[DirtyDeeds]

Hello, I'm new here but having a look around, I really like this place and there seems to be great info. By the way, Astrogirl, I'm impressed with your astrophotography, keep it up!

Anyway, I'm new to telescopes but not new to astronomy if that makes sense. I'm a 20-year-old college student majoring in physics, with the goal of going on to grad school for astronomy or astrophysics. Astronomy has been a passion since the movie Apollo 13 came out. Anyway, I just wanted to say that to establish the fact that I'm serious about this, so I want serious equipment... as serious as it can get on a not-so-seriously big budget. Being a college student, balancing tuition, housing, car payments, a full-time job teaching extracurricular science classes to kids, plus classes, I do not have a lot of money, and I have wanted a scope for YEARS, but have not been able to afford one. I have some very limited experience with 2 10-inch scopes and an 8-inch scope from astronomy club in high school, but I really learned nothing about them and know very little in regards to technical terminology.

I have the opportunity to buy an Orion SkyQuest XT8 for $300. Is this a good deal? I'm impressed by the 8-inch aperture being only $300. Can you add a motor drive separately?If so, could you use this scope for astrophotography? I'm not interested in a go-to because I actually do know my way around the stars fairly well (volunteered in the dome of a planetarium). I'm also trying to start a beginner-orientated astronomy club in my local area, so I'm looking to use this scope, if I buy it, for the astronomy club. Note that there are no telescope shops nearby, so I feel fairly limited. Plus, $300 doesn't stick around in possession for too long! Should I jump on it?

Thanks so much, guys!