best spotting scopes

Celestron’s EclipSmart Travel Solar Scope 50 is a dedicated white-light solar telescope for the observer on the go. It’s lightweight, compact, and easy to transport—perfect for viewing the solar photosphere and sunspots. At the heart of this 50mm refractor-style solar scope, you’ll find Celestron’s Solar Safe, full-aperture glass filter material, which ensures safe views of eclipses, transits, sunspots, and any other solar event. The EclipSmart telescope features a dual-lens, non-removable glass solar filter that conforms to the ISO 12312-2:2015(E) standard. The EclipSmart Travel Solar Scope 50 offers much higher magnifications for viewing sunspots or planetary transits than you would get using solar eclipse glasses or binoculars. The telescope comes complete with everything you need and makes it easy to share the Sun as well as partial and total solar eclipses with the whole family. Solar Safe Technology EclipSmart solar products feature Solar Safe filter technology—the ultimate protection from harmful solar radiation, including IR and UV light, plus 99.999% of visible light. Celestron Solar Safe filter technology is safe for direct observation of the Sun. Solar Safe products conform to and meet the transmission requirements of ISO 12312-2:2015(E), Filters for Direct Observation of the Sun, EN 1836:2005 + A1:2007 (E) for an E15 Filter for the Direct Observation of the Sun and AS/NZS 1338.1:2012, Filters for Eye Protectors. Important safety note: inspect your filter before every use. Do not use and discard if damaged, scratched, or separated from the frame in any way. Manual Alt-Azimuth telescope Navigate the sky with a pan handle Alt-Az control with clutch for smooth and accurate pointing. Move the clutch in an up/down, left/right fashion to track the Sun in the eyepiece as it appears to drift across the daytime sky. Accessories Included The EclipSmart Travel Solar Scope 50 comes with one eyepiece (20mm), a hybrid star diagonal for a more comfortable viewing angle, a permanently attached solar finderscope, and a travel backpack. Solar Finderscope – The EclipSmart telescope comes with a safe solar finderscope that allows you to align your telescope without looking directly at the Sun. The finderscope comes pre-installed and ready for use. Simply center the projection arm’s shadow on the bull’s eye, and the Sun will be positioned within the field of view of your telescope’s eyepiece. Travel Backpack – A custom backpack comes with your telescope so you can store your optical tube, tripod, eyepieces, and accessories. Traveling with your EclipSmart scope is a breeze; all the components fit comfortably inside the backpack. Upcoming Eclipses 2023 - On October 14, 2023, the famed “Ring of Fire” will encircle a darkened Moon during a spectacular annular eclipse.  This phenomenon occurs when the Moon is too far from Earth to cover the Sun completely. The Sun's corona is not visible during an annular eclipse. 2024 - On April 8, 2024, the Moon will completely cover the Sun during an awe-inspiring Total Solar Eclipse. Observers within the path of totality will witness the sun’s dazzling corona, the “diamond ring” effect, and day turn to night.

Celestron has reinvented the manual telescope with StarSense Explorer—the first telescope that uses your smartphone to analyze the night sky and calculate its position in real time. StarSense Explorer is ideal for beginners thanks to the app’s user-friendly interface and detailed tutorials. It’s like having your own personal tour guide of the night sky. Dock, Launch, Explore Leave complicated star charts, imprecise planetarium apps, and computerized mounts behind. With StarSense Explorer, locating objects has never been easier, faster, or more accurate. Within minutes of setting up the telescope, you’ll be navigating the sky with confidence. Simply place your phone in the unique StarSense dock and launch the StarSense Explorer app. After aligning your phone to the telescope’s optics (a quick, 2-minute procedure), StarSense Explorer generates a list of celestial objects currently visible. Make your selection and arrows appear onscreen, guiding you as you to move the telescope. When the object is ready to view, the bullseye turns green. Smartphone Compatibility StarSense Explorer works with most modern smartphones, including iPhone 6 and up and most devices running Android 7.1.2 or later manufactured since 2016. For a complete compatibility list, click here. Patent-Pending StarSense Sky Recognition Technology StarSense Explorer uses patent-pending technology and your smartphone to determine exactly where the telescope is pointed in the night sky. A Lost in Space Algorithm (LISA), like the ones satellites use in orbit to correctly reorient themselves, helps the app match star patterns it detects overhead to its internal database. While other astronomy apps may claim that they can help you find objects, they rely exclusively on the phone’s gyros and accelerometers, which aren’t as accurate as LISA technology. No other app can accurately tell you when your target is visible in the eyepiece. Sturdy Altazimuth Mount StarSense Explorer LT’s simple altazimuth mount makes it easy to move the telescope to find your target. An altitude slow motion adjustment with a sliding rod helps you fine tune the telescope’s pointing position and follow targets as they appear to drift across the night sky. It’s all anchored by an adjustable, full-height tripod. Dazzling Views with High Quality Optics With a large 114mm (4.5”) objective lens, this telescope has enough light gathering ability to bring out detail in celestial objects. You can expect sharp, bright views of Jupiter’s four Galilean moons, its cloud bands and Great Red Spot, the rings of Saturn, the trapezium in the Orion Nebula, and beautiful Pleaides Open Star Cluster. Perfect for the City or Dark Sky Sites Even if you live in a light polluted city location, StarSense Explorer is advanced enough to be able to pick out Jupiter, Saturn, Venus, the Orion Nebula, double stars, and a few more of the most famous celestial objects. But if you can take the telescope to an even slightly darker location, more objects will become visible. With this 4.5” Newtonian and relatively dark skies, the Andromeda Galaxy, Hercules Open Star Cluster, and so many more are easily within your reach. The entire telescope kit weighs just 10.4 pounds, so it’s perfectly portable and easy to bring on your next camping trip or to a remote observing site. Everything You Need to Observe Immediately When you unbox your new StarSense Explorer LT, you’ll find: 114mm Newtonian reflector optical tube StarSense dock for your smartphone Low powered (25mm) and high powered (10mm) eyepiece 2x Barlow lens to double the power of each eyepiece StarPointer red dot finderscope, perfect for using the telescope during the day or without the StarSense Explorer app Altazimuth mount with slow motion control rod Full-height tripod with an accessory tray to keep you organized

