Astronomy is both a science and a hobby and it's a subject that is accessible to almost everyone. Indeed, humans have gazed at the night sky with a sense of wonder and fascination for millennia and the starry skies have inspired poetry and philosophy as well as science and exploration. It's a hobby the whole family can enjoy and anyone can join millions of others who enjoy this subject just by stepping outside on a cloudless night and looking up at the sky.

You don't even need a telescope to start enjoying astronomy. You can pick out major constellations, the moon, and several planets using the naked eye or with a pair of binoculars that you might already possess for other purposes. However, part of the fun of astronomy is the use of the telescopes and they vary from simple designs that cost less than £100 to complex pieces of equipment that cost thousands.

The best way to start your exploration of the cosmos is to pick an evening when the weather is calm and the sky is clear of clouds. You can start simply by looking out of your window or by standing in your garden, but the more sky you can see the more scope you have for exploration, so if you can go to anywhere that is open land then so much the better. Also, being out in the country and away from street lights will reduce the amount of light pollution that so hinders the amateur astronomer.

Take a star chart or a beginner's guide to astronomy book. You can download and print start charts from many astronomy websites and your local library will probably stock many such books. Of course you could simply buy your own book and start your astronomy library. Over time it's likely to grow into quite a collection.

Make sure you're dressed appropriately and that you are warm and comfortable. Some of the clearest nights for star gazing in Europe for example are during the winter. The air is much clearer and the visibility is so much better as a consequence. Give your eyes time to adjust to the darkness and if you do take a torch in order to refer to a book or star chart then use a dim setting so that the light from the touch doesn't spoil your night time vision. If you're fortunate enough to live in a remote part of the countryside, near a desert or up a mountain then you have a distinct advantage over town dwelling astronomers!

If you're budget does stretch to some equipment then the two basics are; a pair of binoculars and a telescope. The binoculars can be used for a quick check of an intended target area of the sky before you change the position of your telescope. Your first telescope might be one made by companies like Celestron, Meade, Skywatcher, or Orion. All these companies are recognized experts in their field and provide a range of telescopes for both amateur astronomers and professional star gazers.

When you start searching for a suitable telescope you'll probably come across references to refractor telescopes and reflector telescopes. To learn about the differences between these two types and more information, astronomy guides, and telescope reviews visit the two sites listed below.

Astronomy is the scientific study of celestial objects. That appear outside of Earth's atmosphere. These include: Planets, Stars, Comets and Galaxies.

Astronomy is one of the few jobs, that are nearly 4000 years old. Almost all Astronomers are also Astrophysicists. All professional Astronomers are both. The most important cahracteristic for a person who wishes to become an Astronomer is a powerful spirit of inquiry.

A really important discovery in Astronomy was when Astronomers discovered that all Stars circle a specific point in the sky. Known as the celestial point. On a normal, and clear night you can see 3000 different stars.

Ancients made a lot of important and valuable discoveries related to the Universe. But they also had their fair share of misunderstandings. The Ancients noted that positions of the Sun, Moon, and Planets change from night to night. Which is correct. But their biggest misunderstanding was thinking that the Moon, Sun, and other Planets orbit a motionless Earth. Religious teachings heavily supported this theory until the late 1600s.

There are a lot of important Astronomical studies. Here's a list of them: Optical Astronomy, X-ray Astronomy, Gamma-ray Astronomy, Ultraviolet Astronomy, Infrared Astronomy, Radio Astronomy, Cosmic-ray Astronomy, Gravitational Astronomy, and Neutrino Astronomy. In total there are 10 different types of Astronomy, including normal Astronomy.

Many people believe that Astronomers get payed a lot of money. However, this is not true.

Discoveries related to the Universe have been made since Human existence. And they'll be continued to be made until Humans walk the Earth.

The Ultimate Fate Of The Universe is a highly discussed topic in Cosmology. The Ultimate Fate Of The Universe is various theories on what will happen to the Universe in trillions of years. Or as some call it, "the end of the Universe". The Ultimate Fate Of The Universe is also a major theme in Science Fiction.

There are six main theories predicting the fate of the Universe. The Big Freeze or Heat Death, Big Rip, Big Crunch, Big Bounce, Multiverse, and False Vacuum. Each one is different than the other, and is backed up by scientific evidence. So it's really hard to actually decide which one is the most accurate.

Most scientists and astronomers think that The Big Freeze is the most likely one to happen. The Big Freeze theory states that all stars in the Universe will seize to exist. So the Universe will become far to cold to sustain any life at all. So the Universe will be engulfed in a Galactic freeze. This theory is the one that most scientists and astronomers think will occur because if it's strong facts.

Dyson's eternal intelligence states that even under the most harsh conditions in the Universe. A really advanced civilization could still survive. If they only use the amount of Energy that they have to use. But no more. It also states that the civilization would need to hibernate for a longer period of time, and have less activity.

