The NexStar 127SLT (Star Locating Telescope) is a big, but very affordable, go-to 5" aperture Maksutov-Cassegrain with high contrast/high resolution catadioptric optics that is priced far below competitive 5" Maks.
You don't have to know how to read a star chart - or even know which way is North - to find your way around the sky with the Celestron NexStar 127SLT 127mm go-to Maksutov-Cassegrain. It has Celestron's famous SkyAlign easy alignment technology and a StarPointer red dot LED finder to make lining up on the sky a breeze.
Once aligned, the scope's computer hand control will find more than 4,000 celestial objects for you and will track them unerringly all night long while you observe. With its pre-assembled adjustable height steel tripod and easy no-tool assembly, the NexStar 127SLT can be up and ready to take you on a tour of the Universe in a matter of minutes.
The 127mm (5") aperture Maksutov-Cassegrain folded catadioptric optical system of the NexStar 127SLT provides exceptional high contrast/high resolution solar system images - the phases of Mercury; lunar rilles and craters less than three miles across; Martian polar caps and major dark surface features; cloud belts on Jupiter, with some detail in the belts, plus the shadows of Jupiter's moons on the planet during transits; Cassini's division in Saturn's rings on a regular basis, plus four or five of its moons; Uranus and Neptune visible as very small discs.
Outside the solar system, the high resolution Celestron 127SLT will show you dozens of globular clusters, emission nebulas, planetary nebulas, and galaxies; all of the Messier objects and many of the brighter NGC objects from a dark sky site (with some internal detail visible in many nebulas, although most galaxies will remain relatively featureless hazy patches).
The NexStar 127SLT has all the features and optical performance needed to keep a casual backyard astronomer happily observing for years. And it can be used for terrestrial observing, too - birdwatching, scanning the scenery from the home with a view, and more.
This Telescope's Optical System . . .
Maksutov-Cassegrain optical system: Aluminum tube 127mm aperture (1500mm focal length f/11.81) folded lens/mirror catadioptric. The system's Maksutov corrector lens is fully coated on both sides with antireflection material for high light transmission and good contrast. A no-tool quick release dovetail connects the tube to the mount for fast set-up and take-down.
Red dot finder: StarPointer non-magnifying variable brightness red dot finder on a quick-release dovetail mounting bracket. The StarPointer is a quick and easy way to point your telescope exactly to the desired object in the sky. There's no need to worry about the inverted images you see through traditional finders. Just align the red dot seen in the StarPointer with the desired star in the sky and you're done.
Internal focuser: Focuses by moving the primary mirror fore and aft in the optical tube by means of a focusing knob on the rear cell.
Star diagonal: 1.25" 90° prism type
Two 1.25" eyepieces: The first is a 25mm providing 60x. The eyepiece field of view is 0.83° across, more than one and a half times the diameter of the full Moon for expansive views of the Moon, star clusters, and terrestrial observing. The second is a 9mm providing 197x for close-up views of the Moon and planets, globular star clusters, binary stars and more.
This Telescope's Mount . . .
Fork mount/drive system: Single fork arm altazimuth design with pre-installed internal dual DC servo motor drives. A compartment in the drive base accepts eight user-supplied AA batteries for powering the telescope. Selectable lunar, solar, or sidereal (star) tracking rates, with nine different slewing and centering speeds for locating objects (3°/sec, 2°/sec, 1°/sec, and 64x/32x/16x/8x/4x/2x the sidereal rates). For more details, click on the "SLT mount" icon in the support tab above.
NexStar computer control: The supplied computer hand control has an illuminated numeric keypad and a two-line 16-character LCD display. It has a database of 4,033 stars and objects, including the complete Messier and Caldwell catalogs of famous deep space objects; a selection of the brightest and best deep space objects from the Revised New General Catalog (NGC); selected SAO stars, including the best variable stars and multiple star systems; the planets; the Moon; and more.
With the built-in SkyAlign technology, lining up your 127SLT on the sky each night takes only minutes. Simply input the date, time, and your location into the computer hand control, then use the StarPointer red dot finder to align the telescope on any three bright stars, or to two stars and a bright planet or the Moon. The NexStar computer will automatically align itself with the sky. Then, it takes only a few keystrokes on the computer hand control to have the scope move automatically to your night's first observing target and start tracking it so you can observe at your leisure.
You can find hundreds of fascinating deep space objects your first night out, even if you have never used a telescope before. No matter what level of experience you start from, your NexStar SLT scope will unfold all the wonders of the Universe for you, your family, and your friends. For more details, click on the "SLT computer" icon in the support tab above.
Adjustable height tripod: The preassembled tripod has stainless steel legs to damp vibrations quickly. The center leg brace holds a convenient no-tool quick-release accessory tray to keep your eyepieces and accessories up and out of the dew-soaked grass. The height adjustment lock levers are on the inside of the legs to avoid snagging your clothing on them in the dark.
Two-year warranty: All Celestron telescopes have a two-year warranty, double that of competitive scopes.
