Telescopes are designed, manufactured and distributed by a wide variety of companies. Each brand distinguishes itself through unique specializations, ranging from advanced technology and premium optics to affordability and user-friendliness.…
The eyepiece, often called the ocular lens or telescope eye lens, plays a critical role in determining magnification, field of view and overall clarity of celestial observations. The eyepiece is…
The primary mirror is a part of a reflecting telescope that collects and focuses light from distant objects. Knowing the design and material of a mirror is fundamental to understanding…
The objective lens is a part of a refracting telescope that collects and focuses light from distant objects. Knowing the design and material of an objective lens is crucial as…
Knowing the anatomy of a telescope is fundamental to determining the telescope types, functions and abilities. Recognizing the main parts and how they work together allows astronomers to customize their…
A Newtonian telescope is a type of reflecting telescope that gathers and focuses light using mirrors. Knowing how the principles of reflection are crucial to understanding how this telescope functions.…
A Dobsonian telescope is a type of reflector telescope designed with simplicity and functionality in mind. Knowing how the Dobsonian's unique mount operates in conjunction with its Newtonian optics is…
A reflecting telescope, often referred to as a reflector, is a type of telescope that operates on the principle of gathering and focusing light using mirrors. Knowing the properties of…
A refractor, or refracting telescope, is a type of optical instrument specifically crafted to magnify distant objects by bending light through a lens. Knowing how a refractor’s lenses manipulate light…
Telescopes are available in a variety of types, each tailored to specific observational needs and based on distinct optical designs. Knowing the differences in design and application allows astronomers to…
The diffraction limit is the highest angular resolution a telescope is able to achieve. This limit refers to the theoretical maximum if nothing besides the size of a telescope’s light-collecting…
The field of view (FOV) in a telescope defines the extent of the observable universe that is visible through the eyepiece at any given moment. Knowing the FOV allows astronomers…
The light gathering power (LGP) refers to the telescope's ability to collect light. Knowing the LGP of a telescope is important because the more light a telescope can gather, the…
Resolving power, also referred to as "resolution" or "angular resolution", is a measure of a telescope’s ability to differentiate between two closely spaced objects. Knowing the resolving power of a…
Telescope magnification, often referred to as "power" or "telescope zoom," defines how much a telescope can enlarge the appearance of distant objects. Magnification is the factor by which a telescope…
Focal ratio, also known as the "f-number," "f-ratio," or "aperture ratio," defines the relationship between the focal length of a telescope and the diameter of its primary optic. The focal…
Focal length is the distance between the objective lens or mirror of a telescope and the point where incoming light converges to form an image. Knowing the focal length allows…
Telescope aperture is the size of the primary optical element. Knowing the aperture of a telescope allows observers to understand the light-gathering ability and resolution. For amateur telescopes, apertures range…
A telescope works by collecting and focusing light from distant objects. The objective gathers and bends light. The objective is either a lens, in refractor telescopes, or a mirror in…
The James Webb Space Telescope and Hubble Space Telescope were both designed by NASA to study the composition and characteristics of our universe. Both of these telescopes have unique characteristics,…
The Chandra X-ray Observatory (CXO) is a space telescope, designed by NASA in the 1990s. Chandra's mission is to observe x-ray emissions from high-energy regions of the universe, such as…
Collimation is the process of aligning all components in a telescope to bring light to its best focus. Most manufacturers collimate telescopes before shipping, but they often require recollimation to…
With a telescope you can see planets, stars, galaxies, constellations, meteors and much more. This article is a guide for astronomers and astrophotographers who are enthralled by the limitless space…
The History of the Kepler Space Telescope The Kepler Space Telescope was designed by NASA to study exoplanets using the transit method. It was first proposed in 1994 and renamed…
The Compton Gamma Ray Observatory (CGRO) was a space observatory that studied gamma rays, the most energetic form of electromagnetic radiation. It was launched into space on April 5, 1991,…
NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope, initially known as the Space Infrared Telescope Facility, was the fourth and final of NASA’s Great Observatories. Launched on August 25, 2002, Spitzer was NASA’s primary…
How Did Galileo’s Telescope Impact History? Galileo Galilei was the first to point a telescope skyward, changing the course of telescope history. After news of Hans Lippershey’s telescope spread, Galileo…
The History of the James Webb Space Telescope The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) was developed by NASA, in partnership with the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Canadian Space…
What is an Optical Telescope? An optical telescope is a telescope that uses lenses or mirrors to collect and focus light from distant objects, such as stars, galaxies, and planets.…
The history of space telescopes dates back to the early 20th century when scientists began to propose the use of telescopes, orbiting in space, to observe the universe. Throughout history,…
Throughout history the innovation of telescopes allowed us to explore the universe and led to countless scientific advancements and discoveries. These discoveries have improved our understanding of the universe. The…
The first documentation of a telescope appeared in the Netherlands in 1608. This instrument was a staple in the Scientific Revolution, bringing numerous inventors to create their own with variations…
Kemble's Cascade is an asterism in the constellation Camelopardalis featuring more than 20 stars, with the open cluster NGC 1502 at one end. This star pattern is an unofficial arrangement…