Keep in mind that all these are just theories, anything can actually happen. Only time will tell.

Having telescope will become one of the best things in your life, especially if you own the reflecting telescope. It is the unbelievable thing that will amazingly enable you to see the stars and even planets intimately, and all the things will be the same as the fancy world. There is no limit for people to unravel about the hidden fact of the universe, and it is one of the steps to do that. By using the telescope, space seems to be close to you, but you need to understand about the proper way and places to purchase that one.

Purchasing the Right One

The first thing you have to know before eventually buying the reflecting telescope is recognizing the fact that there are lots of types of telescope obtainable on the market. And every telescope comes up with its own good sides and downsides. One of the instances is the Newtonian reflector telescope. Additionally, you can select the other kinds as well.

It means that the word "best" is really relative, and cannot be generalized for all people. There are three types of telescopes offered for beginners: the Newtonians, achromatic refractors, and the Dobsonians. If you are the beginner, the most common first scope like a 70mm or 80mm achromatic refractors will be the great selection to get you started. What about the Newtonian telescopes?

The next consideration you need to have in buying the reflecting telescope is accessories. In this matter, please ensure that you get the right ones, and there are quite a few selections that you can pick one of them. The different focal lengths of eyepieces will help you by providing different magnifications of reflecting telescope.

There will be no benefits of having reflecting telescope that completed with great technology if you cannot use that tool rightfully. The only reason is that because it needs much money, and will be the expensive investment. It will be silly of damaging the telescope because of your inability to know how to use it, right?

Buying a telescope is one of the best things you can do. A telescope allows you to navigate the heavens. It is a good idea to check out a telescope shop, the question is how do you find them? This article is aimed to help you discover that.

Summary of contents:
* Why Buy A Telescope From A Telescope Store?
* Finding A Telescope Shop
* Great Tips To Buying An Astronomical Telescope

* Why Buy A Telescope From A Telescope Store?
There are several benefits to buying a telescope from a telescope shop. The biggest benefit is that you get to see all the different telescopes available. This is not as good when it is done online, as you only have a picture to go by.

Buying from a telescope shop also has the benefit that you can ask a sales representative about astronomy, and which scientific instrument will be serve you. There are many different types, so having an idea of what you want can help. Looking online, there is much information to help, however, a salesperson maybe able to give a unique perspective, as many of them are interested in astronomy.

* Finding A Telescope Shop
Telescopes are not as popular as groceries! This makes finding these stores a difficult task. It is like searching for a needle in a haystack.

There are still many stores dotted around the world. If you are willing to travel, you can go and find a telescope store. The difference is that it depends if you are willing to make the travel.

There are several ways to find these telescope shops. Here is a summary, and we will look at them in more detail:
* Yellow Pages
* Newspapers & Classifieds
* Magazines
* Online

* Yellow Pages
The Yellow Pages is one of the first places that it is wise to look into to find telescope stores. The best sections to check are Binoculars & Telescopes section or Photographic Equipment. Depending on the amount of stores within the area covered there may be some details there.

* Newspapers & Classifieds
Another great way to find telescopes is to look through newspapers and classifieds. In most cases these adverts will be for used models, however, if you are looking for a bargain, this is the best route for success.

* Magazines
There are a few dedicated magazines that deal with astronomy. Magazines such as Sky & Telescope have many details for stores. Though this is a US based magazine, there are others that deal directly for the country you reside in - in most cases.

* Online
Buying online is great; the only problem is that you can't see the telescope. The truth is that researching online can help you find a local store.

* Great Tips To Buying An Astronomical Telescope
Make sure you look online. Though buying through a store is great, the truth is that great savings can be made online. There is also the benefit that you can find a bigger range.

Make sure that you have adequate space for the telescope. They take up more room than what would seem apparent, considering that they need space to move around.

The Big Bang is the most widely accepted theory on how the Universe was created. Many years ago, a lot of astronomers thought that the Universe had no beginning or end. They believed it was infinite. But This theory proved that the Universe had a beginning and it isn't infinite.

This huge explosion happened about 15 billion years ago. The minute this huge explosion occured , the Universe started heavily expanding. Even to this day. During the time of this event, all the matter and energy in the Universe was contained in one point. As of now, scientists and astronomers don't know what existed, prior to the Big Bang. Many people just describe this as "nothing". It's often questioned, what was this "nothing". But obviously, no one actually knows what there was.

Ever this has happened, the Universe has been expanding constantly. The main person behind the idea of this theory is Edwin Hubble. He's highly credited for making the observation of the Universe expanding. Since the Universe is always expanding, the distance between galaxies is always increasing. Which means, that there was a time when all the galaxies were tightly packed together into a single point. And the distance between them gradually increased.

