Celestron has reinvented the manual telescope with StarSense Explorer, the first telescope that uses your smartphone to analyse 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.
Leave complicated star charts, imprecise planetarium apps, and computerised 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.
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.
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 orient 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.
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 few turns of the knobs. It’s all anchored by an adjustable, full-height tripod.
With a large 6” Schmidt-Cassegrain optical tube, Celestron’s tried-and-true optical design for over 50 years, this telescope has enough light gathering ability to bring out impressive detail in celestial objects while remaining compact and lightweight. 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 the beautiful Pleaides Open Star Cluster.
All air-to-glass surfaces are coated with our StarBright XLT optical coatings to visibly increase contrast and light transmission for brighter deep space views. With StarBright XLT, you’ll be able to discern subtle details while viewing the Moon and planets, as well as faint galaxies and nebulae.
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 6” Schmidt-Cassegrain and relatively dark skies, the Andromeda Galaxy, Hercules Open Star Cluster, and so many more are easily within your reach.
Features
- Unleash the power of your smartphone to take you on a guided tour of the night sky, no telescope experience required.
- Award-winning and patent-pending StarSense sky recognition technology uses your smartphone to analyse star patterns overhead and calculate its position in real time.
- StarSense Explorer app automatically generates a list of objects currently visible. View planets, brighter nebulae and galaxies, star clusters, and double stars from the city. Or take your telescope to darker skies to view faint, deep sky objects.
- Manual altazimuth mount with smooth, dual-axis slow-motion controls makes it easy to follow the onscreen arrows to your desired target. When the bullseye turns green, it’s ready to view in the telescope’s eyepiece.
- 6” Schmidt-Cassegrain optical tube with StarBright XLT coatings and enough light gathering ability to view all the best celestial objects.
- Includes 40mm and 10mm eyepieces, StarSense smartphone dock, a red dot finderscope (in case you want to use the telescope without your phone), an erect image diagonal, and a sturdy, full-height tripod.
Specifications
Optical Design: Schmidt-Cassegrain
Aperture: 150mm (6")
Focal Length: 1500mm
Focal Ratio: f/10
Focal Length of Eyepiece 1: 40mm
Magnification of Eyepiece 1: 38x
Focal Length of Eyepiece 2: 10mm
Magnification of Eyepiece 2: 150x
Barlow Lens: Not Included
Finderscope: StarPointer red dot finderscope
Star Diagonal: Erect image 90°
Optical Tube: Aluminum
Highest Useful Magnification: 354x
Lowest Useful Magnification: 21x
Limiting Stellar Magnitude: 13.4
Resolution (Rayleigh): 0.93 arc seconds
Resolution (Dawes): 0.77 arc seconds
Light Gathering Power (Compared to human eye): 459x
Secondary Mirror Obstruction: 56mm
Secondary Mirror Obstruction by Diameter: 37%
Secondary Mirror Obstruction by Area: 14%
Optical Coatings: StarBright XLT
Optical Tube Length: 406mm
Optical Tube Diameter: 184.15mm
Optical Tube Weight: 4.54 kg
Dovetail: CG-5 Dovetail Bar
Mount Info:
Mount Type: Manual Alt-Azimuth
Height adjustment range (includes mount and tripod): Aluminium, 1320.8mm max height
Tripod Leg Diameter: 31.75mm steel
Accessory Tray: Yes
Tripod Weight: 1.72 kg
Slew Speeds: Manual
GPS: Uses phone's GPS
Dovetail Compatibility: CG-5
Power Requirements: None (Recommend PowerTank Glow to keep phone charged while using App)
Alignment Procedures: Use StarSense Explorer App
Software: StarSense Explorer App | SkyPortal App | Celestron Starry Night Basic Edition Software
Total Kit Weight: 14 lbs (6.35 kg)
Included Items: Optical tube | Mount and tripod (preassembled) | 40mm and 10mm eyepieces | Erect image diagonal | StarPointer finderscope | Accessory tray | StarSense Explorer phone dock.
Note: Smartphone shown in images is not included.
