Celestron C80 ED-R Apochromatic Refractor Telescope

$Celestron C80 ED-R Apochromatic Refractor Telescope$ Before you even learn about the abundant features of the Celestron C80 ED-R Apochromatic Refractor Telescope, you might notice its glossy black finish and attractive appearance. This telescope is sleek and stylish. It features brilliant fully multi-coated optics and Celestron’s signature high quality ED glass. ED glass provides the best color correction on the market as well as crystal clear and sharp images. The chromatic aberration that often comes with lunar and planetary viewing is nearly eliminated so that you can enjoy the night sky in crisp clarity. All-in-all, the scope is extremely well made and delivers a wide range of excellent viewing.

This telescope’s refractor style 80ED has a 2” diameter steel tripod with an accessory rack and pinion focuser for steady viewing and ease of handling. From time to time, you may need to give the focuser a light cleaning to keep its motion smooth. The collomination, however, was perfectly precise on first use, and required no adjustment whatsoever. The refractor’s focal length of 600mm (f/7.5) makes this the perfect all-around telescope with the versatility of handling both nature photography and wide field astrophotography. Additional features include a 20mm 1.25” eyepiece made to handle wide field viewing, erect image diagonal for comfortable high image viewing, and a 6x30 finderscope for ease of accurately finding objects. Slow motion controls allow for smooth tracking action that make using this telescope an absolute dream.

The performance of this telescope is absolutely thrilling. I will never forget the first time I brought Jupiter and Venus into focus and marveled at the sharpness and clarity. I was able to see considerable detail on Jupiter without a hint of false color. With a few adjustments, I was able to see some breathtaking higher power views.

The heavy duty CG-5 German equatorial mount is precision-engineered for sturdiness and stability. Its gears on both axes allow for smooth manipulation of the telescope and the larger, sturdier legs on the tripod provide top-notch damping characteristics for absolultely still views. The latitude scale on the mount aids in alignment and the polar finderscope fine tunes precision alignments.

The Celestron C80 ED-R Apochromatic Refractor Telescope also comes with a free CD-ROM entitled “The Sky”. This software provides educational material about the celestial world as well as printable sky maps. Overall, this telescope is perfect for anyone from the hobbyist to the serious astronomer and is thankfully very affordable.