Although, This is the most widely accepted theory on how the Universe was created. There are still many people that don't believe in The Big Bang. There are various other theories out there, that explain how the Universe was created. But again, this one is the most widely accepted.

A star is a huge ball or disk of plasma that is primarily held together by gravity. On a clear night on Earth, we are able to see a lot of Stars. We can see 3000 stars on a typical night with the un-aided eye. The closest Star to Earth, is the Sun. Which is the main energy source for us.

The most visible stars on the celestial sphere were grouped together into constellations. The most brigthest Stars were also given names.

For the majority of a Star's life, it shines very brightly because of thermonuclear fusion in its core. Which is then radiated into outer-space.

A star begins as a dying or collapsing cloud. The cloud is composed of helium, helium, and other heavy elements. After the cloud's core, is very dense. Then some of the Hydrogen is converted into Helium. Which is a process known as nuclear fusion.

There are 18 different types of Stars and groups. Binary Stars, Black Dwarfs, Black Holes, Brown Dwarfs, Galaxies, Main-Sequence Stars, Nebulas, Neutron Stars, Novas, Pulsars, Quasars, Red Giants, Star Colours, Supergiants, Supernovas, Variable Stars, White Dwarf, and a Wolf-Rayet Star.

Astronomer's determine the mass, and age of a Star by viewing a Star's spectrum, luminosity, and it's motion through space. The mass of a Star determines it's future.

To get to our nearest Star (or closest to The Sun) it would take us approximately 118, 000 years!

After a Star runs out of hydrogen to fuse into Helium. Then the Star dies. A Star can die in several different ways, depending on it's type.

Introduction

Our solar system consists of the Sun, eight planets, the Asteroid belt, and the Kuiper belt. Originally, we had nine planets. But Pluto didn't meet the proper requirements that a planet must have to be classified as a planet. So it's no longer considered to be an actual planet. Planets as small as Pluto, are now known as Dwarf planets. As of now, there are 5 Dwarf planets. The four inner planets are called terrestrial planets and the four outer planets are called gas giants.

The Sun

The Sun is by far the largest object in our Solar System. It holds 99.8 % of the entire mass of our Solar System. The Sun is an ordinary Star, just like billions of other ones in the Universe. The Sun is classified as a normal main-sequence G2 Star. The Sun is composed of 70 % Hydrogen and 28 % Helium. Everything else (metals) amounts to less than 2 %. The Sun has been shining for about 4.6 Billion years, and it will continue to do so for about another 5 Billion year. Or until it runs out of Hydrogen to burn. The Sun has eight planets and many smaller objects orbiting it.

Key Details:

* Diameter: 1, 390, 000 KM

* Mass: 1.989e30 KG

* Temperature: 5800 K (Surface) 15, 600, 000 K (Core)

Mercury

Mercury is the closest planet to the Sun. It's also the eighth largest. Due to Mercury's short distance from the Sun, temperatures get fairly high on Mercury. Mercury has an extremely thin atmosphere. It has a lot of atoms flying off it's surface by the Solar Wind. Mercury has no Moons.

Mercury has been visited by two space-crafts. NASA, recently in 2004, launched a new space-craft to Mercury. It will send back much higher quality images, than the old space-crafts did. Mercury has a very weak magnetic field. It's strength is about 1 % of Earth's. It takes Mercury only 88 days to make a complete orbit around the Sun.

Key Details:

* Orbit: 57, 910, 000 KM (0.38 AU) from the Sun

* Diameter: 4, 880 KM

* Mass: 3.30e23 KG

Venus

Venus is the second planet from the Sun, and the sixth largest. Venus is the most brightest object in the sky. (Not including The Sun or the Moon). Venus is also called Earth's sister planet, at times, due to the two planets close similarities. Venus does not have any Moons.

There are very strong winds raging on the cloud tops of Venus. It's believed, that at one time Venus had liquid water on it's surface. But all the water has now boiled away. Venus is very dry now. Venus also has several active volcanoes on it's surface. It takes Venus 225 Earth days to complete an orbit around the Sun.

Key Details:

* Orbit: 108, 200, 000 KM (0.72 AU) from the Sun

* Diameter: 12, 103, 6 KM

* Mass: 4.869.24 KG

Earth

Earth is the third planet from the Sun. It's also the fifth largest. Earth has been divided into several layers, which have distinct chemical and seismic properties (depth in kilometers). Earth only has one Moon, but NASA has placed their own artificial satellites to orbit Earth. One of the most interesting things about Earth is that it's the only known Planet in which water can exist in liquid form. 71 % of Earth's surface is covered with water. Thanks to Earth's rich atmosphere, Earth is full of life. You can almost find life anywhere.

