Many people find themselves in the possession of a new telescope this time of year. For some, it is the fulfillment of a dream, for others, a quite unexpected surprise. If you’re one of these people, you may be wondering to yourself… now what? What in the world am I going to do with this shiny new telescope? How in the world will I ever be able to find anything besides the Moon to observe? Let me give you some advice right up front. Stop. Take a deep breath. Relax. It doesn’t need to be an overwhelming proposition. Getting to know your telescope… and the night sky… are things that virtually anyone can do. Think of it like this… when you first met your best friend… did it instantly feel like a future best friendship? LIkely not. Sure, you may have hit it off well, but friendships take time to develop. The same is true for your understanding of your telescope… and (perhaps more importantly) with the night sky. Take it night by night and step by step and you’ll develop a passion that will last a lifetime.

Ok, you’re feeling more relaxed now, right? The first thing you need to do is get to learn about your telescope. Is it a reflector? A refractor? A catadioptric (huh?)? A catadioptric is a mix of a reflector and a refractor. First up… reflectors have mirrors and reflect the light that strikes them. Refractors have lenses and refract light. Catadioptric telescopes are hybrids… having lenses and mirrors. The type of telescope that you have determines how it collects light. Light collection (not magnification) is the single most significant characteristic of telescopes. Most of what you’ll be looking at through your telescope is too faint to see with the unaided eye. Galaxies, nebulae and star clusters are all quite distant and (typically) quite faint. It is the light gathering ability of your telescope that will reveal them to you. Your telescope will typically have a focuser. This is where you’ll put your eyepieces and focus the image being created. There are many good resources on each type of telescope. Search for a couple of these and you should find out more than you’re likely to need to know to operate your new piece of equipment. Read as much or as little for you to feel comfortable.

The next thing you’ll need to do is to familiarize yourself with the night sky. Even if you got a ‘goto telescope’, I can’t tell you with stronger conviction that you should gain a very comfortable understanding of the layout of the night sky. For this, a star chart or planisphere is key. These show you the night sky for a given time of year. Seek out and learn the names of the brightest stars in the sky… at least for the current season. Many people are familiar with the constellation Orion and its famous belt. This is a great starting point. If not, this is an easy one to find. Simply head outside shortly after dark and look to the southeast (for those in the northern hemisphere). Orion is a large constellation with a number of very bright stars. It is generally rectangular in shape and is cut by 3 bright stars in a diagonal. This is the belt of Orion. This is your key to learning the winter night sky. The stars of Orion are so bright that they tend to stand out even under light polluted skies. To the upper left of Orion is Betelgeuse.  To the lower right is Rigel. These are 2 of the 20 brightest stars in the night sky. From here, you can use your star chart to learn the constellations that border Orion.

Above Orion is the Constellation Taurus led by the bright star Aldebaran. Above this (north) is the constellation Auriga led by the bright star Capella. East of these constellations is Gemini with its twins Castor and Pollux. Smack in the middle of all of this is the red planet Mars. Mars is currently at its biggest and brightest for the year, so you won’t be able to miss this. This little swath of night sky is full of literally dozens of Messier Objects. Messy what? Messier Objects. Google this. Seriously. The Messier Objects are what you’ll spend a good portion of your observing time chasing after and observing. These are what most amateur astronomers cut their teeth on. They are a list of some of the finest objects to be observed in amateur telescopes. The Orion Nebula, The Andromeda Galaxy, The Hercules Cluster. These are just a few of the amazing astronomical objects that inhabit the night sky… waiting for you to seek and eventually find them. The stars and constellations listed above are your roadmap. Study them well and these and countless other objects are there for the taking. Head out whenever you have the opportunity. Even if you won’t be able to use your telescope. Just get out under the stars and you’ll slowly come to know them as you know your good friends.