Celestron 6" Omni XLT 150 Equatorial f/5 Reflector with Starbright XLT Multicoated Mirrors

This Celestron Omni XLT 150 puts a big 6" aperture fast focal ratio reflector, with Starbright XLT multicoated mirrors for maximum light transmission, on a solid German equatorial mount. The result is an excellent mix of deep space performance, portability, and features at a price that's extraordinarily low for so much light-gathering and so many features . . .

The Celestron Omni XLT 150 reflector combines very good 6" fast focal ratio Newtonian reflector optics with a solid German equatorial mount - at a surprisingly low price for a scope of its aperture and optical performance. It provides an excellent mix of performance, portability (despite its large aperture), stability, and features that any serious backyard astronomer can appreciate.

For the observer whose interests are primarily the fainter deep space objects, the Omni XLT 150 has a lot to offer. It has 459x the light-gathering capacity of even the sharpest dark-adapted eye, allowing you to see faint deep space wonders that would be otherwise invisible. The Celestron Omni XLT 150 works well visually from many city and suburban sites, as its f/5 focal ratio keeps moderately light-polluted sky backgrounds reasonably dark to avoid washing out faint nebula detail. As with any scope, however, transporting the Celestron Omni XLT 150 to a dark sky observing site will markedly improve its performance on broad, faint deep sky objects at low powers.
In addition, the 750mm focal length of this Celestron makes it easy to achieve the high powers needed for detailed lunar and planetary observing. Simply add an optional Barlow lens, and/or additional optional higher power eyepieces, and this Celestron telescope will provide you with crisp and sharply detailed close-up views of the Moon and planets.

The scope's lightweight optical tube and easily assembled mount make it quick to set up and enjoy - either in your back yard or at a distant dark sky site. Its very good optical quality and very reasonable price make it an excellent buy for the beginning and advanced astronomer alike.

This Telescope's Optical System . . .

Newtonian reflector optics: 6" (150mm) aperture, 750mm focal length, f/5 Newtonian parabolic mirror reflector using aspheric shaping technology for images that have virtually no spherical aberration and are free from the chromatic aberration of achromatic refractors. The optical tube is aluminum, to allow the mirrors to cool to ambient temperature more quickly. Also, the lower end of the tube is sealed to reduce image-degrading thermal currents within the optical tube. These features extend your undisturbed viewing time by minimizing the time you have to wait for the images to stabilize after you take your scope outside in the cold air of late fall or winter. The scope's tube end rings are sturdy die cast aluminum, to protect the tube during transport and provide exceptionally rigid support for the optics. The mirror cell's six-screw push/pull locking collimation system keeps the primary mirror aligned far longer than conventional mirror cells - so you spend more time observing, and less time adjusting the optics. The lightweight optical tube rotates in its felt-lined die cast cradle rings to bring the focuser and finder to the most comfortable viewing position. The mounting rings even include a built-in piggyback mount for wide field astrophotography (using an optional motor drive). The 27" long aluminum optical tube weighs only 12 lbs., making it easy to transport and assemble in the field.

Starbright XLT multicoated mirrors: Fully coated with multiple vacuum-deposited layers of high reflectivity aluminum. The aluminum coatings are enhanced with titanium dioxide for maximum reflectivity and overcoated with a protective layer of silicon monoxide (quartz) for long life. They are the same mirror coatings used on Celestron's largest and most expensive optical systems.

Focuser: 1.25" metal rack and pinion type. Dual focusing knobs with rubber gripping surfaces for precise image control with either hand. The large focus knobs are easy to operate, even while wearing gloves or mittens in cold weather.

Eyepiece: Fully multicoated low power 1.25" 25mm (30x) eyepiece with a 1.67° field of view that's over three times the diameter of the full Moon.

Finderscope: 6 x 30mm straight-through achromatic design, with a wide 7° field of view. Focuses by loosening the trim ring behind the objective lens cell, screwing the lens cell in or out to focus, and tightening the trim ring to lock in the correct focus.

This Telescope's Mount . . .

CG-4 German equatorial mount: The mount has setting circles in both right ascension and declination, worm gear drives and manual slow motion controls in both axes, a latitude scale and fine adjustment controls in both altitude and azimuth, two counterweights totaling 11 pounds so you can easily balance virtually any accessory load, and more. An optional dual axis DC drive/drive corrector is available for no-hands tracking of celestial objects and photography. It is not possible to upgrade to a computerized go-to drive system. For more details, click on the link in the support tab above.

Adjustable height tripod: The tripod has 1.75" diameter steel legs with a center leg brace for rigidity. It adjusts over a height range from 33" to 47". Vibration damping characteristics are excellent. The center leg brace is drilled to form a convenient accessory tray that holds 1.25" and 2" eyepiece to keep them up out of the dew-soaked grass.

Dovetail tube mount: The scope's optical tube fits into a set of felt-lined split and hinged tube rings that are bolted to a dovetail bar. The dovetail bar in turn slips into a dovetail groove on the mount's equatorial head. Setup and takedown times are exceptionally fast, as is rebalancing the scope when changing accessory loads, as a single large hand-tighten knob holds the optical tube in place. A second lock knob prevents the tube from sliding off the mount should the hand-tighten knob accidentally loosen while observing. One of the tube rings has a piggyback camera mount built into it for casual long exposure wide-field astrophotography.

Two-year warranty: All Celestron telescopes have a two-year warranty.

With a short 750mm focal length and a huge light grasp 459 times that of the sharpest dark-adapted eye, the scope produces bright and wide-field images of the thousands of faint fuzzies outside the solar system - nebulas, galaxies, open star clusters, and more. With its 6" aperture, compact deep space objects - globular clusters, close binary star pairs, etc. - are sharply resolved. Using optional eyepieces and/or a Barlow to boost the magnification, you can also see subtle solar system details that are virtually invisible in smaller aperture scopes. You can study complex lunar craters, rilles, mountain ranges, and low contrast lunar ray detail. With reasonable seeing conditions, detail in Jupiter's cloud belts and the Great Red Spot (actually closer in color to the Faint Pink Spot at this point in time) are visible, as are dusky markings on the face of Saturn and Cassini's division in Saturn's brilliant rings. Because of its great light-gathering capacity, you may need an optional neutral density filter to cut down the brightness of some solar system objects for maximum resolution.

Optically and mechanically refined, and very reasonable in cost for a big 6" aperture reflector, this Celestron Omni XLT 150 has enough optical performance to keep you busy for the rest of your life.