How to REALLY use a Telescope

How to REALLY use a Telescope

How to REALLY use a Telescope will help you choose the right telescope for you and your family. Factors discussed include cost, portability, the object you want to observe and price range. The course includes tips on choosing, assembling and using your telescope in a realistic and concrete way. We also discuss and show examples of what objects like Mercury, Venus, the Moon, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn look like through a beginner telescope. Included are observation tips and interesting facts about the objects you'll observe.

We also discuss larger telescopes in use by professional astronomers, both land-based and orbital.

This Course includes great BONUS LESSONS:

• What on Earth is Astronomy?

• Mini-Lesson: Eclipses

• Mini-Lesson: Meteor Showers

• Mini-Lesson: Aurora

How to REALLY Use a Telescope

1. Objective & Warm-up activity

2. Tips and tricks to finding and tracking objects in the sky

3. How to pick the right telescope for your family

4. How much to pay for a telescope

5. What to look for in a telescope

6. What to expect to see with a telescope

7. Galileo and telescopes

8. Magnification, resolution and clarity

9. Gathering light and the telescope’s aperture

10. Comparing and contrasting reflecting and refracting telescopes

11. Telescope accessories and Tripods

12. The functions and uses of lenses

13. Focal length and eyepieces

14. Calculating the telescope’s magnification ability

15. Where to buy a telescope

16. Assembling your telescope and getting help at Star parties

17. Tips and tricks for assembling and configuring your telescope

18. Using the telescope during the day

19. Proper storage of your telescope

20. A checklist for your first night out with the telescope

21. How to find the planets with your telescope

22. Adjusting for the Earth’s movement

23. Cleaning the telescope

24. Using a telescope with young children

25. Managing expectations

26. Observation tips and interesting facts about the Moon

27. Observation tips and interesting facts about Mercury

28. Observation tips and interesting facts about Venus

29. Observation tips and interesting facts about Mars

30. Observation tips and interesting facts about Jupiter

31. Observation tips and interesting facts about Saturn

32. Using a telescope with glasses

33. Keeping your telescope from fogging up

34. Using binoculars to look at the sky

35. Using your naked eyes to look at the sky

36. Recognizing the constellations

37. Observing the Sun with a telescope

38. Very large telescopes around the world

39. Different kinds of light

40. Space-based telescopes

41. Radio telescopes

42. Infrared telescopes

43. Ultraviolet telescopes

44. X-ray telescopes

45. Test questions & Cross-curricular activities

How to choose the telescope that's right for you

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What you will learn

• How to buy and use a telescope

Rating: 3.95

Level: Beginner Level

Duration: 2.5 hours

Instructor: Tony Ceraso