Locate and observe objects in the night sky with this telescope that features StarBright XLT coatings for optimal light transmission and a StarPointer finderscope that helps you find and align objects easily.

Celestron has reinvented the manual telescope with StarSense Explorer—the first telescope that uses your smartphone to analyze the night sky and calculate its position in real time. StarSense Explorer is ideal for beginners thanks to the app’s user-friendly interface and detailed tutorials. It’s like having your own personal tour guide of the night sky. Dock, Launch, Explore Leave complicated star charts, imprecise planetarium apps, and computerized mounts behind. With StarSense Explorer, locating objects has never been easier, faster, or more accurate. Within minutes of setting up the telescope, you’ll be navigating the sky with confidence. Simply place your phone in the unique StarSense dock and launch the StarSense Explorer app. After aligning your phone to the telescope’s optics (a quick, 2-minute procedure), StarSense Explorer generates a list of celestial objects currently visible. Make your selection and arrows appear onscreen, guiding you as you to move the telescope. When the object is ready to view, the bullseye turns green. Smartphone Compatibility. StarSense Explorer works with most modern smartphones, including iPhone 6 and up and most devices running Android 7.1.2 or later manufactured since 2016. For a complete compatibility list, click here. Patent-Pending StarSense Sky Recognition Technology. StarSense Explorer uses patent-pending technology and your smartphone to determine exactly where the telescope is pointed in the night sky. A Lost in Space Algorithm (LISA), like the ones satellites use in orbit to correctly reorient themselves, helps the app match star patterns it detects overhead to its internal database. While other astronomy apps may claim that they can help you find objects, they rely exclusively on the phone’s gyros and accelerometers, which aren’t as accurate as LISA technology. No other app can accurately tell you when your target is visible in the eyepiece. High Quality Altazimuth Mount with Slow Motion Control. An ultra-stable altazimuth mount provides a sturdy foundation for StarSense Explorer DX. Slip clutches and geared slow motion controls in both axes help you move the telescope smoothly and zero in your target. As celestial objects appear to drift across the night sky, you’ll be able to follow them with just a turn of the knobs. It’s all anchored by an adjustable, full-height tripod. Dazzling Views with High Quality Optics. With a large 130mm (5”) objective lens, this telescope has enough light gathering ability to bring out impressive detail in celestial objects. You can expect sharp, bright views of Jupiter’s four Galilean moons, its cloud bands and Great Red Spot, the rings of Saturn, the trapezium in the Orion Nebula, and beautiful Pleaides Open Star Cluster. Highly reflective coatings on both the primary and secondary mirror enhance the views even more. Perfect for the City or Dark Sky Sites. Even if you live in a light polluted city location, StarSense Explorer is advanced enough to be able to pick out Jupiter, Saturn, Venus, the Orion Nebula, double stars, and a few more of the most famous celestial objects. But if you can take the telescope to an even slightly darker location, more objects will become visible. With this 5” Newtonian and relatively dark skies, the Andromeda Galaxy, Hercules Open Star Cluster, and so many more are easily within your reach. The entire telescope kit weighs just 18 pounds, so it’s perfectly portable and easy to bring on your next camping trip or to a remote observing site. Everything You Need to Observe Immediately. When you unbox your new StarSense Explorer DX, you’ll find:130mm Newtonian reflector optical tube StarSense dock for your smartphone. Low powered (25mm) and high powered (10mm) eyepiece. StarPointer red dot finderscope, perfect for using the telescope during the day or without the StarSense Explorer app. Altazimuth mount with slow motion controls. Full-height tripod with an accessory tray to keep you organized

These binoculars feature a large aperture that is ideal for astronomical viewing or for terrestrial use, especially over long distances. High-quality BAK-4 prisms and multicoated optics provide enhanced contrast, and the large center knob allows easy focusing.

View cosmic events with these Celestron EclipSmart solar binoculars. They let you observe a full solar eclipse while filter technology protects against damaging IR and UV rays. These dual-lens Celestron EclipSmart solar binoculars have 10x magnification power for viewing close-up details, and the 7-degree field of view permits quick location of objects.

This telescope features a StarPointer finderscope for accurate alignment and location of objects and NexStar computer control technology for simple operation. The steel tripod provides durability.

Enjoy nature from afar with these Nikon ACULON A211 binoculars, which provide 8x magnification and aspherical Eco-Glass multicoated lenses with BaK4 Porro prisms for bright, clear images in most lighting conditions.

Explore the night sky with this Celestron StarSense Explorer telescope. Patent-pending StarSense technology interfaces with your smartphone to accurately calculate your position and point out objects of interest. This Celestron StarSense Explorer telescope offers a manual altazimuth mount with dual-axis slow-motion controls to help follow on-screen arrows directing you to views of nebulae, galaxies and star clusters.