In a message dated 5/2/01 9:55:57 AM Eastern Daylight Time,

<< First of all, what is the best average visual magnitude that I
can expect to see with this particular scope under average seeing
conditions? >>

Hi Alan,

A 10" scope is a good choice, offering lots of light gathering ability but
not an enormous size. How faint you can see will depend upon many factors,
especially the darkness and clarity of your skies. To give you some ideas,
look at the limiting magnitude calculator located at:

http://www.go.ednet.ns.ca/~larry/astro/maglimit.html

This handy tool shows you how many factors affect how faint you can see. At
any rate, Pluto will be a possibility, now at magnitude 13.8. You will need a
dark night and a good finder chart to identify it. You should also probably
be able to see two of Uranus' moons and one of Neptune's, again on a really
good night. With a 10" scope you will also be able to see structure in dozens
and dozens of galaxies - M51 (the Whirlpool Galaxy) near the tail of the big
dipper is a good one to start with.

Good luck with which ever instrument you select. We're all here to help!

Doug S.

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