Earth is the only planet, whose name does not derive from Greek/Roman mythology. In the "ancient times" Earth was considered to be the center of the Universe. All these beliefs were brought to rest in the late sixteenth century by Copernicus. It was then proved, that Earth is a regular planet, orbiting a star. Just like billions of other ones in the Universe.

Key Details:

* Orbit: 227, 940, 000 KM (1.52 AU) from the Sun

* Diameter: 6, 794 KM

* Mass: 3.4219e23 KG

Mars

Mars, also known as the "red planet". Is the forth planet from the Sun. It's also the seventh largest. Early in Mars history, it was very similar to Earth. The very first space-craft to visit Mars was Mariner 4. It sent back detailed pictures to NASA. The pictures confirmed that Mars doesn't have any life on it. However, evidence was found that millions of years ago, Mars could've supported life. Before the pictures were received, many people (even scientists) believed that Mars might have living creatures on it. But all those beliefs were brought to rest. Evidence from the pictures that NASA received from their space-crafts, also shows that Mars could've had liquid water on it's surface in the past.

If Humans are to ever in-habit another planet, then the biggest candidate is Mars. Not only have we found evidence of previous life their, but Mars isn't very far from us either. U.S.A is planning a man mission to Mars sometime in 2040. The entire trip to Mars, and back would take us about 2 and a half years. (Traveling at today's modern speed). This is without mentioning the risks and dangerous factors of the trip. Mars has two moons.

Key Details:

* Orbit: 227, 640, 000 KM (1.52 AU) from the Sun

* Diameter: 6, 794 KM

* Mass: 6.4219e23 KG

Jupiter

Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun. It's by far the largest planet in our Solar System. Jupiter is more than twice as massive as all the other planets in our Solar System combined.

The "great red spot" is a massive storm that's been raging on Jupiter for more than 300 years, now. The storm is so huge, it can hold up to two Earth's in it. Some scientists are starting to think that the great red spot might become a permanent feature of Jupiter. Jupiter is 1300 times more larger than Earth. Jupiter is also the fourth brightest object in the sky. Jupiter has a mind rattling 63 Moons. There could still be more.

Due to Jupiter's strong gravitational pull (massive size) it has a strong influence on each of the planets, orbits around the Sun. Jupiter has been visited by several space-crafts. The space-craft "Galileo" orbited Jupiter for eight consecutive years. Sending back important pictures, and information regarding Jupiter, back to NASA.

Key Details:

* Orbit: 778, 330, 000 KM (5.20 AU) from the Sun

* Diameter: 142, 984 KM (Equatorial)

* Mass: 1.900e27

Saturn

Saturn is the sixth planet from the sun, and it's the second largest. Saturn is the least dense of all the planets in our Solar System. Saturn has been visited by many space-crafts. The most fascinating feature of Saturn, is it's rings. There are four main groups of rings and three fainter, narrower groups of rings. Saturn's rings are very thin. The origin of Saturn's rings is completely unknown.

Saturn radiates more energy into space, than it receives from the Sun. Saturn has 34 known Moons. Scientists believe there could be more. But they can only speculate. Saturn and Jupiter are composed of similar chemicals. Which is why the two, are so alike.

Key Details:

* Orbit: 1, 429, 400, 000 KM (9.54 AU) from the Sun

* Diameter: 120, 536 KM (Equatorial)

* Mass: 5.68e26 KG

Uranus

Uranus is the seventh planet from the Sun, and it's the third largest. Uranus has only been visited by one space-craft. But that one space-craft, answered many questions related to Uranus, and a lot more. The space-craft confirmed that Uranus does have 21 Moons. Uranus is some times pronounced the wrong way. The wrong way to pronounce it is "your anus", the proper way to pronounce it is "yoor a nus".

Uranus is the first planet to be discovered in modern times. Uranus has very dark rings. Which makes it fairly difficult to see them. Uranus is sometimes barely visible on a very clear night. It can be easily spotted with binoculars, though. Unlike Saturn and Jupiter, Uranus is mostly composed of rocks and various ices.
Key Details:

* Orbit: 2, 870, 990, 000 KM (192.218 AU) from the Sun

* Diameter: 51, 118 KM (Equatorial)

* Mass: 8.683e25 KG

Asteroid Belt

The Asteroid belt is the region of the Solar System located between the orbits of Jupiter and Mars. Many irregular shaped bodies, known as asteroids, or minor planets. Reside within the Asteroid belt. The very first object of the Asteroid belt was discovered in 1801. Now known as Ceres.

Kuiper Belt

The Kuiper belt is a disk-like shaped region beyond the orbit of Neptune. It's roughly 30-50 AU from the Sun. It's very similar to the Asteroid belt. Being home to many small icy bodies, minor planets, and dwarf planets. The former planet, Pluto lies within the Kuiper belt.

