Celestron Reflectors

More Information  · Supplied Accessories  · Images of Some Features Price $169.95 List Price $280.95 Highest Useful Magnification 180x Visual Limiting Magnitude 11.9 Focal Length 700mm Focal Ratio f/9.2 Resolution 1.52 arc seconds Aperture 3" Weight 16 lbs. Warranty 2 years

Its 76mm aperture gives you images 60% brighter than those in the typical 60mm refractor that’s common in this price range. And the 26% higher resolution (the ability to see small details) of the AstroMaster’s 76mm mirror, when compared to a 60mm scope, shows you small lunar and planetary details no smaller scope can show you. The sensible 35x and 70x magnifications of its two quality eyepieces reveal hundreds and hundreds of celestial details that are invisible to the unaided eye – for a price no higher than that of lesser quality department and toy store telescopes.

The optical quality of this Celestron is surprisingly good, considering its very modest price. You’ll see detailed and high contrast views of the Moon, planets, binary stars, and star clusters – as well as the brighter nebulas and galaxies outside the solar system. The rugged and stable CG-2 equatorial mount has manual slow motion controls in both axes. These let you easily locate solar system and deep space objects and manually track them across the sky.

This Telescope’s Optical System . . .

• Reflector optical tube: 76mm (3") aperture f/9.2 focal ratio Newtonian reflector. All-glass mirrors, coated with highly reflective aluminum and overcoated with quartz for long life. There are no plastic optical components. 26 inch long 700mm focal length aluminum tube with protective tube end rings. The reflector design of the scope is totally free of the purple haze of spurious color visible around the Moon and planets in lesser refractor scopes. Images are sharp and clear. You can even collimate (align) both mirrors for the sharpest images. This will have to be done only rarely, thanks to the special design of the cell holding the lightweight primary mirror.

• Rack and pinion focuser: The 1.25" focuser has dual focusing knobs for precise image control with either hand. The large focus knobs are easy to operate, even while wearing gloves or mittens in cold weather.

• Two eyepieces: You get a medium power 1.25" 10mm (70x) eyepiece and a lower power 1.25" 20mm (35x) erect image eyepiece with a 1.4° field of view (almost three times the diameter of the full Moon). The 35x erect image eyepiece lets you use the 76EQ terrestrially, as its images are not upside-down as they are with most reflectors. Both eyepieces are a higher quality optical design than you'll find in most other telescopes in this price range. They have antireflection coatings on their lens surfaces for sharp images and very good contrast. Instead of providing low quality eyepieces that give unrealistically high (and generally unusable) 200-300x magnifications, Celestron has chosen to provide higher quality eyepieces with sensible powers you can use and enjoy every time you take your AstroMaster out to observe.

• Finderscope: A non-magnifying red dot finder is permanently attached to the side of the optical tube. The battery-operated red dot finder seems to project a dot of red light on the sky or on the daytime landscape exactly where the telescope is pointed. The red dot will help you center distant objects in the telescope so you don’t have to search for them using the narrow eyepiece field of view. Collimating knobs on the finder let you line up its red dot precisely with the main telescope optics to make centering distant objects easy and painless.

• Software: The scope comes with TheSky Level 1 sky-charting CD-ROM that has a database of 10,000 stars and objects it can plot and display on your Windows-based computer screen. That’s enough solar system and deep space detail to keep you busy observing for years, yet not so much that you’re overwhelmed by charts showing much more detail than your scope can usefully reveal. Custom sky chart printing lets you print out eyepiece finder charts to use with your telescope to help you locate and identify the planets and many famous and faint deep space nebulas, galaxies, and star clusters by star-hopping from object to object using your scope’s pan handle control. There are 75 full color images of well-known celestial objects to help you identify them through your scope.

This Telescope’s Mount . . .

• Equatorial mount: The sturdy CG-2 equatorial mount is designed for astronomical observing. By aligning the mount on the north celestial pole, you only need to turn one slow motion control knob to follow planets and stars as they travel across the sky. Two counterweights on the opposite side of the mount from the telescope balance the weight of the optical tube and make it easy to move the scope effortlessly from one part of the sky to another. No tools are required to adjust the position of the counterweights to quickly and precisely balance the optical tube. A micrometer control lets you adjust the altitude of the scope mount for fast alignment on the north celestial pole with no tools required.

• Dovetail tube mount: The optical tube is fitted with a dovetail slide bar that fits into a quick-release dovetail groove on the top of the mount. Installing the optical tube on the mount is quick and easy, even in the dark. The optical tube locks securely in place with no tools needed.

• Setting circles: Setting circles (graduated scales marked in either hours and minutes or degrees) are provided in both right ascension (the east/west position of objects in the sky measured in hours and minutes) and declination (the north/south position measured in degrees). These allow you to align the scope on the approximate position of an object in the sky by using its r. a. and dec coordinates from a star chart – before you search for it in the red dot finder and eyepiece. Setting circles can reduce the time it takes for you to find the fainter and more difficult deep space objects.

• Manual slow motion controls: There are two slow motion control knobs conveniently positioned on the mount so they are easy to reach while observing. One controls the scope’s motion in right ascension (the east/west direction in the sky). Turning this knob enables you to follow the motion of celestial objects as they travel from east to west across the heavens. The second controls the scope’s motion in declination (the north/south direction in the sky). Turning this knob enables you to correct for any north/south drift a celestial object may take as it drifts across the sky, due to an improper alignment of the scope on the north celestial pole when you first set it up. The two controls combine to give you complete access to any part of the sky. They give you the ability to star hop from a known object to any other object by using a star chart. They let you center objects in the field of view, and track them effortlessly with only an occasional quick turn of the r. a. knob.

• Tripod: The very rigid tripod has 1.25" diameter stainless steel legs for vibration-free observing. The legs easily adjust in length to put the eyepiece at the most comfortable height for virtually any observer, young or old. The no-tool lock knobs that adjust the leg height of the tripod are on the inside of the legs so they won’t snag on clothing in the dark, a thoughtful touch that’s sure to be appreciated. The tripod includes an accessory shelf with cutouts to hold three eyepieces. A lip on the shelf keeps accessories from falling off during use.

• Two year warranty: As an expression of Celestron’s confidence in the quality of their products, the AstroMaster is protected by Celestron’s two-year limited warranty against flaws in materials and workmanship.