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In this detailed guide, we’ve put together a list of the best telescopes. Not only did we choose the best telescopes, but we also made sure there was one for every level of astronomer and every budget.
The best telescopes for astrophotography give us a new way to look at the sky above us. They show us new worlds beyond what we can see with the naked eye. They are great for people who like to look at the stars and for people who want to take pictures of the universe.
The best telescopes let you look at whatever you want to see in the night sky, whether that’s the craters on the moon, planets, or the deeper cosmos. With so many reflectors, refractors, and cassegrains, as well as so many bundles that come with different accessories, it can be hard to decide which telescope to buy.
Best Telescopes
Celestron Astro Fi 102
Specifications
| Brand | Celestron |
| Model Name | Astro Fi 102 Wi-Fi Maksutov |
| Product Dimensions | 36″D x 30″W x 53″H |
| Item Weight | 14 Pounds |
| Number of Batteries | 1 Lithium Metal batteries required. (included) |
After reviewing the Celestron Astro Fi 102 telescope, we think it’s great for people who don’t know much about the night sky but want to start learning and having fun with it right away.
It’s not cheap by any means, but if you want a telescope from a trusted brand that’s easy to carry around, this one is worth a look. It doesn’t take up as much space as some telescopes, so you can leave it set up at home without taking up too much room, or you can easily take it apart and put it back together whenever you want.
Pros
- Highly portable
- Go-to is great for beginners
Cons
- Finish feels a little cheap
Unistellar eVscope eQuinox
Specifications
| Brand | Unistellar |
| Dimensions | 31″D x 12″W x 19″H |
| Focus Type | Manual Focus |
| Power Source | Battery Powered |
| Weight | 1 Pounds |
This telescope from Unistellar is the second in the eVscope line, and it looks and works even better than the first one. The eVscope 2 is a beautiful-looking telescope with a micro OLED digital eyepiece made by Nikon.
The telescope comes with its own tripod, and an extra backpack, which we recommend, makes it very easy to move around on location. This telescope is much easier for photographers to use than older, more traditional telescopes.
Pros
- Superb build quality
- Self-aligning software
Cons
- Expensive
Celestron AstroMaster 130EQ
Specifications
| Model Name | 31045 |
| Lens Diameter | 130 Millimeters |
| Dimensions | 35″D x 19″W x 12″H |
| Weight | 26.5 Pounds |
| Focus Type | Manual Focus |
If you want the best telescope for astrophotography and serious stargazing, we recommend the Celestron AstroMaster 130EQ. It’s a great package for the slightly more experienced amateur astronomer, especially since it comes with a CG-3 equatorial mount.
The equatorial mount helps with tracking, which is important for astrophotography with longer exposures. Its decent aperture, on the other hand, will show a lot of detail in the solar system and in deep-sky objects.
Pros
- Good-sized aperture
- Lightweight and portable
Cons
- Higher powered eyepieces would be useful
CELESTRON NEXSTAR 6SE
Specifications
| Brand | Celestron |
| Model Name | 11068 |
| Dimensions | 32.01″D x 26″W x 12″H |
| Power Source | Battery Powered |
| Lens Diameter | 150 Millimeters |
The well-known Celestron NexStar 6SE telescope is perfect for amateur astronomers who want to see both deep-sky objects and objects in our own solar system more clearly and with more detail. It is also much cheaper for people who want to watch the stars as a hobby.
Most of the best telescopes for beginners can see either planets or deep-sky objects, but not both. This is true even if they don’t say it on the box. The Celestron NexStar 6SE is unusual because even though the price went up, the image quality went up by a lot.
Pros
- Deals well with light pollution
- Bright, colorful 4.8-megapixel images
Cons
- Expensive
Celestron Inspire 100AZ Refractor
Specifications
| Brand | Celestron |
| Dimensions | 38"D x 33"W x 52"H |
| Weight | 20 Pounds |
| Focus Type | Manual Focus |
| Objective Lens Diameter | 100 Millimeters |
Celestron’s Inspire line of refractors is designed for beginners, but the 100mm model is our favourite. It has a 660mm focal length, a good aperture, and a lot of features. The scope would be appealing to younger astronomers because it is cheap and looks nice.
It has a tripod, two eyepieces, a diagonal, and an LED torch with a red light. One of its best features is an adapter for smartphones. This is great for people who want to start astrophotography or share their observations on social media.
Pros
- Portable
- Lightweigh
Cons
- very high cost
Zhumell Z114 Tabletop Dobsonian
Specifications
| Model Name | Zhumell |
| Lens Diameter | 114 Millimeters |
| Dimensions | 18.5″D x 13.5″W x 16.25″H |
| Weight | 9.85 Pounds |
| Finderscope | Reflex |
The Zhumell Z114 works a little bit better than a smaller 100mm tabletop scope and is easier for the user to calibrate. It also has a rotating tube clamp that lets you adjust the eyepiece angle to your liking.
The Z114 has a very wide field of view: 2.1 degrees at 26x with the included 17mm eyepiece and up to 3.6 degrees with an additional lower-power wide-field eyepiece. This is big enough to fit even the largest deep-sky objects, like the Pleiades, and makes it easy to find almost anything, even with the included red-dot sight.
Pros
- Decent eyepieces
- Reasonably lightweight
Cons
- smaller 100mm tabletop scope
What is telescopes?
Astronomers use telescopes to look at things in the sky that are far away. Most telescopes, and all large telescopes, gather and focus light from the night sky by using curved mirrors. The first telescopes used clear, curved pieces of glass called lenses to focus light.
Because mirrors are lighter than lenses and are easier to make smooth than lenses. The parts of a telescope that look like mirrors or lenses are called “optics.” Telescopes with a lot of power can see things that are very dim and very far away.
What is the purpose of telescopes?
Seeing things in the night sky is hard because they are so far away and look very dim because of this. The better we can see these things, the more light we can gather with a telescope. The diameter, also called the aperture, of a telescope shows how well it can gather light.
The first type of telescope was a refracting telescope, which was made by a Dutch lensmaker named Hans Lippershey in 1608.
FAQs
What telescope is best for viewing planets?
- Celestron Inspire 100AZ refractor telescope
- Celestron NexStar 8SE
- Celestron AstroMaster 70AZ telescope
- Sky-Watcher Explorer 130 EQ2
- Celestron Omni XLT 102
What is the most powerful telescope for home use?
- Celestron Inspire 100AZ Refractor
- Celestron Astro Fi 102
- Celestron NexStar 4SE
- Celestron StarSense Explorer LT 114AZ
- Celestron NexStar Evolution
How do you use a telescope?
A telescope is a tool that magnifies images of faraway things. In astronomy, the telescope is without a doubt the most important tool for research. It gives us a way to collect and study radiation from objects in space, even ones that are very far away.