The best of…
Stargazing for beginners
Celestron Cometron 7x50
You don’t need a telescope to open up the skies. “The ultimate beginner binoculars for any budding astronomer,” Celestron’s 7x50 set enables you to see more than you’d expect—including Jupiter, Saturn, and even distant nebulae.
$35, celestron.com
Source: Popular Mechanics
Astronomers Without Borders OneSky
This 130-mm Newtonian reflector is easily “the best bang-for-the-buck beginner’s scope.” It has good optics, it’s easy to aim, and because it’s highly portable, it makes a great grab-and-go scope, even for experienced observers.
$200, astronomerswithoutborders.org
Source: Sky & Telescope
Celestron NexStar 5SE
The overall best amateur telescope comes preprogrammed with a database of 40,000 celestial objects, and its 5-inch primary mirror provides crisp images of deep-sky objects. Once it’s calibrated, “you’ll never be left wondering what to look at next.”
$699, celestron.com
Source: TheWirecutter.com
SkyWatcher Traditional Dobsonian 8-inch
Dobsonian reflectors, sometimes called “light buckets,” excel at picking out faint deep-sky objects, and this one can capture “awe-inspiring” images. Unfortunately, you’ll have to align the mirrors, and, at stool size, this telescope is “a bit unwieldy.”
$378, amazon.com
Source: TheWirecutter.com
Meade StarNavigator NG 102
Meade rightfully prides itself on the laboratory-grade quality of its optical components. Like other refractor telescopes, this one is great for observing the moon and our neighboring planets. The onboard computer eliminates the need for star charts and manuals.
$499, meade.com
Source: Space.com ■