Finding the Winter Hexagon will give you a fresh viewpoint on the winter night sky. It is made up of six brilliant stars that surround the constellation of Orion in…
Variable stars are crucial for testing our theories of stellar development, from bloated red giants nearing the end of their lives to binary stars engaged in deadly gravitational dances. They…
The Pleiades or the Seven Sisters (M45) is an open star cluster that originated from a huge cloud of dust and gas around 125 million years ago. The stars of…
The Hyades Star Cluster is the closest cluster to the solar system containing myriads of stars some of which can be observed with the unaided eye. It is located at…
Imagine when Earth comes between the sun and the moon and the shadow of the earth falls on the moon. This darkens the moon and it happens only when the…
Sometimes stargazing does not need to memorize all the constellations because like the Summer Triangle, the best star patterns to observe are not always constellations but asterisms. An asterism is…
Polaris, the North star is located in the constellation named Ursa Minor. It is very close to the north celestial pole of the earth. It is very easy to identify…
The Big Dipper is a group of stars belonging to the constellation Ursa Major or the Big Bear. It is easy to spot on any dark night in the Northern…
The Lagoon Nebula is an emission nebula with an active area of star formation full of gas and dust. It is located in the constellation Sagittarius around 5000 light years…
M57 (The Ring Nebula) is a planetary nebula located in the Lyra constellation at a distance of 2,300 light years from the earth. The shell of gas was produced by…
The International Space Station (ISS) is a space laboratory where astronauts stay for a period of time and do experiments. It moves around the Earth at around 300 miles up…
Comets are a mixture of ice, frozen gasses, dust, and rocks. Scientists think that comets are the debris from materials that formed the solar system initially around 4.6 billion years…
Telescope has revealed the interesting fact that all stars are not alone. Sometimes they are accompanied by one or other multiple stars and form star systems. Double stars that are…
The Orion Nebula, also familiar as M 42 is easy to spot and visible to unaided eyes. It is one of the brightest Nebula in the night sky with a…
The Andromeda galaxy is the nearest galaxy to the Milky Way located at 7.7° northwest of Mirach. This is the only galaxy you can see with bare eyes without any…
The Milky Way is a common spiral galaxy with a visible diameter of 100-200 thousand light years. It has 4 main spiral arms having 100-400 billion stars in each of…
A galaxy is referred to as the collection of dust, gas, hundreds of billions of stars, and their planets which are held together by gravity. A galaxy is the most…
A nebula is a cloud of gas and dust composed of Helium, Hydrogen, and other ionized gasses. They become visible from Earth due to the interaction of gas with other…
Photo: The Dogstar (Sirius A) and its Pup (Sirius B) Sirius, also known as the Dog star, is the brightest star in the sky found in late winter and spring.…
Planets and the moons are not the only things astronomers intend to observe in the sky. Stars are always mysterious that can reveal dramatic detail even with a 4-inch telescope.…
Titan is the largest among 83 moons of Saturn and the second largest natural satellite in the solar system. Titan is the only moon that has a dense atmosphere. This…
We see night sky objects through a telescope because they reflect sunlight. Asteroids do the same thing which means it is possible to view them from the earth through a…
Pluto is mostly known as a dwarf planet. You cannot see Pluto with a small or low-powered telescope. Only a large aperture telescope with high magnifications and show you its…
Neptune is the eighth and the last official planet from the sun. A Neptunian day is only 16 hours, but it orbits around the sun in about 165 earth years. …
Uranus is the coldest planet in the solar system. It takes 82 earth years to orbit the sun once. The most interesting fact about Uranus is its axial tilt at…
Saturn is a gas giant and 6th in position among all planets from the sun. It is well known for its rings made of ice particles and rocky debris and…
The Hubble Space Telescope was designed by NASA in the 1940s. After nearly 50 years of planning, the telescope was launched into orbit on April 24, 1990. This telescope has…
Getting started in astrophotography, you may be wondering which optical device is best for you. Telescopes provide a narrow and detailed view of objects in space, which makes them ideal…
Telescopes and spyglasses are optical devices used for viewing distant objects. While telescopes are used for astronomy, monoculars are typically used for viewing terrestrial objects. While you can use spyglasses…
Telescopes and periscopes are optical instruments used to view objects that we cannot see with the naked eye. Telescopes allow us to view extremely distant objects within your line of…
Telescopes and binoculars are optical instruments used to view distant objects. While telescopes are used for astronomy, binoculars are typically used for viewing objects on earth. You can use binoculars…
Telescopes and microscopes are both optical instruments but have very different purposes. Telescopes are used to view extremely distant objects, like celestial bodies. Microscopes are used for viewing very small…
Telescopes and monoculars are optical devices used for viewing distant objects. While telescopes are used for astronomy, monoculars are typically used for viewing objects on earth. While you can use…
Telescopes are designed to view celestial bodies and spotting scopes are typically used for viewing wildlife. While they may look and sound similar, they have distinct differences in usage, view…
The biggest gas giant in the solar system, Jupiter is 319 times more massive than earth. The part we see through a telescope is mostly its clouds composed of ammonium…
Meteors are basically dust and rocks that float at thousands of miles per hour through our solar system. On their way, if they strike the earth's atmosphere, they burn up…
With Zhumell you get precision-crafted and field-tested optics for the most affordable price. So even if you’re starting as an amateur astronomer, you don’t have to settle for entry-level products.…