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I have been getting mixed opinions on this. I have a 15x70 Pair of Binoculars. I have tried staring at Jupiter for several minutes with it, I was able to see the Galilean moons, in fact the last time was so long that I noticed the Moon's position changing a little bit.

But the glare of Jupiter is so high that I could not see the bands. Is it really possible to see any of Jupiter's bands using a 15x70 pair when the angular size is about 45 arcseconds ?

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    $\begingroup$ In the title you have 15x20, not 15x70... $\endgroup$
    – Jeremy
    Commented Dec 20, 2014 at 10:47
  • $\begingroup$ This is opinion based for several reasons; One is your own visual acuity. Second is the quality of optics you use. And third is that it would depend on the distance to Jupiter which in this year alone varied between ~ 4.25 and 6.25 AU. I would argue that no, it's not possible, but it would merely be an opinion even if I'm perfectly qualified to give one because I own a pair of 15x70 binoculars, too. It might be more prudent to test how valid claims of those that say it is possible are, than asking us for an opinion. ;) $\endgroup$
    – TildalWave
    Commented Dec 21, 2014 at 4:32
  • $\begingroup$ I don't think this is opinion-based per se; I think that there are simply (at the moment) too many unspecified parameters. $\endgroup$
    – HDE 226868 ♦
    Commented Dec 21, 2014 at 22:32
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    $\begingroup$ @HDE226868 That's what makes it opinion based in Stack Exchange close reason parlance. Those venturing to answer it would have to fill in the missing info, and that will inevitably be based on personal opinion. Granted, that might also make the question unclear. But the end result is the same; The question should be put on hold to prevent guessing and OP should be invited to edit and clarify the question. It can always be reopened once it's sufficiently clear that it can be successfully answered without conjectures and random chance. $\endgroup$
    – TildalWave
    Commented Dec 26, 2014 at 12:01
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    $\begingroup$ Related question. $\endgroup$
    – HDE 226868 ♦
    Commented Dec 30, 2014 at 14:51

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I use a 20x80 binocular on a tripod and I cannot make out Jupiter's bands. I believe that a 15x70 binocular will not be adequate.

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