It is 40 years since Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin represented mankind on another world - the Moon. It is 40 years since experts suggested that we would soon have a Moonbase and would be walking on another planet: Mars; perhaps even building a permanent base there. It is now 40 years on and we seem to be no nearer to achieving these goals.

This is getting somewhat frustrating because Homo sapiens is a naturally inquisitive primate who simply has to explore new lands in search of more fertile habitats for the species to multiply and prosper. We can clearly see around the world that things are getting rather congested in places, especially in the developed world, and new lands to discover and explore have now gone. We have mapped the whole surface of the planet - we are even making online street maps! There clearly is not much to explore unless we go underground into subterranean caves. But we can't prosper as a species down there.

To continue as pioneers and to explore new lands where the species can multiply and prosper, we must clearly find a new world. Mars is the obvious choice for now. Thanks to the spacecraft and rovers that have so far successfully taught us so much about Mars, we are much wiser now than we were 40 years ago. Spacecraft like the Viking Landers, the rovers Sprit and Opportunity, and those which mapped the planet from orbit, are in effect our current pioneers. They are Man's creations - conceived by the human brain. They act as out eyes. But there is only so much they can do for us for they cannot think like us and act accordingly. They are just our tools.

Ultimately we must get off this planet and prosper elsewhere, for the Earth cannot give us much more. We can forget about going to the stars and attempting to find Earth-like worlds which we could freely take over; the sheer distances involved prevents that. What we must do is look at the solar system, for that contains all the elements and minerals necessary for life. We know this because we are here!

Since the Earth contains all the 92 life-giving natural elements (thanks to a supernova explosion in the vicinity during times long since gone), it follows that the whole solar system does too, for the whole system was created from the one primordial nebula. The only difference between the Earth and the other planets and satellites in the solar system is the presence of liquid water. It is water in its liquid state that must be present for carbon-based life to flourish.

Mars has water - and we now know it has plenty of it - in the solid state. This needs sorting out. It needs to be melted with a man-made heat source. Now there is a technological challenge for us. Can our scientists and engineers construct a boiler to can melt the water ice on Mars? It doesn't have to be huge, just adequate enough to supply biomes, like those at the Eden Project in Cornwall, England. And when photosynthesis occurs, oxygen will escape into the Martian atmosphere. Yes, the Martian sky can turn blue.

We also know that there is lots of water on the Jovian satellite Europa. It cannot be beyond the means of Man to figure out a way of transporting free water from that moon to Mars, especially with the low escape velocity needed to lift the stuff off Europa.

So now you know why we are still stuck on this planet: we are still at the planning stage. It is great that the Indians, the Chinese, and the Japanese are seriously going into space with their own planned manned Moon landings. We have an evolving International Space Station. The European Space Agency is working well. And now the US via NASA wants to put men back on the Moon with Project Constellation.

There is nothing as good as honest competition. Things, it seems, are going to accelerate from now on, so get ready for a fantastic ride over the decades to come!

A Dwarf planet (as defined by the International Astronomical Union) is "a celestial body orbiting the Sun that is massive enough to be rounded by its own gravity but has not cleared its neighbouring region of planetesimals and is not a satellite."

This terms was developed in 2006 during the time when a lot of astronomers weren't accepting Pluto as a planet due to it's small size. Some astronomers argued that just because of Pluto's small size, doesn't mean it's not a planet. But later there was a discovery of a new planet, known as Eris, which was found in 2005 by Mike Brown. This new planet was 27% more massive than Pluto. Which meant that we would know have 10 planets. To date, Eris is the largest Dwarf planet in our Solar System that we know of. The discovery of Eris and the small size of Pluto were the two main factors that drove the International Astronomical Union to classify these smaller planets as something else.

As of now, there are a total of 5 Dwarf planets. Ceres, Pluto, Haumea, Makemake, and Eris.

If the International Astronomical Union had not created the term "Dwarf Planets". Then there would be over 20 different planets in our Solar System. As of now, we only have 8 planets.

Some astronomers believe that there are another 40 planets in our Solar System that are Dwarf planets. The majority of them haven't been discovered yet, though. They also believe that there are about 200 Dwarf planets in the Kuiper Belt.

Which came first, the chicken or the egg, the methane or the life on Mars; this is the confounding questions of late...methane must mean bio material is degrading, or it simply means we don't know anything for sure.

If you know we are a planet and the twinkling little lights in the sky are the same or similar to the planet we live on, you would have to have had a lobotomy not to think it possible that life could exist on a plant other than Earth.

Now, zoom to present day and all the scientific technological advances; we should be able to determine if Mars was ever able to support life. The truth is, NASA has sent probes up, rovers, spacecraft to circle the red planet and take pictures, spent millions of dollars to answer this very question and as of yet there is no conclusive evidence to support the hypothesis that life did exist on Mars.

