How do I use a telescope?

[Aghanim]

So I found this nameless ancient telescope in my home several years ago

Link to imgur album: http://imgur.com/a/wcuER  because apparently the forum imgur album embed doesn't work and I cannot delete it

The big knob have this text on top of it: 20X-60X D = 60mm Zoom Focus Hard Coated Optics Japan Code no. 20-20-61

The small knob have this text on top of it: 60x <- ZOOM -> 20x

When I try to look at the eyepiece, the image looks really blurry with several black dots on it

So how do I use this for, lets say looking at ISS from Earth? And is it possible to attach a webcam and take pictures or even video through it? Or see Moon craters? Or see outer planets?

 

 

Edited March 9, 2016 by Aghanim

[GDJ]

The eyepieces may be dirty inside. I would get a professional to clean them up. It's too easy to knock a lens out of alignment. Depending on what kind of Telescope you have you may have to get the rest of it cleaned up and adjusted.

Basic Telescope instructions:

1) find a object.
2) adjust your eyepiece to it's lowest magnification level.
3) focus on an object (the moon is a great place to start. Lots of little craters).
4) slowly increase the magnification and adjust the focus as you go. There is a point where the images will get smeary. That pretty much means that you have gone too far and the lenses can't focus that tightly when the magnification is that high. Back off the magnification until the images improve.

Now, depending on the size of the scope, you will easily view the moon, you probably can view Jupiter and it's Galilean moons (Io, Europa, Callisto, and Ganymede), Saturn and it's rings, Mars on a good day, and Venus at the right time of the year. The ISS will be a tougher object to track because it's moving across the sky so darn fast, but you will make out the superstructure and the solar arrays.

Now, as for photographs, I will have to tenuously say "No", simply because I haven't seen the scope (No pic in your post), I have no idea on what kind of focuser assembly you have, and most Astrophotography rated Telescopes are very VERY expensive (they start at $4000 CDN for a basic one, well over $15000 for a good one) and without some kind of tracking mechanism, most of the pics will be blurry and smeary because the Earth rotates and the stars and other objects move too!

But, Astronomy can be fun. Find a club or a group, hang with them, and learn from the experienced.

[Hary R]

 here, the album id wcuER in your case, you just copy paste that in the imgur album button 

Edited March 9, 2016 by Hary R

[GDJ]

This is a old refractor. That's good since refractors tend to be fairly robust when it comes to lenses, and cleaning them up is far easier than mirrors as long as you are gentle and patient. Mark all the pieces so they go back together the exact same way it came apart if you feel the yen to tinker.

My guess it's a 60mm F7 telescope. Not bad. F7 is a good focal length for magnification verses field of view. As long as the 60mm lens is Achromatic (2-piece lens) it's a keeper to start with. If it's not (single lens) then it's a conversation piece, and not much more.

Large knob is the main focus. It may be a turn-to-lock arrangement or internally threaded.

The smaller knob is for the zoom eyepiece. 

You'll get to see Jupiter easily, Saturn not too bad. Mars will be it's limit (it's small). You'll be doing good if you make out Uranus (faint). That's about as far as you'll be able to go planet-wise.

As for stars and constellations, it will make those out fine if you go out to a Dark Site with a group. Andromeda and the Pleiades are show stoppers, as well as the Orion Nebula.

[YNM]

I think you should clean it up first, probably ask some telescope shops whether they can do it. Also, it has zoomable eyepiece. Now that's not precisely a good thing to have, as zoomable eyepieces tend to have lower quality yet more complicated mechanics than single focus eyepieces. The smaller knob seems to be the focal length changer (zoom) while the larger knob seems to be the focuser. Have to agree with GDJ that it might be f/7 or lower, so it's a fast telescope, meaning it's best suited for viewing very extended yet dim objects (comets, nebulae, galaxies, clusters) - you'll need to observe in some very-dark-sky sites though. Also, do you get a mounting for that ? If not, using them will be quite hard. Photography with that... sticking phone camera might be fine. ISS transits, guess the magnification is too small ? To be honest the design looks like some of the cheap telescope the gov't gave to high schools, but given the steel tube it must be of a higher build quality. Would looks pretty cool once cleaned up !

Edited March 9, 2016 by YNM

[Aethon]

I can't tell for sure, but it looks like you are missing the eye pieces.  There should be a number of small short eyepieces of different magnifications that fit in the hole that I think I can see the floor through.  You are also going to need a tripod.  

Don't count on viewing the ISS through it.  The station moves Waaaay too fast.  Binoculars are a better but still difficult option for that.

[cantab]

Having a zoom eyepiece labelled with magnification makes me think this is a vintage spotting scope, designed for birdwatching or shooting - but it can still work well for astronomy. Like others have said, you will probably find one bit twists to focus and another bit twists to zoom. Focus on telescopes can be sensitive, requiring small careful movements.

Even at the lowest magnification, 20x is too much to hold the telescope by hand and usefully see things, you will want to rig it on some sort of mounting to use. Camera tripods are not very good for binoculars or telescopes. You can build a tripod and mount out of timber and simple parts.