Articles: Telescopes Products

Mounts for telescopes are used for one or two different reasons. You do not have to hold the scope yourself while you are attempting to target an object. It helps to steady the scope. It frees you hands up so you can make sketches of what you are viewing or adjust the scope for better focus. There are 2 kinds of telescope mounts you can employ for better viewing. One is the Alt-Azimuth. This mount has similarities to a camera tripod. It employs the vertical ( altitude ) axis and a horizontal ( azimuth ) axis to help find your object. This kind of telescope mount has two fluctuations. The Ball and Socket that has a ball formed end that will move readily. The second type is referred to as a Rocker Box. This is generally made from plywood and has a low centre of gravity. It's got a horizontal circular base and Teflon ball bearings for the altitude axis. These are great mounts for a heavier telescope. The second type of telescope mount is named the Equatorial. This mount uses two axes that are lined up with the poles to maintain a record of the motion an object takes across the sky. The axes can be Right Ascension, Polar, or Declination. Rather than moving up and down on its axes like the Alt-Azimuth, this actual mount is slanted toward the Earth's axis of revolution. There are 2 sorts of this mount. One is the German Equatorial Mount. This mount has the form of a T. The longer axis of the T is lined up with the pole of the Earth. The second variety is the Fork Mount. This is amount that's aligned with the Earth's pole but is sort of a two-pronged fork that sits on a wedge. The spikes are one axis and the base of the fork is the other. You may use the Equatorial Mounts for taking photos of the objects you find.