My new 15×70 binoculars

Yesterday I got a new pair of Binoculars. Amazon has a great deal on a pair of Celestron SkyMaster 15x70s for $62! They are normally over $100. I couldn’t resist.

These things are huge, and give you a great view. The 70mm objective lenses brings in so much light, it make them hard to use during the day, but great for night viewing. I didn’t spend a ton of time viewing last night, but I had to check out Venus and Jupiter. The pair are a beautiful site in the west, and will be closest together on Thursday.

With my new Binoculars I was able to make out one moon of Jupiter. I checked out the current location of Jupiter’s moons on Stellarium, and all four Galilean moon were on the same side. My guess is the moon I saw was Ganymede since Stellarium said it was the brightest. It also happens to be the largest moon in the Solar System.

15×70 binoculars are great, but they are kind of heavy, and hard to hold steady. You really do need a tripod for them. I had to rest my arms on the deck railing to get a steady look. After I knew what I was looking at I took out my 10×50 Celestron Binoculars, probably the perfect size for hand use, and I was able to see Ganymede with them too. I’m pretty sure that was the moon I was seeing through my scope on Saturday night. It just proves that with more experience I will be able to see more things, even with my 10×50 binoculars.