Equipment
Homemade 250mm Reflector
The reflector telescope that I use for quick observations of the brighter deep sky objects is a homemade 250mm F5 on a dobson mount. This gives a focal length of 1250mm and is very portable and easy to setup. I also have an Orion Optics 250mm F4.8 reflector on an equatorial mount, focal length of 1200mm. This is fitted with Sky Sensor 2000 and will enable me to find more DSO especially NGC galaxies and faint planetary nebula.A few good eyepieces to use with the telescope are also required. Most plossl or orthoscopic low,medium and high power with a x2 converter is a good starting point.For example a 25mm(lp) 15mm(mp) and 9mm(hp) with a x2 converter is ideal for deep sky or planetary observing.I have recently purchased more expensive "high quality"eyepieces such as the Takahashi LE 5mm and a Celestron 19mm Axiom.These two eyepieces when fitted with nebula filters are superb in picking out faint DSO in a mag 5 at best sky that I observe at. As I carry out my observing from the outskirts of a large town I use Lumicon Light Pollution Reduction filters.The Deep Sky Filter is essential for my galaxy observing and the OIII Filter for Planetary Nebulae observing. An atlas such as Sky Atlas 2000 is an excellent atlas in carrying out telescope deep sky work.Stars to magnitude 8.5 are shown.Deep Map 600 is also superb and carries descriptions of 600 deep sky objects on the reverse of the waterproof map. This shows stars to magnitude 5.This is an ideal map for binocular or small telescope observing. A pair of Binoculars are an essential part of the equipment required for astronomy.10x50's are suitable for Milky Way views and the brighter Messier Objects, any larger and they will need mounting on a tripod for steady views of the night sky.
