PRACTICAL ASTRONOMY
CONTENTS PART I: BUYING ASTRONOMICAL TELESCOPES AND BINOCULARS 1 INTRODUCTION MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE NEW VERSUS USED EQUIPMENT MAKING YOUR OWN OPTICAL TESTING 2 BINOCULARS SEEING DOUBLE SPECI? CATIONS PRISMS AND OPTICAL COATINGS IMAGE-STABILIZED MINIS AND GIANTS BINOCULAR TELESCOPES 3 TELESCOPE BASICS APERTURE FOCAL LENGTH/RATIO MAGNIFYING POWER LIGHT-GATHERING POWER RESOLVING POWER MOUNTINGS 4 REFRACTING TELESCOPES ACHROMATIC APOCHROMATIC RICH-FIELD LONG-FOCUS SOLAR 5 RE? ECTING TELESCOPES NEWTONIAN DOBSONIAN CASSEGRAIN RITCHEY–CHRÉTIEN DALL–KIRKHAM MODI? ED CASSEGRAIN OFF-AXIS 6 CATADIOPTRIC TELESCOPES MAKSUTOV–CASSEGRAIN SCHMIDT–CASSEGRAIN SCHMIDT–NEWTONIAN MAKSUTOV–NEWTONIAN 7 ACCESSORIES EYEPIECES FINDERS STAR DIAGONALS BARLOW LENSES DEW CAPS/LIGHT SHIELDS MISCELLANEOUS ITEMS 8 BINOCULAR SOURCES PRODUCT AND CONTACT INFORMATION FOR PRINCIPAL MANUFACTURERS/ SUPPLIERS 9 TELESCOPE SOURCES PART II: USING ASTRONOMICAL TELESCOPES AND BINOCULARS 10 OBSERVING TECHNIQUES TRAINING THE EYE SKY CONDITIONS RECORD KEEPING OBSERVING SITES AND OBSERVATORIES PERSONAL MATTERS 11 SOLAR SYSTEM OBSERVING SUN MOON PLANETS COMETS ASTEROIDS METEORS ARTI? CIAL SATELLITES 12 STELLAR SYSTEM OBSERVING FIRST-MAGNITUDE AND HIGHLY TINTED SINGLE STARS DOUBLE AND MULTIPLE STARS VARIABLE STARS, NOVAE, AND SUPERNOVAE 13 DEEP-SKY OBSERVING STELLAR ASSOCIATIONS AND ASTERISMS STAR CLUSTERS NEBULAE GALAXIES AND QUASARS MILKY WAY NAVIGATING THE GREAT BEYOND 14 CONCLUSION SHARING THE WONDER PLEASURE VERSUS SERIOUS OBSERVING AESTHETIC AND PHILOSOPHICAL CONSIDERATIONS