 How to Find Mars in a Telescope?
I know my knowledge is lacking so please be kind. I bought a Celestron Firstscope 114mm. My problem is I can't seem to find/see Mars. I have had absolutely no problem locating Saturn, Jupiter, and Venus but Mars is eluding me. The sky charts are helpful and I am sure I am looking in the right area but each object I view looks like a star. The other three planets I viewed were clearly planets. Is Mars in such a position right now that it does not look like a planet? I have tried using both the 10mm and 20mm optics. Saturn is small but it is impressive to see the planet and its rings. There is no mistaking it or Jupiter or Venus for stars. Could I be looking at Mars and be mistaking it for a star? I honestly think I have it correctly identified with the naked eye but it does not look at all like the other three planets.
I fairly certain I have correctly identified Betelgeuse and Capella and Mars should be roughly in between. I have seen Pollux, Castor, Saturn, Orion's belt. Due to the brightness of the moon and nearby light pollution there are only a few visible objects (naked eye) between Capella and Betelgeuse.
Any advice?
Jim  |