Some of the astronomers at my local observatory say that if you get the lens selection correct so you don’t lose any light through the eyepiece, you don’t need a Barlow lens. While others say that the Barlow lens doubling the focal length of the telescope allows me to see deep sky objects better than without it.

A Barlow lens is a concave lens that when placed between a telescopes objective lens or mirror and the eyepiece, will increase the magnification of the telescope. A Barlow lens will connect directly to your eyepiece.

Subsequently, When would you use a Barlow lens?

Barlow lenses are optical elements that are named after Peter Barlow, an English mathematician and physicist who developed the first prototypes for this kind of lenses back in 1833. Modern Barlow lenses are used in astronomy and astrophotography as optical elements to increase the magnification of a telescope.

Also, Should I get a Barlow lens?

A cost effective way to increase the magnification of your eyepieces. An extremely useful tool every amateur astronomer should have is a Barlow Lens. … If you attach a 2x Barlow lens to that eyepiece you will double the effective magnification of that eyepiece to 100x.

Are Barlow lenses any good?

It is an overall excellent Barlow lens to help expand the ability of quality telescopes. Recommended for telescopes with apertures 130mm or higher. If you are willing to go the extra mile for quality and price, this Baader Barlow is the way to go. … For the price, this lens can accept one each of an eyepiece and focuser.

Last Review : 17 days ago.


What difference does a Barlow lens make?

To put it simply, Barlow lenses are a cost-effective way to increase the magnification of your eyepieces. … Their effect is to increase the magnification of any eyepiece used with them, usually 2 or 3 times. As you’d expect, a 2x Barlow doubles your eyepiece magnification, whilst a 3x trebles it.

What is the purpose of the Barlow lens?

The Barlow lens, named after Peter Barlow, is a diverging lens which, used in series with other optics in an optical system, increases the effective focal length of an optical system as perceived by all components that are after it in the system. The practical result is that inserting a Barlow lens magnifies the image.

Are Barlow lenses worth it?

A cost effective way to increase the magnification of your eyepieces. An extremely useful tool every amateur astronomer should have is a Barlow Lens. … If you attach a 2x Barlow lens to that eyepiece you will double the effective magnification of that eyepiece to 100x.

Should I get a 2x or 3x Barlow?

To put it simply, Barlow lenses are a cost-effective way to increase the magnification of your eyepieces. … Their effect is to increase the magnification of any eyepiece used with them, usually 2 or 3 times. As you’d expect, a 2x Barlow doubles your eyepiece magnification, whilst a 3x trebles it.

What can you see with a Barlow lens?

A Barlow lens makes the image darker. A Barlow lens magnifies your telescope achromatism and can introduce other optical aberration in the image. A Barlow lens increases the optical resolution of your setup and you can be easily oversampling your image.

Are 5x Barlow lenses any good?

In my case, this barlow lens and bundled high power eyepiece together gave about 120% of the maximum, and image quality get degraded a little. At such a bargain price, it gives 5X magnification power with good enough image quality. With low power bundled eyepiece attached to this lens, image quality is quite good.

Which Barlow lens should I buy?

Most people will only use a Barlow lens with their 1.25” eyepieces. If you are looking for a low-cost Barlow to get you started, and a 2X Barlow is a good fit for your eyepiece set, this is the one I would recommend. This is a two-lens element design that features full multi-coating.

Are 5X Barlow lenses any good?

In my case, this barlow lens and bundled high power eyepiece together gave about 120% of the maximum, and image quality get degraded a little. At such a bargain price, it gives 5X magnification power with good enough image quality. With low power bundled eyepiece attached to this lens, image quality is quite good.

How do I choose a Barlow lens?

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What does a 3X Barlow lens do?

Their effect is to increase the magnification of any eyepiece used with them, usually 2 or 3 times. As you’d expect, a 2x Barlow doubles your eyepiece magnification, whilst a 3x trebles it.

How do you use a Barlow 3x lens?

The use of a Barlow lens is quite simple. You place the Barlow in the focuser or the diagonal and insert the eyepiece into the Barlow. For refractor, SCTs and MCTs, which typically have a diagonal in the path, you do have the option of putting the diagonal in the Barlow and putting the Barlow into the focuser.

Where do you place a Barlow lens?

The barlow lens is typically inserted between the diagonal and the eye- piece, for refractors and Schmidt-Cassegrain telescopes (Figure A). For reflectors, the barlow inserts directly into the eyepiece holder of the focuser drawtube (Figure B).

Where does a Barlow lens go?

A Barlow lens is a concave lens that when placed between a telescopes objective lens or mirror and the eyepiece, will increase the magnification of the telescope. A Barlow lens will connect directly to your eyepiece. The most common Barlow is the 2x Barlow.

How do you attach a Barlow lens to a telescope?

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How do you assemble a Barlow lens?

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