If someone were to come to Earth after its terrain and atmosphere failed, don't you think they could figure it out in about, oh...say five minutes. We the people of earth would have left stuff there, like landfills, old buildings that surely would have survived storms, freezing temperatures, sun storms, lava, and the hell that a natural living planet could produce. We still don't know for sure who shot President Kennedy either.

The point is that until we get up there, dig deeper and get conclusive evidence, then the answer to the 'Life on Mars' question has to be approached the Joe Friday way, "Just the facts...". The truth is the facts would tell us and the fact that we don't have any solid facts yet, well that just means Life on Mars shall remain a fiction until sometime in the future. No mystery, just no life that's all. So all the bored people of this planet spend time turning tales and letting their over active imaginations skew their practical senses. Go do something with your life and worry about Mars when the little green men show up.

When we talk about the Space Race, it is amazing how little media coverage that we see about other nations and all that they are doing. We see our own space shuttle take off and land and we hear about the ISS or International Space Station, and the Hubble Space Telescope, even the rover on Mars, but have you ever wondered what advances the Chinese are making for instance?

Well did you know that the Chinese have been busy mapping the moon terrain using sophisticated lasers that measure down to less than a meter? Or did you know that the Chinese are launching a Mars probe to do the same thing later this year, one which will be sent into space on Russian Rockets? They will be looking for water and measuring the surface. China even is building a space capsule that can dock with the International Space Station.

Could it be that we here in the US are having our attention diverted from what else is going on in space? It appears we have some competition out there, and we are getting more of it every day. Once the United States dominated space technologies, today, we surely have the know-how, but we do not seem to be putting our financial backing behind it in the way that makes sense to keep up with our own achievements and accomplishments.

Space exploration is not something you finish, it is an on-going process, and if you stop, you will be passed by just like if you have a flat tire on the freeway, and decide not to fix it. Please consider all this.

For the past several days the media seems to have gone euphoric about the giant leap that was supposedly made by the humanity forty years ago on July, 21st when the man 'first stepped on the moon'. This is more so because the India's very first lunar probe is facing a serious technical glitch which may jeopardize the entire mission and bring it to a premature halt. It was on July16th, 1969; America would hold it's breath.

Countdown had started at Kennedy Space Centre. It was not many seconds before the Apollo 11th blasted into space on a 250,000 miles journey to the moon for 8 long days. Astronauts saw the spectacular views of earth florid in a weightless environment. They were going supposedly to a place where no men had gone before. Neil Armstrong was shown opening the hatch. He would slowly step down the small ladder and on to the moon surface. He uttered unforgettable words,' it is a small step for man, a giant leap for mankind.'

The world greeted the event as path breaking. As the people could not believe their eyes, the NASA drew encomiums from people all over the world. The small step for man and a giant leap for mankind all were based on the faith and confidence that the world reposed on NASA and in effect the USA, the superpower. But then it soon transpired that the future of the space program at NASA, the world's premier space agency, grew uncertain. Human space flight, in particular, became a contentious and a divisive issue. After the triumph of sending man to the moon, cancellation of the Apollo project 3 years later gave people to understand that the glory of past of humans landing on the moon would never again be regained.

A large section of people, who from the very start refused to buy the theory, that the moon landing ever took place, had all the reasons to advocate the conspiracy theory that the landing of man on moon was nothing but a hoax. According to this theory man did not at all land on moon and for some obvious reasons would not in future be able to land on moon. The conspiracy theory, which bases its arguments on the examination of government follow ups, films, evidences as also for example the suspicious death of 10 astronauts in the span of few years. As the footage of Apollo-11 and other suchlike missions, shown during and after the voyage, is claimed to be infested with a series of inconsistencies, the experts therefore seem to find no reason not to dismiss the voyage as a great hoax of all times.

Brill Kaysing, an analyst who was associated with the company, that designed Apollo rockets, is one of the leading investigative journalists who have worked on the conspiracy theory. On the basis of his examination of the films and evidences in the footage of the Apollo mission he has several questions that require answer. For example, as he watched the footage with his experience, the latter made him skeptic about what was shown was not real. Much to his surprise the stars were conspicuously missing in the Apollo footage despite deep space in black lunar sky.

Way back in 1950s Americans and Russians were both locked in a struggle to achieve the supremacy in the mission of landing on the moon. The USSR terrified the USA by sending Sputnik, the first spacecraft, to the moon in the year1957. Avalanched with the apprehensions about Russian plans of making the moon as possible missile base, the American mission was still in disarray and the chances of sending man on the moon remote. As Brill Kaysing would claim that the NASA therefore worked on the strategy 'if you can't make it fake it'. This is why; according to him blasting of Apollo was real but not sending of the astronauts. They orbited around the earth for eight days and in a typical 1978 movie set (Capricorn-I) fake landed and simulated the scenes with all the technology available (Paul Lazarus, the producer of the movie).

