What are the advantages and disadvantages of an alt-az telescope mount?
Advantages: Alt-az telescope mounts, because of their simplicity, are the least expensive of all telescope mounts. They are uncomplicated and rugged and the least likely to be damaged by over-eager children. A: Disadvantages: Because a star or planet follows a gentle curve across the night sky instead of a straight line, a telescope on an alt-az mount must be adjusted both in an up-down as well as a right-left direction to keep a star or planet in the eyepiece. This is not much of a problem at low magnifications, but above 75x or so, an alt-az mount can be frustrating for a beginner to use.
