ĭesigned to survey a portion of Earth's region of the Milky Way to discover Earth-size exoplanets in or near habitable zones and estimate how many of the billions of stars in the Milky Way have such planets, Kepler's sole scientific instrument is a photometer that continually monitored the brightness of approximately 150,000 main sequence stars in a fixed field of view. After nine and a half years of operation, the telescope's reaction control system fuel was depleted, and NASA announced its retirement on October 30, 2018. The principal investigator was William J. ![]() ![]() Named after astronomer Johannes Kepler, the spacecraft was launched into an Earth-trailing heliocentric orbit. The Kepler space telescope is a retired space telescope launched by NASA in 2009 to discover Earth-size planets orbiting other stars. “On the other hand, you don’t learn as much as doing it the hard way.Artist's impression of the Kepler telescope “On one hand, they’re highly practical, right, because you will actually find things,” Bakos says. Plus, using a fancy electronic telescope that finds planets for you may take away from the experience. But, these can make the telescopes more expensive and difficult to use. “If you’re a beginner, you want a telescope that is portable enough that you will take it out - it’s not going to sit in a closet because it’s too heavy or it’s too big, and you can’t get it in a car,” Fried says.Įase of Use: Nowadays, telescopes can have tons of extra features, from electrical hookups to computerized controls. Both Miller and Fried agree that a smaller telescope that’s easier to transport is going to serve you better. Portability: You don’t need a massive telescope to see your favorite planets. “Another really good sort of classic starter would be a three- to four-inch refractor and for the refractor, I would probably recommend a manual equatorial mount.” “A good overall starter telescope would be a six-inch reflector on what’s called a Dobsonian mount,” Fried says. ![]() The minimum aperture Fried recommends is a three-inch refractor or a four-inch reflector. He says that the telescope should have as large a mirror or lens as fits your budget and is still easy to move. Lens: For Miller, a telescope’s most important feature is the diameter of its primary mirror or lens. To see a phenomenon like Mars’ ice caps, you’ll need a magnification of around 100. According to Bakos, magnification of 30- to 40-times will help you see things like Jupiter’s moons and Saturn’s rings. Magnification: To see details on the planets, Princeton University professor of astrophysical sciences Gaspar Bakos recommends a device with fairly high magnification. What features should I look for in a telescope to view planets? There are plenty of telescopes to choose from, but there are a few things to consider when picking the right one for you. “They come in many different sizes, are very simple to set up and use, and give you great views of planets, galaxies, and nebulae,” says Jeffrey Miller, an astronomer at St. For amateur astronomers, experts recommend using a Dobsonian telescope. “So if they know where to look, they can watch the planets and see them move in relation to the background stars over time.” How can you see the planets up close?īut to see more detailed images of the planets, such as Saturn’s rings or Jupiter’s moons, you’ll want to use a telescope. “The ones that were known to the ancients are visible naked eye,” Fried says. According to Bart Fried, executive vice president of the Amateur Astronomers Association of New York, you don’t need a pair of binoculars or a telescope to view Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn in the sky. On July 12, Venus and Mars looked to be just a finger’s width apart (though in reality, they were millions of miles apart, according to NASA). Viewing the planets doesn’t require too much work. ![]() A planetary conjunction happens when two planets appear to be close together when observed from Earth. It might feel like there’s always a new space event every few weeks-a supermoon in April, the Strawberry Moon in June, and, just last week, planetary conjunction between Venus and Mars. We may earn revenue from the products available on this page and participate in affiliate programs.
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