According to the experts the scenes of landing on the moon were created and simulated in the Area-51, the barren high desert in the USA. The area is said to be highly guarded and trespassers could be shot at without warning. As the astronauts themselves acknowledge the similarity between the terrains of the moon and the desert (craters are similar-- even same--to those found on the moon) the moon sets used during Apollo missions are thought to still exist in the desert.

Much to the surprise of the experts of the theory, the Lunar Excursion Model, the LEM that landed on the moon on July, 20th should do so with a possible thrust of 10,000lbs to create a blast crater. No blast crater is visible in any of the 6 Apollo landings on the moon. In view of the dusty lunar surface the blasted dust expected to have landed on the foot pads of the Lander is simply absent. As the footage show the footprints still present there, the experts claim that the scene was simulated in the movie set on the earth. To top it off the absence of the exhaust flow during the departure, they opine, is suggestive of the use of props to the lunar module in a typical movie set. The engine noise at the time of running rocket is expected to be around a decibel level ranging around 140-150. Experts (like Ralph Rene) challenge as to how the voices of the astronauts could be heard against the background in such an enormous noise level.

Temperature on the moon is said to be around 250 degrees Celsius during the exposure to the sun and minus 250 degree Celsius on a dark day. Experts denounce the NASA claim saying that given the composition of the space suits used by the astronauts the latter could not survive the hostile temperature on the moon surface.

Inside the magnetosphere 500 miles above earth, on way to the moon, are the Van Allen radiation belts, named for the American physicist James A. Van Allen who discovered them in 1958. The Van Allen belts are regions where charged particles from the Sun and from cosmic rays are trapped and sent into spiral paths along the lines of Earth's magnetic field. The radiation belts shield the Earth's surface from these highly energetic particles. Occasionally, however, due to extremely strong magnetic fields on the Sun's surface, which are visible as sunspots, a brief burst of highly energetic particles streams along with the solar wind.

Because Earth's magnetic field lines converge and are closest to the surface at the poles, some of these energetic particles sneak through and interact with Earth's atmosphere, creating the phenomenon known as an aurora. Any body passing through the thousands of miles thick belt is bound to get killed. Other than in Apollo no man mission has ever crossed the belt. Astronauts dressed in the aluminum film along with some fiber glass material and the like in the Apollo 16 mission on the date, when the magnetic storm is supposed to have flooded the space with 10,000 times more radiation, can not be expected to have escaped the adversity. Realizing this all, the experts state that Russians have till date avoided sending men outside space and have no such plans in future even.

Brain Welch, Bart Siberal and David Percy, the experts on photography on landing on the moon are critical of the grainy images which according to them are deliberate to hide the realities. As they doubt the authenticity of the images of walking astronauts on the moon surface the experts claim that the still images that were shown to the world were staged and even doctored. The Sun being the only source of light on the moon surface, the shadows expected are parallel, east-west and not intersecting each other.

As the photographs taken reveal the shadows intersecting each other, the experts simply claim, that the images are taken on earth under simulation under the arranged/artificial light sources. To prove their point the experts claim that the body of the astronaut silhouetted on the dark side should have been shrouded in total darkness, but in these images not only is his body visible but the words United States embossed on the Lander are also crisp and clear. Besides, the pictorial anomalies like the same scenes with similar backgrounds appear to be there on two different days even though at a distance of 2 ½ miles apart. As NASA refutes the anomaly, the superimposition of the 2 scenes reveal that the places were the same. The availability of the base and the lunar modules on the surface of moon support their claim as a case of bad editing and failure of effective doctoring (of evidences). The cross hair located at the varied places in different images turns out to be the last nail in the coffin.

Lastly about 10 astronauts including C. Kristen and Thomas Ronald, amongst many others are claimed to have been silenced in arranged fake deaths for the reason that these fellows knew the truth and could blow the whistle on the NASA. The experts (like Bill Kaysing) vehemently support the conspiracy theory of the landing of humans on moon as a monumental hoax. According to them the footage shows the astronauts struggling in their attempt to plant the US flag which surprising was waving when there is no atmosphere and therefore wind on the moon. These experts simply claim that the failure to apply proper mind resulted in such an anomaly when the scene of planting the US flag was simulated at the desert at Area 51 in the wind blast.

Reacting to the unconvincing replies of the NASA, the experts hold that should a powerful telescope sufficient enough to peep into the surface of the moon is made available the claims of the NASA could be ascertained. They claim that the remains of the mission, that include robotic machines, Landers, American flag and the like, must all still be there on the surface of the moon to prove that the Apollo mission was not fake and simulated in the Area-51 in the USA, as a part of the biggest hoax of 20th century.

