For my astronomy interest?

B

Blessed Former Atheist

New member
Just wondering what the best type of specification for a pair of binoculars for observing the moon close up and stargazing, etc is. e.g. 10x50 7x50, etc. Also with a decent pair of binoculars for this what kind of details can you see on the moon?

Thanks alot
 
I'd go for 7x50 every time. 10x binoculars are approaching the limit of what can reasonably be hand held without (expensive) image stabilisation. In practice the steadier views will usually allow you to see more even though the magnification is lower. The oversized exit pupil for older people is not really such a big deal - it simply means some is wasted - built if you want to avoid that I'd tend to go down to 7or 8x42s rather than 10x50s. However there is no real consensus on this and opinions do vary.

As for what you will see on the Moon, it isn't dramatically different. Yes you see everything bigger and more details are visible but is still looks more or less the same as it does naked eye. Looking through a telescope is a different experience altogether - you get a very real sense of a huge rock simply floating in space.
 
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