Astronomy is a great field and a great hobby. It is peaceful, interesting, and lovely hobby. The night sky gives us thousands of objects to observe. There is the Moon, there are planets up in the sky, there are stars, and then there are galaxies, nebulas and star clusters. In order to see the amazing objects, we need a Telescope. They are visible and in dark skies they are easily visible. One has to learn the constellations.

I got interested in Astronomy back in 2007 and started to find astronomy related people on internet and finally found Amastropak yahoo group. In an event by Amastropak I met some Astronomy enthusiasts and some of them own telescope. Those telescopes were imported from either US or other countries. When we asked them if telescopes are available in Pakistan, they used to say us there isn’t any telescope available. In Sep 2008, I founded first ever university level Astronomy club of Karachi or perhaps of Pakistan. It was called SZABIST Astronomy Society. In late 2008, I co-founded Karachi Astronomers Society along with some other Astronomy enthusiasts with the aim of spreading Astronomy in Karachi and Pakistan.

We used to wonder how will we ever buy a telescope while we are in Pakistan. There were two ways, either someone is selling a telescope or you ask some of your relative to bring it in luggage from USA. Those were like dark ages for us. 🙂 But we were lucky to have Amateur Astronomers around us with their awesome telescopes including largest SCT Meade 16 inch, Obsession 18 inch and the largest telescope of Pakistan 24 inch Webster.

A dream came true

If you want to buy these telescopes, you can email me at me@abubakershekhani.com or drop a comment on this article. I will get you to the right person. You can follow my work in Astronomy and other fields here.

Until 2012, there was no telescope shop that sells good quality telescopes on affordable price. There were few online companies that sell highly priced telescopes. In 2013, Zain Ahmed, one of the founders of Karachi Astronomers Society, founded “Sahal Telescopes and Binoculars” which sells Sky Watcher telescopes. He told me a long time before first shipment and I wasn’t sure if that will be possible due to the issues that one face with duties on import and transporting telescopes is a difficult task. But it happened and there were amazing 6″ Sky Watcher f/8 dobsonian telescopes for sale along with accessories. Till now MashaAllah, these telescopes have fulfilled the need of an Amateur Astronomers all over Pakistan. Last month, I bought one 6″ Sky Watcher from Sahal Telescopes after testing many specimen bought by other fellow astronomers. 🙂 If you are planning to buy one, don’t forget to mention my name and this article to Zain.

Telescope specifications

6” (152 mm) Dobsonian-style Newtonian

(152 mm) Dobsonian-style Newtonian 1200 mm focal length (f/8)

focal length (f/8) 2” single-speed rack-and-pinion Focuser with 1.25” adapter

Super 25 & 10mm 1.25” eyepieces

6×30 Finderscope

Solid rocker-mount with Teflon bearings and tension clutch for altitude

Teflon bearing for azimuth

Complete details can be found here

Stars and Planets

Yes… This telescope shows you Saturn and other planets. 🙂 galaxies, nebulas, star clusters!!

Photos with Sky Watcher telescope – Pakistan

Here are some of the photos of the Moon that I captured using my 6″ Sky Watcher Telescope using a DSLR. Since then I have captured many photos of the Moon and planets using this telescope. I upload all my photos here.

Planets

So far I have tried capturing 4 planets with my telescope and here is composite photograph of the planets captured at different days but all from rooftop of my house in Karachi.

Follow my work here:

If you’re interested to know the performance of this telescope and my other work, follow the below links. They will guide you more about the photographs and views of the COSMOS.

My Journey in Astronomy so far

My work and Contribution in the field of Astronomy in Karachi and Pakistan

Photo gallery (high-res)

https://www.facebook.com/Abubakershekhani.artist/