Astronomy is a fascinating subject and space is a great mystery. I can bet, every time you look at the sky, it looks different and stimulates curiosity in your mind. Stargazing and sky watching are very popular hobbies among children and adults. However, scientists use telescope and not binoculars because of the long range they offer. Often, they use very high end electronic telescopes as they have a totally different approach: They use radio signals to find objects that are thousands of light years away.

For people like you and me who are looking for something to pursue our star gazing hobbies or want to help our kids learn more about the sky, telescope binoculars for astronomy are the best choice. Telescope binoculars combine the good features of both telescopes and binoculars. There are a wide range of them available on the market, right from low end (under $100) astronomy binoculars which are good for bird watching to higher end ones that can show you rocks on the moon. There is obviously a quality and cost factor that comes in to picture, the farther away you would like to see, the better optics you need, and usually, the higher the price you pay.

Let us now see how you decide what is good for you and what specifications you look for when you are in the store looking at a variety of telescope binoculars. First thing to look at is the Objective lens size - the diameter of the front lens. Since your interest is to buy something to help your astronomy viewing, you should look for the ones with at least 50mm diameter. Of course there are telescope binoculars with apertures as high as 100mm and more. The greater the lens size, the higher the aperture, the more light the lens gathers and hence you get to see objects that are very clear even when it is very dark. Binoculars with aperture less than 35 mm will give disappointing results, if you want to look at the stars.

The other important specification is the magnification. That tells you how far you can see through your telescope binoculars. If the magnification shows 7x, it means you can see an object 7 times closer and if it is 25x, you can see 25 times closer than with the unaided eye. Normally you would see specifications in a format like 7x40mm which means the magnification is 7 times and the lens aperture is 40mm. With a wide range of options, you can easily get carried away and buy something that has high magnification and a huge lens - but then it will lose the mobility factor as you would need a tripod stand to avoid shaking of image. Even the slightest of movement can be a cause for a badly shaken view. In general, any astronomy binocular with an objective lens size over 70mm will require you to use something to stabilize it for great viewing.

So if you are an amateur or looking for telescope binoculars for your kid who is attempting astronomy for the first time, go for something like a 10x50mm which can show you details on the moon and will cost you less. If you are taking your astronomy studies to the next level, go for something like a 25x100mm that can show you things like moons around Jupiter.

Know your needs and choose the right one!

All thanks to the man who first invented the first telescope. Unfortunately he died anonymous. As they say, the Great live and die in silence. But Hans Lippershey who popularized the use of it was luckier to be recognized. Later on its use was extended to the skies by Galileo Galilee in the study of astronomy. With his first astronomical telescope he introduced the heavens to the world. Being the first of its kind, it had its limitations. The arrangement of the glass lenses hindered further magnification. This was in the year 1609. Almost 100 years later another great scientist Sir Isaac Newton altered the telescope inserting a curved mirror that would absorb the light and reflect it to a particular point of focus which magnified objects millions of times greater than the ordinary lens. The telescopes that you and I use today follow the same designs but with larger mirrors and improved technology.

The telescope as the word suggests is an instrument facilitating the extension of a scope to a far distance. And the binocular is an extension of the telescope in usage. Telescopes collect more light and provide high resolution images allowing greater details to be seen of greater distances. They come with different eyepieces for different focal lengths and are hence very flexible in configuration. But the monocular design, heavier weight and high costs makes it necessary to look at a more comfortable replacement.

Binoculars, unlike telescopes are fitted with two objective lenses and prisms, one for each eye, making them more comfortable to use and cheaper due to its low weight and size. But the power of the telescope does not come with the binocular.

Looking at the negatives of both these instruments, some optics geniuses thought of combining their positives and landing at a fresh combo which would be called the telescope binocular. This would be the best of both with the powerful lenses of the telescope and the very comfortable design of the traditional binocular. Some models even come with interchangeable lenses making different fields of view available. So the built-in lens of the binocular is done away with. If any of you out there is a budding astronomer, then you can be sure you have your best bet here. To see a great discussion about these instruments, look here astronomy binoculars.

Telescope binoculars are especially for the purpose of astronomy. They can however be used for other activities like bird watching or any such activity. Tailor made for the discovery of the skies; they are bulkier than the friendly binoculars and must be handled with care. But with no setup time, and easy portability, to the astronomer this combo pack has been a boon.

The high power astronomy telescope binoculars for amateur astronomers should not be confused with the the Large Binocular Telescope (LBT), which has been atop Mt. Graham in Arizona, USA, the result of over two decades of effort, and is the largest telescope to have ever been made in terms of light collection capacity. Its resolution has been unrivalled by any other optical telescope so far. Not even the very sophisticated Hubble Space Telescope. Ever wondered how the first stars and galaxies formed or what the world beyond our solar system really looks like? Then you might get some clues to your curiosity from the LBT. It is one of the most remarkable advances in the quest to know the unknown. But why is it called a Binocular Telescope? That's the topic of another article.