For Dobsonian, refractor & reflector owners

Northern + Southern Hemisphere editions

You've got the telescope.
Now see what it can show you.

360 pages that take you from the box in the hallway to Saturn's rings, the craters of the Moon and 110 deep-sky treasures — with the telescope you already own.

  • ✓The complete handbook: setup, finder, eyepieces and your first night, step by step
  • ✓A Moon atlas, night by night, and an honest guide to every planet
  • ✓110 deep-sky targets with star-hop maps — for northern and southern skies
The Backyard Telescope Handbook — complete product set

The complete package

Everything You Get

Five volumes, printable field cards and three bonuses — built around the telescope already sitting in your house.

The Backyard Telescope Handbook

The complete system for Dobsonian, refractor & reflector owners

  • 360 pages across 5 volumes From the box in the hallway to your first galaxy.
  • Your first night, step by step Finder, eyepieces and focus sorted in one evening.
  • The Moon, 28 nights What to look at tonight, whatever the phase.
  • Every planet, honestly What you'll really see at 50×, 120× and 200×.
  • 110 deep-sky treasures North + South Star-hop maps from bright stars: no GoTo needed.
  • Sky planner & printable field cards North + South Month-by-month sky, logs and checklists readable by red torchlight.
  • PDF files for any device Read on phone, tablet or computer, and print the pages you need. Nothing to install, nothing shipped.
Plus 3 bonuses Free until the end of the month
01 Collimation in 10 Minutes Sharp stars again in ten minutes, not a weekend.
02 The 10 New Telescope Mistakes A whole winter of frustration, handed to you upfront.
03 Phone Photos Through the Eyepiece Your first Moon photo tonight, with the phone in your pocket.
€34,90
€69,90

What's inside

360 pages. Five volumes.
One complete system.

Not a video course you have to sit through. A reference set you keep open beside the telescope — searchable on your phone, printable for the field.

360pages
5volumes
110targets
2hemispheres
  1. The Backyard Telescope Handbook
    Volume 1 · 80 pages

    The Backyard Telescope Handbook

    The core manual. From the box in the hallway to the night you stop needing it.

    • Know your telescope — Refractor, reflector, Dobsonian or Maksutov: what yours does best.
    • First night, step by step — Assembly, finder alignment and focus in one evening.
    • Eyepieces & magnification — Which eyepiece, when, and why “525×” is a myth.
    • Mounts & tracking — Alt-az, equatorial and GoTo, explained without jargon.
    • Troubleshooting — “I can't see anything” fixed in minutes.
  2. The Moon, Night by Night
    Volume 2 · 60 pages

    The Moon, Night by Night

    The easiest target in the sky — and the one most people look at once and never again.

    • 28 nights, 28 maps — What's on the line between day and night tonight.
    • 100 named features — Craters, seas, mountains and the Apollo landing sites.
    • Filters & glare — How to stop the Moon blinding you at the eyepiece.
  3. Planets & the Sun
    Volume 3 · 44 pages

    Planets & the Sun

    Saturn's rings are the moment people remember for life. Here's how to get there.

    • Every planet, planned — When each is worth chasing, and where to find it.
    • What you'll really see — Side-by-side views at 50×, 120× and 200×.
    • Seeing & cool-down — Why the image boils, and how to stop it.
    • Solar observing, safely — The filter rules spelled out before you point.
  4. North + South110 Deep-Sky Treasures
    Volume 4 · 130 pages

    110 Deep-Sky Treasures

    Nebulae, galaxies and star clusters chosen for small telescopes, ranked by difficulty.

    • Star-hop maps — From a bright star to the target, no GoTo needed.
    • What it really looks like — An honest eyepiece view, not a Hubble photo.
    • Ranked by difficulty — Start with the sure things, then work up.
    • Best months & eyepiece — Plan the night in a minute.

    Northern + Southern Hemisphere editionsBoth editions included. Use the one for your sky.

  5. North + SouthSky Planner & Field Cards
    Volume 5 · 46 pages

    Sky Planner & Field Cards

    Not more reading — tools you use on the night.

