What is meant by “averted vision technique”?
When viewing through binoculars or telescopes, most deep sky objects look like faint fuzzy blotches of light – at first. The ability of the human eye to see intricate detail even in faint objects is truly impressive if one takes the time to develop the needed observing skills. First and most important is to make sure the observer is DARK ADAPTED. This means setting up in a dark-sky site with no white lights (streetlights, car headlights, porch lights, flashlights) in view. The pupils in the eye take a minimum of 15 minutes to fully dilate and thus adjust to see faint details in the dark.
