Telescope help?

Question

Im buying my 10 year old brother a telescope I want to get him something top quality but not too expensive what would be something ideal for his age?

Answer 1

I would like to suggest that you first spend your money on a membership to a local astronomy club or astronomical society. You will be able to attend their star parties, and monthly meetings which usually include presentations and lots of current information, plus you will meet a lot of new and very nice people to be your friends. Most clubs have loaner equipment and lending libraries and a lot more to offer you.

You will be able to try out a lot of different telescopes with your own two eyeballs at the star parties and you will be able to decide what would be the perfect scope for you and your brother to purchase in the future. Your new friends will help you to choose and they will also help you to get the most out of the scope that you might buy.

I am an Orion fan   http://www.oriontelescopes.com/  they are the best for value and customer service

but another easy and very kid friendly scope is the Astroscan by Edmonds Scientific

http://scientificsonline.com/product.asp...

Enjoy!

Answer 2

Joey says that the Orion XT4.5 is a good choice.  But for a little bit more you can get the RCOS 14" cassegrain on an Astro-physics go-to mount and that ought to keep a ten year old busy for a while.

Answer 3

The review linked below says I think everything that needs to be said.   You can get a very good telescope and a 4.5" is wonderful.  Even though we like to encourage adults to get 8" or even 10" Newtonians, the fact is that there is a lifetime of study to be done with a 4 inch aperture.    Sue French's book, Celestial Sampler (see link) costs only $17 and was written entirely with a four inch telescope--less than the 4.5 inch here.

The comes-with eyepieces will do the trick.  If you want to go a bit better on the eyepieces tell Orion you want an inexpensive 32mm plossl to go with this telescope.   Read that phrase right to them over the phone.

Ultimately there is a lot to do by way of upgrades, especially in eyepieces but this will get you to an excellent start.    Your brother needs to know that in a 4.5 inch telescope things won't look the way they do in the hubble pictures!  But I still have a four inch scope.  

Also ask Orion about a "planisphere" (how to locate constellations in the sky) and if they have it the "Deep Sky 500" which is a fold out map of fairly easy to find deep sky objects.  Your brother should start with anytyhing that begins with an M, the Messier objects.   But the Sue French guide is invaluable.

Answer 4

That depends on what you mean by 'top quality' and 'not too expensive'.  Anything considered top quality would probably be more than $400.  But you can get a crappy one for $100 or less at Wal-Mart (not a recommendation).

If you don't have too much, consider getting him a good pair of binoculars.  Many of those are just as good as a small scope, and you're not paying for the tripod and setup.  And it will be harder for him to break.