Reflector Telescope: Astrolux

SKY WATCHER CHILDS CELESTIAL TELESCOPE

Our Astrolux Telescope is a 'reflector' telescope (sometimes called a 'reflecting' telescope). Reflector telescopes use a concave mirror to collect the light coming from the object being oberved (eg the moon), and reflect this up to the eyepiece.

The most important thing to look for in a telescope is the quality of the lenses and mirrors. Generally speaking, for a reflector telescope, the larger the diameter of the main mirror, the more light can be collected, and hence the greater the quality of the magnified image. Usually, the more you pay, the higher the quality of the magnified image. This is not always the case though among the telescopes we regularly review.

The attractive Astrolux telescope benefits from Sky Watcher's Aspherical Technology, usually only found in larger, more expensive telescopes. The primary mirror is altered during polishing to bring the light rays onto a common focal plane, resulting in sharp images full of detail. Using this technology, the Astrolux 76 telescope can therefore boast about having what is known as a parabolic mirror, rather than inferior spherical mirrors used on (as far as we know) every other child's telescope. The result is that the Astrolux produces remarkably bright and clear images. The Astrolux collects 131% more starlight than the average 50mm toy telescope, bringing hundreds more objects into view. Its intuitive manoeuvrability makes it a perfect user-friendly telescope for children. Setting up the telescope is easy and they will be exploring the exciting universe to their hearts’ content in no time at all.

What we also particularly like about the Astrolux telescope is that it achieves a very good trade-off between quality and price. The magnification of 140x may seem low in comparison to quoted magnifications of other children's telescopes, however this enables the Astrolux to offer a wide range of view and this is all done with optics that are superior in quality to most other telescopes in this price bracket. The result is that the Astrolux provides particularly clear and bright images that reveal more in the night sky than other telescopes quoting higher magnifications, which commonly suffer from poor-quality, low-detailed and dull images with such a narrow field of view that children have difficulty in using them. In short, the Astrolux enables amateur astronomists - especially children - to discover a wealth of hidden secrets in the night sky, without costing the earth! And, we have to admit, the remarkable quality of the images makes this telescope actually quite fun for adults too!


Technical specification:

• 76mm (3") f/700 Newtonian Reflector
• Magnifications (with optics supplied): x28, x56, x70, x140
• Highest Practical Power (Potential): x152
• Diameter of Primary Mirror: 76mm
• Telescope Focal Length: 700mm (f/9.2)
• Eyepieces Supplied (1.25"): 10mm & 25mm
• x2 Barlow Lens
• 6x24 Finderscope
• AZ1 Alt-Azimuth Mount
• Aluminium Tripod with Accessory Tray

Package includes:

• Astrolux Reflecting Telescope
• 10mm & 25mm Precision Eyepieces
• Barlow Lens
• Mount & Stand
• Instruction Booklet

Ages: 8+