These stargazing tips will help you and your child enjoy the night sky and discover lots of things beyond the moon and stars.
Stargazing can be overwhleming. How can you find one star among billions out there in space? Sounds impossible, right? But once you get to identify a few stars and constellations, the rest will just unfold.
You don’t need a telescope to see do stargazing. Just use your eyes. There’s stargazing tips will get you started.
Stargazing Tips for Beginners
1. Find a good viewing spot. This can be just at your home or your backyard. You can also go to a park or an open field where it is safe. The fewer the lights in your surroundings, the more stars you’d be able to see with your naked eye. You also see more stars when the moon is not shining brightly.
2. Take time to adjust. Your eyes need some time to adjust to the light. As you gaze longer, your eyes will adjust to absorb more light and more stars will be visible. Just be patient. Give your eyes about 15-20 minutes to adjust to the dark.
3. Bring a sky chart or a sky map. Not all of the 88 constellations can be seen in a single night. A sky chart or sky map will guide you on which stars are visible in your area. I get my sky chart for free from Skymaps.com. There are three versions available. Download the one that is appropiate for your location.
There are also mobile apps available for stargazing. Check these three stargazing app to make stargazing easier.
4. Bring equipments. You can simply stand and use your eye to watch the sky but bringing these equipments can be helpful.
- blanket
- jacket
- binoculars or telescope (It doesn’t have to be expensive or advanced.)
- sky chart or sky map
- flashlight (TIP: Cover the lighted end with a red paper. The white light from a flashlight can disrupt your night vision.)
- laser pointer
5. Stargaze with a group. Two heads are indeed better than one for stargazing. Having more eyes to look for stars and constellation can make things faster. Join other amateurs and learn together.
6. Ask “What’s that?”. The bigger and bright stars are usually part of a constellation. Look for an interesting group of stars and check it in the sky chart. Chances are, it is a common star or a part of a constellation.
There you go, just six stargazing tips to get you started as an astronomer. The sky chart changes monthly. If you are lucky, there might be an interesting astonomical event like a meteor shower or a comet passing. So be sure to check back monthly to be updated on the sky chart or sky map for these events. Some of them can be happen just once in a lifetime.
