I wouldn’t advise taking this process on until you are certain that your telescope is suffering from bad collimation. At the time of writing, I have never collimated either of my SCTs, ever.

Custom database lists of all the most famous deep-sky objects by name and catalog number; the most beautiful double, triple and quadruple stars; variable stars; solar system objects and asterisms While your overall satisfaction with this telescope depends on what you want to use it for most, the NexStar 8SE is absolutely worth the money. The big aperture on the NexStar 8Se will show dimmer objects like galaxies and nebulae in detail and, with its ability to deliver high magnification, it’s ideal for seeing the Moon and observing the planets. You can comfortably push it beyond 200x for bright objects in good seeing.If you’re in the market for a grab-and-go telescope (that excels in views of the moon and planets), I think you will enjoy myreview of the Celestron NexStar 8SE.

The trade-off of a heavier more stable tripod probably isn’t worth the extra weight. The mount head connects securely using 3 threaded bolts. It has a nice design and it feels secure. Single Arm Fork Mount The world’s most beloved telescope! The classic, 8-inch Schmidt-Cassegrain revolutionized amateur astronomy in the 1970s. Now, the iconic orange tube design is updated with all the latest features to provide the best stargazing experience for beginners and experienced observers alike. Large, 8-inch aperture legendary SCT optics with excellent light-gathering ability provides spectacular views of the Moon and planets, along with deep sky objects like the Whirlpool Galaxy and Hercules Globular Cluster. A serious large aperture telescope in a portable user friendly format with real upgrade options to grow with you, add GPS, WiFi, StarSense and the Equatorial wedge for long exposure astrophotography.

Saturn, however, was simply gorgeous. The pale yellow and cream hues of the planet showed up its north belt and north polar haze, while the rings, clearly split by the Cassini Division, were a delight. After attaching our iPad using the supplied cable and our own adaptor, we were also able to use a sky app to move the scope to objects in its database. You don’t have to know the location or name of a single star in the sky for it to work. You simply choose your location from the database, I chose Toronto (close enough), and point the scope at three bright stars. Any 3 bright stars.