Binoculars never get enough credit when it comes to stargazing. They do not have as much light-gathering ability and magnification as telescopes, but binoculars have definite advantages. If you are interested in stargazing but not sure you want to invest in a telescope yet, start with binoculars.
Make them your “first telescope.” Binoculars are generally less expensive than telescopes and much easier to use. There is little or no setup time, and you can easily bring them anywhere.
They certainly do not take up as much space as telescopes.Optically, the best thing about binoculars is their much larger field of view. That allows you to see a more significant portion of the night sky at one time than is possible with most telescopes.
That can be helpful when you are learning to navigate constellations and find celestial treasures within them. Many astronomical targets are seen better with binoculars, especially star clusters. Some clusters cover such large areas of the sky that they cannot fit into the field of view of a telescope.
A good example is the Pleiades star cluster, currently shining in the early evening western sky. I will list some other great celestial treasures for binoculars at the end of this column.When purchasing binoculars, two sets of numbers indicate their capabilities.
The first is the magnification power, which tells you how many times closer objects will appear. The second is the diameter, in millimeters, of the objective lenses, where light enters th.
