How to choose a telescope?

Beyond aperture and f-ratio options, telescopes come in three basic types: refractors, reflectors, and compound.

Refractors are common starter telescopes and easily recognisable. The user looks through an eyepiece at the end of the telescope, along a series of glass lenses, to see a magnified night sky object. Refractors are good for seeing craters on the Moon, bright planets, or even daytime landscapes and wildlife. They’re easily portable and simple to aim. But bigger, more powerful refractors become expensive and inconvenient to look through because the eyepiece is low to the ground.

Reflectors use mirrors instead of lenses to reflect instead of bend the incoming light. This means that the eyepiece can be placed in a more convenient location on the side of the telescope. As large mirrors are cheaper to manufacture than large lenses, reflectors are better value as the size goes up. Reflectors are popular choices for people looking to see deeper into the sky (Saturn’s rings, Jupiter’s moons, nebulae, and nearby galaxies). Reflectors are also known as Newtonian telescopes because, you guessed it, Sir Isaac Newton invented them. His model from 1668 is the earliest known type of a reflecting telescope.

A third type of telescope is a combination of a refractor and a reflector. Known as a compound or catadioptric telescope, it uses both lenses and mirrors to make a powerful telescope with a short tube length. Like a refractor, the eyepiece is still at the end of the telescope, but its shorter length means that it’s not as inconvenient to look through. Compound telescopes are more expensive than refractors or reflectors, but far more portable than reflectors for a similar magnifying power.

You’ll find countless options within these types. The key thing is to go with a reputable astronomy brand.