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For people thinking of getting into moon gazing try binoculars first! Laying down on your back, plopping a nice pair on your eyes and just looking at the moon

For people thinking of getting into moon gazing try binoculars first! Laying down on your back, plopping a nice pair on your eyes and just looking at the moon is a fantastic experience. Aside from much better UX, binoculars also have depth-perception which makes the visuals all that more engaging. If you have really nice clear sky in your area you can easily do that with stars and some planets as well.

0_____0 2y ago
If you got good bins try looking at Jupiter as well. Typically on a clear night you can see several of the moons.
- cogogo 2y ago
  This blew my mind a few years ago when I got some decent binoculars. Depending on their positions you can see all four of the Galilean moons - even from a vantage point in a major city.
  - 0_____0 2y ago
    I saw them entirely accidentally. I was looking at the moon through bins and checked out The Other Bright Thing nearby and was shocked to see what looks like little dots next to the big one. As Galileo himself would have done, I immediately went on the internet and consulted a sky chart, which confirmed that I was seeing the moons of Jupiter. I still occasionally drag my friends out to look at the moons on a clear night. It's my favorite bit of practical astronomy to share.
- agos 2y ago
  I was able to take pictures of them with a DSLR with a decent zoom lens! I used Stellarium to check the positions, waited for a very clear night, and was able to get a very nice photograph of that and of the Pleiades.
ghxst 2y ago
This is great advice! It's really amazing how much more you can see with a regular decent pair of binoculars. I treasure the memory of being able to see some of the star clusters that I could only vaguely make out with the naked eye for the first time, now I basically bring them every night walk :).
bb88 2y ago
I think the problem is that I would like to have an image stabilized version of that. Even small ticks of you fingers amplify quickly into shaky images. I think instead of an eyepiece (or in addition to one) most consumer telescopes should include a usb image sensor that can screw into where the eyepiece is.
- ghxst 2y ago
  A lot of binoculars have a mount for a tripod which I can definitely recommend trying out of you happen to have both, or at least consider if you are planning to pick up a new pair.
- pests 2y ago
  You can buy generic replacement electric eyepieces that fit
- dkresge 2y ago
  There are also image stabilized binoculars. I have an older Canon 10x30 that I absolutely love (enough to tolerate the plasticizer now breaking down on the rubberized exterior)
  - cogogo 2y ago
    I have the same, about 10 yrs old and agree the image stabilization is awesome.
speleding 2y ago
Depth perception? I would think objects as far away as the moon shouldn’t produce a meaningful difference between the left and right eye. But that does tell your brain they are far away, so perhaps that’s what you mean.
- exitb 2y ago
  It's not really depth perception, but there is a significant difference in how objects are perceived when looking with both eyes. It's also applicable to binocular splitters used with a single mirror/lens telescope.
  - Moru 2y ago
    Your brain can also do 1+1 and end up with 2.5 or even 3 in the brain :) I have really bad eye sight on both eyes, one can not see enough alone but both together see much better than I would expect on the same distance.
berkes 2y ago
I was a kid living in Botswana when Halley passed earth. We watched it every night through binoculars. Marvelous clean air - humidity around 0%, just some dust. No light pollution (there wasn't an electricity grid in some 100km around, just a handful of small diesel aggregates). The binoculars were more than enough to see the comet, its tail. And even get a feeling of the tail arcing in three dimensions.
yard2010 2y ago
Any specific binoculars you can recommend?
- doetoe 2y ago
  The most important is that they capture enough light, for which the lenses must have a large diameter. 50mm is typical. Magnification around 10x is good. This is referred to as 10x50. I have a Celestron Skymaster 15x70 myself, which is specifically for night sky observation. The 70mm is very good, but the weight and the magnification make it difficult to hold still without a tripod, though you can still use it without, e.g. lying on your back
  - eth0up 2y ago
    Try a good monopod. They're significantly more portable and give just enough stability in most cases to give good views whille allowing less restricted movement than most tripods.
- tonyarkles 2y ago
  I have a set of Vortex Diamondback HD 10x50s that are pretty affordable and do a good job with the moon (and hunting near dawn and dusk). The optics are definitely better than I expected for the price.
darkwater 2y ago
Some suggestions of mark/model of binoculars good for that? With a budget of 1000$ /€(I could stretch it a bit more if it's worth the extra money)
- cogogo 2y ago
  I have the Cannon 10x30 IS from a long time ago and they are the best binoculars I’d ever tried. I’m pretty shaky so the image stabilizing is game changing. I’m sure the more powerful pairs are incredible and in that case image stabilization is a must. https://www.usa.canon.com/shop/lenses/binoculars https://www.usa.canon.com/shop/lenses/binoculars
yodsanklai 2y ago
Are binocular superior to monocular for that use case? I thought binocular were good for depth perception which I'd assume doesn't matter here?

