When one has a telescope, regardless of age and skill, there are few targets that are reliable enough to get the kids and beginners interested in using said telescope. One of those reliable targets is the moon as it is easy to locate, view, photograph, and more.

Moon Is Easy To Locate In Sky

Unlike some of the dark sky objects, which require dark skies, an understanding of how to operate a telescope, and navigating the sky, the moon is an easy to locate object when it is in the sky. The size of ones thumb and well illuminated, the moon is an easy target to locate in the sky.

Visible all months of the year

Unlike constellations, planets, and other night sky objects that appear seasonally, the moon is a celestial object that can be viewed at home all months of the year. All one needs to view the moon is a telescope, a clearing, and a clear line of sight to the moon. With all of those items achieved, viewing the moon is doable and a fun endeavor.

Don’t need a big scope to view detail

What is great about the moon is that it is so large, that one can even view detail of the craters with a smaller telescope. With larger telescopes, one would get more detail, but the nice thing is that even beginner telescopes provide a nice view. Telescopes will allow you to view the craters and details that naked eye observing doesn’t provide.

Can Be Done From Home

The nice thing about the moon is that it is not something that requires dark skies to view. Therefore, viewing the moon can be done easily from right outside the house, which will save time on driving somewhere. Plus, by observing right outside the house, setup and tear down of the heat is quicker, saving everyone time.

Changes In Phase Provides Different Views

Although it sounds cliche, but changes in the illumination of the moon will change the view of the moon, including which craters can be viewed. Except for when it is full or new, the phases and illumination will change and allow for different craters to change. This variation allows for differing views for kids and others that might vary more when compared to constant viewing with other objects.

Bonus: Easy To Photograph

For those looking to photograph the moon, there are a plethora of attachments to add to the telescope that would make it easy to do so. These attachments vary in size, cost, and design, as they allow everything from a mobile phone to professional cameras to photograph whatever the telescope is looking at. Therefore, the barrier to entry is not super expensive and the benefit is that the level of detail that one will get will be high.

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