Ask HN: Beginner guide to astronomy?

16 points·giis··8 comments

I'm absolute beginner with astronomy. So wanted to check whats your advice on how to get started? any thoughts on telescope models & types ? Just wanted to start a new hobby in 2017

thanks

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Start with the book NightWatch and a set of 10x50 astronomy binoculars.

Stellarium is great because you can map out what you want to view. Get used to navigating the night sky and trying to find things yourself.

Join a local astronomy club. There are experts with nice scopes that can make the hobby more enjoyable.

Beyond that, telescopes models and types really depend on your budget. I recommend looking at the sidebar of https://www.reddit.com/r/Astronomy/ particular on the guides to buying a telescope.

I thought Stellarium is kind of simulation but didn't realize the mapping idea. thanks for the great tips. I'm not sure about local astronomy club in my region, will figure it out.

You might check out the current humble bundle: https://www.humblebundle.com/books/astronomy-book-bundle

Nice, "A Stargazing Program for Beginners " looks interesting..will check them out.

Not a telescope but here is a free, and good, textbook on Astronomy.

https://openstax.org/subjects/science

thanks will check it out.

http://www.stellarium.org/

Stellarium looks pretty cool, will explore that. But honestly I want to leave the computers and stare at the sky :D

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