0_____0 2y ago

If you got good bins try looking at Jupiter as well. Typically on a clear night you can see several of the moons.

cogogo 2y ago
This blew my mind a few years ago when I got some decent binoculars. Depending on their positions you can see all four of the Galilean moons - even from a vantage point in a major city.
- 0_____0 2y ago
  I saw them entirely accidentally. I was looking at the moon through bins and checked out The Other Bright Thing nearby and was shocked to see what looks like little dots next to the big one. As Galileo himself would have done, I immediately went on the internet and consulted a sky chart, which confirmed that I was seeing the moons of Jupiter. I still occasionally drag my friends out to look at the moons on a clear night. It's my favorite bit of practical astronomy to share.
agos 2y ago
I was able to take pictures of them with a DSLR with a decent zoom lens! I used Stellarium to check the positions, waited for a very clear night, and was able to get a very nice photograph of that and of the Pleiades.

ghxst 2y ago

This is great advice! It's really amazing how much more you can see with a regular decent pair of binoculars. I treasure the memory of being able to see some of the star clusters that I could only vaguely make out with the naked eye for the first time, now I basically bring them every night walk :).

bb88 2y ago

I think the problem is that I would like to have an image stabilized version of that. Even small ticks of you fingers amplify quickly into shaky images. I think instead of an eyepiece (or in addition to one) most consumer telescopes should include a usb image sensor that can screw into where the eyepiece is.

ghxst 2y ago
A lot of binoculars have a mount for a tripod which I can definitely recommend trying out of you happen to have both, or at least consider if you are planning to pick up a new pair.
pests 2y ago
You can buy generic replacement electric eyepieces that fit
dkresge 2y ago
There are also image stabilized binoculars. I have an older Canon 10x30 that I absolutely love (enough to tolerate the plasticizer now breaking down on the rubberized exterior)
- cogogo 2y ago
  I have the same, about 10 yrs old and agree the image stabilization is awesome.

speleding 2y ago

Depth perception? I would think objects as far away as the moon shouldn’t produce a meaningful difference between the left and right eye. But that does tell your brain they are far away, so perhaps that’s what you mean.

exitb 2y ago
It's not really depth perception, but there is a significant difference in how objects are perceived when looking with both eyes. It's also applicable to binocular splitters used with a single mirror/lens telescope.
- Moru 2y ago
  Your brain can also do 1+1 and end up with 2.5 or even 3 in the brain :) I have really bad eye sight on both eyes, one can not see enough alone but both together see much better than I would expect on the same distance.

berkes 2y ago

I was a kid living in Botswana when Halley passed earth. We watched it every night through binoculars. Marvelous clean air - humidity around 0%, just some dust. No light pollution (there wasn't an electricity grid in some 100km around, just a handful of small diesel aggregates). The binoculars were more than enough to see the comet, its tail. And even get a feeling of the tail arcing in three dimensions.

yard2010 2y ago

Any specific binoculars you can recommend?

doetoe 2y ago
The most important is that they capture enough light, for which the lenses must have a large diameter. 50mm is typical. Magnification around 10x is good. This is referred to as 10x50. I have a Celestron Skymaster 15x70 myself, which is specifically for night sky observation. The 70mm is very good, but the weight and the magnification make it difficult to hold still without a tripod, though you can still use it without, e.g. lying on your back
- eth0up 2y ago
  Try a good monopod. They're significantly more portable and give just enough stability in most cases to give good views whille allowing less restricted movement than most tripods.
tonyarkles 2y ago
I have a set of Vortex Diamondback HD 10x50s that are pretty affordable and do a good job with the moon (and hunting near dawn and dusk). The optics are definitely better than I expected for the price.

darkwater 2y ago

Some suggestions of mark/model of binoculars good for that? With a budget of 1000$ /€(I could stretch it a bit more if it's worth the extra money)

cogogo 2y ago
I have the Cannon 10x30 IS from a long time ago and they are the best binoculars I’d ever tried. I’m pretty shaky so the image stabilizing is game changing. I’m sure the more powerful pairs are incredible and in that case image stabilization is a must. https://www.usa.canon.com/shop/lenses/binoculars https://www.usa.canon.com/shop/lenses/binoculars

yodsanklai 2y ago

Are binocular superior to monocular for that use case? I thought binocular were good for depth perception which I'd assume doesn't matter here?