckley Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 well i had found this one: http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/5800494/Trail/searchtext%3ETELESCOPE.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 Welcome to EMS Vicky I really hope you enjoy your stay. You have some great advice but the most important piece is this please don't buy a scope From shops like Argos as you will in time regret it. Visit First Light Optics and buy from there just google the name, you will have a great choice and all of them are proper manufacturers soy ou are buying a good telescope. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Vicky Buckley Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 (edited) ok so, seen as you all know what your talking about.....what are the best beginners telescopes, and for a first one im thinking below £200 to get going another i had seen was: http://www.firstlightoptics.com/reflectors/skywatcher-skyhawk-1145p.html what is the difference between reflector / refractor? Which is better for looking at what? Edited January 20, 2012 by Vicky Buckley Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Fluke Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 (edited) Hi Vicky Welcome to the forum.Like Felix I'm a relative newbie so I'll let one of the more experienced guys answer that for you, as my understanding would probably confuse you lol Dan Edited January 20, 2012 by Fluke Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 Vicky best to start a new thread in the beginners section and ask all your questions there, you will get alot more response. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cosmic dave Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 hello... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glider Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 HI, glad you found us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
red dwalf Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 welcome to the local forum, if you interested in a good new scope for the £200 mark i`d make a big surgestion of onre of these, http://www.firstlightoptics.com/reflectors/skywatcher-explorer-130p-supatrak-auto.html fantastic first scope, i sold a as new one a year back for £130 still with box, brill first scope and very easy to use. try astro buy and sell website for second hand gear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daz Type-R Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 Welcome to EMS Vicky. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Kheldar Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 Welcome Vicky! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyboy1970 Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 Welcome to the EMS Vicky. You'll find some of use on here and astronomyshed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rusty Strings Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 Hi Vicky and welcome from me too Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brantuk Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 Hi Vicky - welcome to EMS Best advice is take your time when buying a scope - they're as widely different as cars so you want to be sure to get the one that suits you personally. Ask plenty of questions and do a lot of reading before making your choice - allways loads of help here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Craig Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 Come to a meet and try the scopes there, most folk will happily let you look through their scope and tell you about it's pros and cons. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BAZ Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 Hi Vicky, welcome to EMS. Iam glad you didn't get the scope from Argos, it would have put you right off. I would also suggest you have a look at what scope would be suitable for what you want to observe. A good analogy is that scopes are like cars, some are good at going fast, others better at off road, you get the picture. The 130 Craig suggested has a good reputation, and would give you a great start in Astronomy. See if you can pop over on the 28th and have a look at whats on offer, we are experts at spending other peoples money. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rock Doctor Posted January 21, 2012 Share Posted January 21, 2012 Hi Vicky and welcome to EMS. I'm a neewbie and got my first scope last year and have seen some amazing things. The guys on this site are great and very helpful and will lead you through the maze of choosing the right scope and give you some support afterwards for how to set up, use it and get the best out of it. If you are into doing your own reading up then I have found The Backyard Astronomer's Guide by Dickinson and Dyer a useful book which will explain a lot. It's a good job you came to the site first before purchasing the scope from Argos. I did the same and bought my son a cheap scope a few years ago and to put it bluntly it was crap and would put you off for life. If your budget is very tight a lot of people suggest that buying a good pair of binoculars is a better investment but the scope mentioned above in the thread has had some good reviews also. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
philjay Posted January 24, 2012 Share Posted January 24, 2012 (edited) Hi Vicky and welcome to the fastest growing astro forum in the east midlands As Kim mentioned dont rush into buying a scope, especially argos or chainstore scopes. Try to get along to a meeting and take a look at the different scopes that are around. There are some good scopes out there for your budget but its always best to try before you buy. Phil Edited January 24, 2012 by philjay Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daz Type-R Posted January 24, 2012 Share Posted January 24, 2012 Nice edit Phil Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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