Can Stargazing Be An Affordable Hobby?
A star-filled sky is hard for anyone not to be enthralled by, and even if you aren’t a stargazer per se, you’ve doubtless enjoyed many evenings under the stars, simply gazing upward in awe, or stared open-mouthed at the moon as it loomed above you in the night sky.
Stargazing is something we’ve all done from time to time, but if you want to see more of what’s going on above your head when the sun goes down, you’ll need either a telescope or a good pair of Celestron Nature DX 8x42mm binoculars. What you can see with the right equipment, compared to what you can see with the naked eye, simply isn’t comparable, and most first-time astronomers are blown away by what they see through the lens of a pair of binoculars.
However, while you might be interested in learning more about stars, planets and the night sky in general (and seeing more), the cost of powerful telescopes designed for superior stargazing, might put you off and make you believe that stargazing is a hobby you simply can’t afford to take up. Fortunately, with the help of an affordable pair of binoculars, you absolutely can become an amateur astronomer, and not have to take out a loan to do so!
Let’s take a closer look at what you might need to get started with stargazing:
A clear and unobstructed night sky
Light pollution is a major problem for stargazers living in cities, and if you can barely see the night sky thanks to street lights and other light pollution, you may fall at the first hurdle, even with a good pair of binoculars in your hand.
How to test if your night sky will make stargazing a possibility: step outside once the sun has gone down, and see if you can see lots of stars, twinkling away above you. If you can, that’s great, and if you can make out their different colours, even better.
Sadly, if you can’t see much in the skies above you at night, you will need to find another convenient location in which to gaze at the stars.
A handbook or star chart
This is essential if you want to know what you’re actually looking at through your Celestron Nature DX 10x42mm binoculars, and the only way to tell whether you’re seeing a planet or star, for example. Stargazing for the fun of it is possible without a handbook, of course, but the real fun comes in being able to identify what you’re seeing so that you can check it off your list, and of course, boast to others about what you’ve seen!
A good pair of binoculars
While you can invest in a telescope, unless you have a bigger budget and plan to turn your hobby into a full-time affair, it’s usually better economically, to buy a good pair of binoculars, which you can definitely get at an affordable price without compromising on quality.
Stargazing doesn’t have to cost the Earth (or the moon and the stars!), and all most people need to get started, is a pair of eyes, a clear night sky, a handbook and an affordable pair of binoculars.