    • Month-by-month sky — What's up this month in your hemisphere.
    • Magnification calculator — Your telescope, your eyepieces, instant answers.
    • Observing log & checklist — Printable, high contrast, readable by red torchlight.
    • Dew & cold-night card — Keep the optics clear and the session going.

    Northern + Southern Hemisphere editionsBoth editions included. Use the one for your sky.

Five volumes. 360 pages. One complete system.

Get All Five Volumes
Free until the end of the month

Plus three bonuses that save you
the mistakes everyone else makes.

Included with every copy this month — at no extra cost.

Collimation in 10 Minutes 01

Collimation in 10 Minutes

24 pages

If bright stars look like little comets, the mirrors are out of line — it happens to every reflector after a car trip. Three circles to line up, six short steps, and sharp stars again the same night.

Free this month
The 10 New Telescope Mistakes 02

The 10 New Telescope Mistakes

Illustrated guide

One mistake per page: what it is, how it ruins the view, and the fix. Most owners spend a whole winter finding these alone. You get them before your first night out.

Free this month
Phone Photos Through the Eyepiece 03

Phone Photos Through the Eyepiece

28 pages

Your phone is already a good astronomy camera. Hold it right, set three things, and take your first Moon photo tonight — then Jupiter and Saturn, with no extra camera.

Free this month

All three bonuses are free until the end of the month.

Get Everything, Bonuses Included

The complete package

Everything You Get

Five volumes, printable field cards and three bonuses — built around the telescope already sitting in your house.

The Backyard Telescope Handbook

The complete system for Dobsonian, refractor & reflector owners

  • 360 pages across 5 volumes From the box in the hallway to your first galaxy.
  • Your first night, step by step Finder, eyepieces and focus sorted in one evening.
  • The Moon, 28 nights What to look at tonight, whatever the phase.
  • Every planet, honestly What you'll really see at 50×, 120× and 200×.
  • 110 deep-sky treasures North + South Star-hop maps from bright stars: no GoTo needed.
  • Sky planner & printable field cards North + South Month-by-month sky, logs and checklists readable by red torchlight.
  • PDF files for any device Read on phone, tablet or computer, and print the pages you need. Nothing to install, nothing shipped.
Plus 3 bonuses Free until the end of the month
01 Collimation in 10 Minutes Sharp stars again in ten minutes, not a weekend.
02 The 10 New Telescope Mistakes A whole winter of frustration, handed to you upfront.
03 Phone Photos Through the Eyepiece Your first Moon photo tonight, with the phone in your pocket.
€34,90
€69,90

Before you decide

Questions people ask us

Which telescopes does this cover?

Any regular backyard telescope: Dobsonians, Newtonian reflectors, refractors, Maksutovs and Schmidt-Cassegrains, on a simple, equatorial or GoTo mount, from 70 mm tabletop scopes to 12-inch Dobsonians — Sky-Watcher, Celestron, Orion, Bresser, Meade, Explore Scientific and the rest.

If you own a smart telescope (Seestar, DWARF, Vespera), that's a different system: see our Smart Telescope Handbook instead.

My telescope was a gift and I know nothing. Is this too technical?

It's written for exactly you. Volume 1 starts with the box unopened and names every part before using it. No mathematics, no jargon without an explanation, and one clear next step on every page.

Do I need to buy anything else?

No. Everything works with the eyepieces that came in the box. When an accessory is genuinely worth it (and when it's money wasted) we say so plainly, so you only spend if you want to.

I live in a town with streetlights. Is there any point?

Yes. The Moon and the planets are not affected by light pollution: you can see Saturn's rings from a driveway tonight. Every deep-sky target is marked for city, suburban or dark sky, so you know which ones will work from home.

Northern or Southern Hemisphere?

Both. The 110 Deep-Sky Treasures and the Sky Planner come in two editions, one for each hemisphere, with their own targets, seasons and monthly charts. You get both. Everything else applies anywhere in the world.

How do I receive it, and can I print it?

Everything comes as PDF files — nothing to install, nothing shipped. Read them on computer, tablet or phone, and print any page you like. The field cards and checklists are designed to be printed and taken outside with you.