Amateur astronomers of all expertise from beginner to experienced will
find this a thorough star cluster atlas perfect for easy use at the
telescope or through binoculars. It enables practical observers to
locate the approximate positions of objects in the sky, organized by
constellation. This book was specifically designed as an atlas and
written for easy use in field conditions. The maps are in
black-and-white so that they can be read by the light of a red LED
observer's reading light. The clusters and their names/numbers are
printed in bold black, against a "grayed-out" background of stars and
constellation figures.
To be used as a self-contained reference, the book provides the reader
with detailed and up-to-date coverage of objects visible with small-,
medium-, and large-aperture telescopes, and is equally useful for simple
and computer-controlled telescopes. In practice, GO-TO telescopes can
usually locate clusters accurately enough to be seen in a
low-magnification eyepiece, but this of course first requires that the
observer knows what is visible in the sky at a given time and from a
given location, so as to input a locatable object. This is where "The
Observer's Guide to Star Clusters" steps in as an essential aid to
finding star clusters to observe and an essential piece of equipment for
all amateur astronomers.