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To see what you’re doing in the darkness, use a red-filtered
flashlight rather than a white light. Red light does not spoil
your eyes’ dark adaptation like white light does. A flashlight
with a red LED light is ideal, or you can cover the front of a
regular incandescent flashlight with red cellophane or paper.
Be aware, that nearby porch and streetlights and car head-
lights will ruin your night vision too.
tracking celestial objects
When you observe a celestial object through the telescope,
you’ll see it drift slowly across the field of view. This is due to
the rotation of the Earth. To keep it in the field, you will need
to periodically update the telescope’s position in altitude and
azimuth. Objects will appear to move faster at higher magnifi-
cations, because the field of view is narrower.
What to Expect
So what will you see with your telescope? You should be able
to see bands on Jupiter, the rings of Saturn, craters on the
Moon, the waxing and waning of Venus, and many bright
deep-sky objects. Do not expect to see color as you do in
NASA photos, since those are taken with long-exposure cam-
eras and have “false color” added. Our eyes are not sensitive
enough to see color in deep-sky objects except in a few of the
brightest ones.
objects to observe
Now that you are all set up and ready to go, one critical deci-
sion must be made: what to look at?
A. The Moon
With its rocky surface, the Moon is one of the easiest and most
interesting targets to view with your telescope. Lunar craters,
marias, and even mountain ranges can all be clearly seen
from a distance of 238,000 miles away! With its ever-changing
phases, you’ll get a new view of the Moon every night. The
best time to observe our one and only natural satellite is dur-
ing a partial phase, that is, when the Moon is NOT full. During
partial phases, shadows are cast on the surface, which reveal
more detail, especially right along the border between the
dark and light portions of the disk (called the “terminator”). A
full Moon is too bright and devoid of surface shadows to yield
a pleasing view. Make sure to observe the Moon when it is
well above the horizon to get the sharpest images.
Use an optional Moon filter to dim the Moon when it is very
bright. It simply threads onto the bottom of the eyepieces (you
must first remove the eyepiece from the focuser to attach a
filter). You’ll find that the Moon filter improves viewing com-
fort, and also helps to bring out subtle features on the lunar
surface.
B. The Planets
The planets don’t stay put like the stars, so to find them you
should refer to Sky Calendar at OrionTelescopes.com, or to
charts published monthly in Astronomy, Sky & Telescope,
or other astronomy magazines. Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and
Saturn are the brightest objects in the sky after the Sun and
the Moon. Other planets may be visible but will likely appear
star-like. Because planets are quite small in apparent size,
optional higher-power eyepieces are recommended and often
needed for detailed observations. Not all the planets are gen-
erally visible at any one time.
C. The Stars
Stars will appear like twinkling points of light. Even powerful
telescopes cannot magnify stars to appear as more than a
point of light. You can, however, enjoy the different colors of
the stars and locate many pretty double and multiple stars.
The famous “Double-Double” in the constellation Lyra and the
gorgeous two-color double star Albireo in Cygnus are favor-
ites. Defocusing a star slightly can help bring out its color.
D. Deep-Sky Objects
Under dark skies, you can observe a wealth of fascinating
deep-sky objects, including gaseous nebulas, open and glob-
ular star clusters, and a variety of different types of galaxies.
Most deep-sky objects are very faint, so it is important that
you find an observing site well away from light pollution.
To find deep-sky objects with your telescope, you first need
to become reasonably familiar with the night sky. Unless you
know how to recognize the constellation Orion, for instance,
you won’t have much luck locating the Orion Nebula. A simple
planisphere, or star wheel, can be a valuable tool for learning
the constellations and seeing which ones are visible in the
sky on a given night. Once you have identified a few constella-
tions, a good star chart or atlas will come in handy for helping
locate interesting deep-sky objects to view within the constel-
lations.
Do not expect these subjects to appear like the photographs
you see in books and magazines; most will look like dim gray
smudges. Our eyes are not sensitive enough to see color in
deep-sky objects except in a few of the brightest ones. But as
you become more experienced and your observing skills get
sharper, you will be able to ferret out more and more subtle
details and structure.
transporting the telescope
The GoScope was designed for observers who want a tele-
scope that is easy to transport. The entire telescope, including
the optical tube and tripod, will fit into the provided backpack
carry case. This makes the GoScope incredibly portable.
To use the backpack, you will need to disassemble the tele-
scope system from the tripod. Remove the EZ Finder II from
its bracket and place it into the front pocket of the backpack.
Unthread the diagonal from the telescope and place it and
the eyepieces into the front pocket too (Figure 7a). Disengage
the quick-release shoe from the tripod, and remove the opti-
cal tube from the tripod. Place the tube into one of the main
compartments of the backpack. Retract the tripod legs and
elevator shaft, and place the tripod into the other backpack
compartment (Figure 7b). Your GoScope is now ready to go!
It is a good idea to place all caps and dust covers on the opti-
cal tube, diagonal, and eyepieces before placing them into
the backpack. This ensures the optical surfaces will remain
clean and dust-free.