DSO binoculars.

Hello,

Is best a rich field telescope of 3"-4" with variable magnification for quick look DSO or a giant binocular 70-100mm with fixed mag.?

Paul

Good question! I have both, but if I had to choose, I'd go with my 15x70 or my 20x80 binoculars. At about 3 pounds, they can be hand-held for real quick looks, which a telescope cannot. The view improves immensely with a tripod, but two eyes are still better than one. Magnification at 15-20x is sufficient (IMHO) for the DSO's that show best at this aperture.

I think that 15x70 is pretty much like a long focus 2" eyepiece in my 4" refractor, so I don't have a 2" diagonal because this case is already covered for a fraction of price.

Dmitri

Paulo martin said:

Hello,

Is best a rich field telescope of 3"-4" with variable magnification for quick look DSO or a giant binocular 70-100mm with fixed mag.?

Paul

Scope.
Variable magnification does not need to be an entire case of eyepieces. This is particularly the case for quick look situations. But a mid to higher power magnification option (or a couple of them) in addition to that lowest power widest field view, is really nice to have.

Paulo martin said:

Hello,

Is best a rich field telescope of 3"-4" with variable magnification for quick look DSO or a giant binocular 70-100mm with fixed mag.?

Paul

I put my money on the scope. My typical setup when at a dark site is some sort of larger reflector along with either an 80mm or 102mm F/7 ED/APO with a 2 inch focuser and then some 7x42's or 10x42's.

The real problem with most binoculars is that they are straight-through, fine for watching birds and scanning near the horizon but require serious neck-bending for much of the sky... A scope with a diagonal allows comfortable viewing for both quick looks as well as longer more involved observation... And if a planet happens to be around, the scope is the obvious choice.

Jon Isaacs