When you want to see the stars, find someplace dark
While the total phase of this month’s total solar eclipse can be viewed directly without protection, as soon as the Sun peeks out from behind the Moon you will need a safe way to view the Sun. That means a proper, and safe viewing method.
Personally? I will have a small telescope with a filter available for viewing and photography, along with proper solar sunglasses available to monitor the partial phases as the eclipse begins.
A Celestron FirstScope in need of eyepieces. Time to find a couple inexpensive eyepieces. With the telescope destined for an eight year old girl I really did not expect the eyepieces to live up to any demanding standards. But neither do I want the views to be truly horrible either, it would be nice if the telescope is properly enjoyable.
As the eBay sale is from a US seller the eyepieces arrive in just a few days. Unpacking the eyepieces is the first pleasant surprise… The quality is not bad, metal barrels, decently molded rubber bits, decent looking glass. An ebay sale often a bit of a gamble, but this does not look bad at all.
I tend to end up with telescopes, they just appear on a semi-regular basis, given to me with the instructions to find a home for them. One of the latest additions to Andrew’s Home for Wayward Telescopes (AHWT) was a Celestron FirstScope. It was bequeathed to me by a co-worker moving to the mainland and thus dwelt for a time in my office, there being little room in my garage for yet another telescope.
