Celestron StarSense Explorer 12" f/4.9 Dobsonian Telescope - Manual (Page 12)

12 I ENGLISH
YOUR FIRST NIGHT OUT -
WHAT TO EXPECT
You can observe literally thousands of objects with the larger
aperture of the SSE Dobs:
The Moon
Observing the lunar surface is a great place to start. You’ll
easily see craters, maria, lacus, valleys, mountains, and
other features. The Moon is so bright that you might want
to consider using an optional Moon filter. It threads onto
bottom of the eyepiece to dim the view. We also recommend
a higher-power eyepiece to help you explore the Moon
up-close.
Planets
The best planets to view are Jupiter, Saturn, Mars, and
Venus. A higher-power eyepiece will help bring out the
fine details. You’ll be able to see the rings of Saturn,
surface detail on Jupiter along with its moons, the phases
of Venus, and perhaps some surface detail on Mars if it is
near opposition (i.e. when it is closest to the Earth).
Stars and Double Stars
Stars will appear like points of light regardless of the
magnification used. However, a telescope can reveal
a star’s color and also “split” double stars using higher
magnifications. For variable stars, see if you can detect a
star’s change in brightness over a period of days or weeks.
Open Star Clusters
These are star groups that formed together within our Milky
Way galaxy. They can appear spectacular in the telescope
eyepiece, even from somewhat light-polluted skies.
Astronomers often describe star clusters as resembling
“crushed diamonds on black velvet” in the telescope’s
eyepiece. Clusters are generally best viewed with low-
power eyepieces, as they usually require a wide field of
view to see the entire cluster.
Globular Star Clusters
These are tight clusters of hundreds of thousands of
stars that coalesced early in our galaxy’s formation.
These clusters appear like globes of light. The brighter
ones can be resolved into individual stars in good
conditions. Most globular clusters are best viewed with
a medium-power eyepiece, as they are not nearly as
wide as open clusters, yet not bright enough for high
power either.
Nebulae
You’ll generally need to be under dark skies to see
gaseous nebulae, which appear as a faint glow around
stars. Don’t expect to see any nebulosity from urban
skies except for perhaps the brightest ones, like the
Orion Nebula and Lagoon Nebula.
Galaxies
Perhaps the most fascinating of all objects to view,
galaxies are like “island universes” unto themselves.
While you can detect the brightest galaxies, like the
Andromeda Galaxy, from somewhat light-polluted
skies, they are best observed from dark skies. Literally
hundreds of galaxies are well within the observing reach
of the SSE Dobs. The best ones display fine details like
faint spiral arms and dust lanes. Many, however, will
just appear as non-stellar “streaks” or “blobs.” Even so,
just being able to detect the light from another galaxy
outside our own is rewarding in itself.
One thing to keep in mind is that the SSE Dobs are not
motorized. This means that they will not automatically track
celestial objects as the Earth rotates. As a result, you will
notice that objects drift a bit as you observe them and will
exit the eyepiece’s field of view within a minute or two,
depending on the magnification you are using. Objects will
drift out of the field of higher-power eyepieces faster, since
their field of view is narrower. You will need to manually
push the Dob along to keep objects centered over time.
This is easy to do. Grab hold of the telescope’s panning
knob and move it slightly up-and-down and left-to-right as
needed.