Minimum aperture for globulars and galaxies?

Hello, all,
What in your opinion or experience is the minimum aperture necessary for satisfying views of globular clusters and galaxies>
Thanks,
Bill Meyers

This is far too personal and subjective (what's a "satisfying" view?) for any consensus to be reached. But with my 6-inch scope, I can partially resolve a suprising number of globulars, and the brightest showpiece globulars are quite lovely. 4 inches is too little, in my experience, for "satisfying" views. So, for globs I'd say around 6 inches is minimum.

Galaxies, in general, need greater aperture for anything remotely "impressive", but as I've increased my observing skills, I've found a suprising amount of satisfaction in observing galaxies with my 6 inch scope. Still, if galaxies are a primary interest, an 8 or 10 inch scope is going to be preferred.

Of course I like the views throught bigger scopes, but I am always very satisfied when I can find/see one of these things in binoculars. It is almost the most satisfying when things are just on the edge of visibility and you finally are sure you have found something.

Charlie

There is no minimum aperature You will always want to see "more" and go deeper than your current scope will show you and the next thing you know is that you've caught aperature fever


Just my .02