Creating a basic set of eyepieces for your new telescope

[Mike Q]

I see this all the time. A newbie asks a question and there are always two or three people who start getting all technical and even my eyes glaze over and they loose me. I dont think it is too far off to say that 85 percent of people in this hobby would get along fine without ever hearing the words exit pupil lol

[Bigzmey]

I see this all the time. A newbie asks a question and there are always two or three people who start getting all technical and even my eyes glaze over and they loose me. I dont think it is too far off to say that 85 percent of people in this hobby would get along fine without ever hearing the words exit pupil lol

True, we like to nerd about EPs (and other equipment to), but we are talking about technology and how you would explain technology without getting technical? Oversimplifying it not good either. The worse advice you can look for is I used that EP and got the great views, or I got this $15 EP of eBay and it is as good as Televue.

[Mike Q]

When I get questions at outreach I explain it in very simple language based on my experience. Then i let them look and decide for themselves. The KISS theory is in full effect. I take it just far enough to see the light bulb come on and thats it. I can explain the scope and its tech without sounding techy. I keep it simple stupid lol

[Bigzmey]

Sure, at outreach you explain thing in layman's terms. However, when you taken astronomy as a hobby learning ropes enriches the experience.

Also one does not need to understand the theory behind the exit pupil in other to apply it to the EP selection. You take your scope focal ratio - this is your shortest focal length EP. If you scope is F5 that EP would be 5mm. You multiply by 5x or 6x that would be you longest EP (25mm or 30mm for F5 scope). You populate EPs in between by 1.3 to 1.5x factor - done! How hard is that?

[JayTee]

When I get questions at outreach I explain it in very simple language based on my experience. Then i let them look and decide for themselves. The KISS theory is in full effect. I take it just far enough to see the light bulb come on and thats it. I can explain the scope and its tech without sounding techy. I keep it simple stupid lol

Mike, the Sky Searchers is not your typical Outreach audience. We run the full gamut of experience levels here. So, to limit oneself by not talking about all aspects of the exit pupil does not serve the broader readership who regularly frequents these forums. A large percentage of our readership wants to know this information. Those who don't want to know this information can stop reading whenever they choose. Why would you limit knowledge for fear of glazing over someone's eyes, sounds a bit myopic.

[Lady Fraktor]

Though I love eyepieces and want to know how they work, I made up this article because the average beginner immediately wants to start upgrading before they have really used what they have. What eyepieces should I purchase is as common as what type of telescope should I buy?

This article was made for the first time user and shows them how the telescope and eyepiece relate to each other in a basic manner and gets them a basic set that will work with their telescope. 5 minutes with a pencil and paper = saved €€ on a small budget.

For the well experienced observer or those that are not interested in the technical side, this article will likely not have much for them.
If you are a beginner it will prevent you from purchasing a 65 mm Russell Optics Konig for their 200 mm f/5 Newtonian.

Gabrielle, the optics theory nerd

[OzEclipse]

@Mike Q

If you don't care about matching eyepieces to optical tubes then don't read it.
But don't stop or criticise those who do want to match appropriate eyepieces to optics. Understanding/matching exit pupil to entrance pupil is important to maximising light transmission. Matching the shape of the telescopes focal plane to that of the eyepiece is also important. That's why some eyepieces work beautifully in an f10 SCT but perform poorly in a fast newt. My own observing experience has vastly improved since spending some money to match eyepieces to telescope optics

In 2020, I wrote this observing report that tested and explained the effect of poor matching of exit pupil to pupil dilation.

https://theskysearchers.com/viewtopic.p ... 54#p149861

My primary advice to new telescope buyers would be to set aside 1/3 to 1/2 the budget for 1 or 2 decent eyepieces well matched to the primary optic.

regards

Joe