Focusing my Meade etx70

mondeo

Hey,

I got this for xmas but I'm having trouble getting an optimum magnification from it. I'm trying to look at the moon but I am not sure what eye piece I should be using for optimum detail.

I have an ma4mm, 12mm, 25mm and a barlow 3x adapter. What would be the optimum setup for a good up close look?? Forgive my amateurness I'm only 25 and never looked through a telescope in my life.


Thanks,

Tomasso

slade_x

Taken directly from the sticky at the top of the page

Magnification is the result of an eyepiece paired with a telescope with a specific
Focal length. Focal lengths are always specified on telescopes.

The resulting magnification of an eyepiece in a telescope is the telescopes focal
length divided by the eyepiece in mm

For this example I will take the Bresser Messier 102mm recently on offer from lidl

It is a refractor and has an aperture of 102mm so we’re looking at a recommended maximum magnification of 200x. You will likely want to aim for 120-160x with it
for best results depending on seeing conditions.

It has a focal length of 1000mm and comes with 10mm, 15mm and 25mm plossl
eyepieces and a 2x Barlow lens, so resulting magnifications are as follows:

25mm = 40x + barlow = 80x
15mm = 66x + barlow = 132x
10mm = 100x + barlow = 200x

Note: In this case the supplied 2x Barlow will double the resulting magnification

Should be a good enough example to help you

Kernel

Start without the Barlow, and the 25mm eyepiece. This gives the least magnification, but a wide aperture (sp?) so that you can find what you are looking for more easily. The moon is handy enough to find.

Once you have the moon in the centre of your scope, go with the lower eyepieces to increase magnification. Remember that you will need to change the focus when you change the eyepiece.

I need to learn more about constellations so that I can align the damn scope properly, so I can finally take a look at Mars!