any astronomy geeks know if a 22 x 85 binocular would?

My 22x60 monocular shows the rings of Saturn. I have a really good tripod for it. You won't be able to hand hold a 22x85 pair of binoculars. Brightness is not an issue for Saturn. My tripod was $250, and IMO, worth every penny.

The view of the rings in my 22x60 are not nearly as good as you'll get from a 120x200 (8 inch telescope - i'm guessing at the magnification, but a popular 8 inch comes with a 10mm eyepiece giving 120x). The 8 inch supports maybe 400x.

Saturn is just coming out from behind the Sun just now. And the rings are closing - that is, becoming edge on from our vantage point on Earth. So it's going to be awhile before it will look off the wall spectacular.

I've seen the rings distinct from the planet in 8x42 binoculars under nearly ideal conditions. In my 8x21 binoculars, Saturn had ears at best.

No... The 22 is magnification power, the 85 mm is the size of the main objective(s). An 8 inch telescope has a main objective that is 8 inches (203 mm). So...

You will not be able to see the rings of saturn because of the low magnification and everything will be much less bright than an 8 inch telescope.

Having said that, 85mm binos are great for dim, wide field objects like star clusters, comets, some galaxies and nebulae, etc. Just make sure you get a tripod. Even at 22 mag, it will be difficult to hold them still by hand.

The limitations of detail with those binoculars would not nearly be as impressive as with the 8 inch telescope. But there are pro's and con's to telescope using vs. binocular using.

Binoculars are easier to transport, require nearly zero assembly, can hang around your neck when not in use, easy to store, and are excellent if you need to observe large patches of sky or "pan" the sky quickly. You are also receiving visual information into both of your eyes, which may or may not be important to you.

Even small telescopes have a small field of view, take a while to get used to and learn, (every time I've gotten or borrowed an unfamiliar scope, I seem to spend too much time fumbling around with it). But they are steadier... your body movements won't make your view look like a movie that was filmed by someone running around the woods like in the Blair Witch Project. The telescope will have higher magnification (planets will be larger, with more definition) and fainter objects will be more detectable... but this also might mean you can get "lost" in the stars that you didn't know existed before.

The views would not even be close to comparable, but you would get a real nice view of the stars and planets with your binocs...and stuff will seem very small.

The difference is related to the number of square inches of light gathering capability that one device has over another. Compute the

number of square inches that an 8 inch mirror has...then compute the total area of two 85 mm lenses...not even close...

Pi x R squared...3.14 x 4 x 4 = 50.24 square inches for the relfector telescope.

85 mm is less than 1.75 inches radius.

For Two of them (binocs), multiply the area by two:

pi x R squared = 3.14 x 1.75 x 1.75 = 14.97

14.97 x 2 = 29.95 sq inches

See the difference...

Plus your friend can use multiple eyepieces to expand or contract his field of view at will, while you are limited to 22 mm eyepieces. With any luck, your friend has a telescope that is capable of using 1.25 inch and 2 inch eyepieces...Ah, you have not lived until you have viewed the sky through 2 Inch Pentax eyepieces.

And if you think that is something...You should see what a 12 Inch Reflector will do...

Regards,

Zah

your best bet is to go to a place that sells binoculars (preferably a telescope store) and have a look. a telescope or sporting goods store will be able to steer you to a good choice. 7x50 and 10x50 are very popular, and are excellent for observing the sky. all but the cheapest and junkiest have decent optics (including bak-4 prisms - do you really care?), but better quality binoculars will be more durable. the best binoculars disappear when you use them. your vision is enhanced, but you are not aware of looking through anything. i have a pair of zeiss binoculars that exhibit this (probably out of your price range... :-), and the effect is startling.

Oranges and apples mate.

Your binoculars will have a greater field of view, better for wide-field viewing, and far, far easier for locating stuff. Great for comets - telescopes not even close for that.

But alas, your 22 mag will not pick out the rings of Saturn like the telescope, or the markings on Jupiter.

But I have 15x80 binos and they are great for following comets.

saturn will be a tiny oval in 22x85 binoculars (it is in my 20x80s), but you will not resolve the rings.

even with both eyes in the picture, an 85mm aperture will not gather as much light, nor will it produce the resolution, of a 200mm aperture.

binoculars are wonderful for star clusters and larger nebulae, and for grab-and-go observing. they are not a replacement for a telesscope. they complement a telesscope. good astronomers have both.

why 22x85? they will be heavy, and with such high magnification will be impossible to handhold. i'd get 7x50 or 10x50.