Welcome to our Telescopes Lab! If you are a beginner astronomer, an experienced stargazer or looking for the best telescope for viewing planets and galaxies?

When it comes to considering telescopes, it’s easy to get a little bamboozled by all the choices available.

There are many factors to consider in deciding which telescope is right for your needs.

What type of telescope is best? Is aperture the most important consideration? What’s the best brand? How much should I pay? These are all good questions.

We understand that selecting a telescope can be a daunting task.

Our goal is to help you make an informed decision with our candid telescopes reviews from top manufacturers.

Whether you’re new to astronomy or a seasoned professional, we are sure you will find your experience here informative and beneficial.

We researched many telescopes from top brands and finally reviewed and guided here world best sky viewing telescopes. There are many telescopes in the market. Some are high-quality features and very expensive. We tried to help people to review here some great quality moon, star, planet, galaxies viewing telescopes at a reasonable price.

Top 10 Best Telescope For Viewing Planets And Galaxies Review 2020 :

Here is our top 10 picks telescope collection. we reviewed here best budged top quality planets moon, star, and galaxies viewing telescopes for your needs. We also describe a telescope buying guide bottom of the page.

Quick Comparison Table

1. Celestron NexStar 6 SE Telescope

Celestron’s NexStar 6SE GoTo Telescope is a powerful, portable, and user-friendly telescope that can be used for observing the Moon and planets to deep-sky objects like stars, galaxies, and nebulae. It is equipped with many of the features found with advanced telescopes making it a suitable choice for seasoned astronomers as well as beginners.

General Features:

6-inch aperture with excellent light-gathering ability

It is a fully automated GoTo mount with database of 40,000 plus celestial objects

Its SkyAlign technology gets your telescope aligned and ready to observe in minutes

The unique single fork arm design

Fast Setup with SkyAlign

Easy transport and quick assembly

Its accessory tray Star diagonal provides more comfortable viewing position

Conclusion:

Celestron Nexstar 6SE is another planet and Galaxies viewing telescope from Celestron company. In my opinion, you can easily buy this telescope because it has great quality and excellent features.



2. Orion 10016 StarBlast 6 Astro Reflector Telescope

The Orion StarBlast 6 Astro Telescope exemplifies the right combination of well-rounded performance and convenient portability.

The Orion-designed StarBlast 6 Astro Telescope takes the constant compact, wide-field, easy conception, concept and expands on it, literally.

The StarBlast 6 Astro boasts a fully 73 percent more light-gathering space than its smaller counterpart.

This telescope’s 150mm (5.9″) f/5.0 parabolic mirror provides ample aperture to reveal the planets, galaxy and deep-sky gems in fantastic detail.

General Features:

It is a capable and simple point-and-view tabletop reflector telescope that makes it popular among both beginners and seasoned astronomers.

Its 6-inch aperture reflector optics reveal good detail on the planets, Moon, nebulas, galaxies, and star clusters

Its compact tabletop design provides the StarBlast 6 reflector great grab-and-go portability.

Pre-assembled in the box for hassle-free set-up

No GPS included

It has 25mm and 10mm Sirius Plossl 1.25″ telescope eyepieces

Highest Useful Magnification:300x

Starry Night software, aiming device, eyepiece rack and more

Conclusion:

This Telescope provides primary and experienced astronomers alike the change to enjoy the kind of clear, detailed views of celestial objects that makes stargazing such a desirable pursuit.

3. Celestron NexStar 130SLT Computerized Telescope

The NexStar 130 SLT adds affordable “Go-To” technology to a compact Newtonian reflector telescope. The Celestron NexStar 130SLT has 30% more light-gathering power than our 114 mm telescope. It is fully computerized hand control like other SLT Series. The NexStar computerized hand control gives you the ability to automatically slew to any of its 4,000 plus objects, including over 600 galaxies, 300 clusters and dozens of wonderful binary stars.

General Features:

Compatible with 2″ eyepieces

It is fully computerized Altazimuth mount

Top-quality 130 mm reflector

Accessories tray included

StarPointer finderscope and it has 2 eyepieces (25mm and 9mm)

It is a full-height steel tripod with an accessory tray to keep you organized in the field.

NexStar 130 SLT is a StarPointer finderscope to help with alignment and accurately locating objects.

It has Astronomy Software download with a 10,000 object database

Printable sky maps and 75 enhanced images

Conclusion:

The Celestron NexStar 130 SLT is the best-computerized telescope in this price range. At this exceptional price, it gives you a remarkable number of features. These together with the design makes it easy and fun to use.

4. Orion 8945 SkyQuest XT8 Classic Dobsonian Telescope

The Orion SkyQuest Classic Dobsonian is a powerful and capable telescope. It is one of our most famous reflectors due to its elegant combination of mechanical simplicity, precision optics, and rock-solid stability. You and your full family will appreciate the bright, clear views of the night sky provided by the SkyQuest XT8 Classic Dobsonian telescope. The Moon, planets, and galaxy of our solar systems like Jupiter, Mars, and Saturn, shine brightly in the Orian SkyQuest XT8 Classic, allowing you to inspect them in detail.

General Features

A large aperture SkyQuest XT8 Classic Dobsonian telescope at a cheap price!

A perfect Classic Dobsonian telescope that can last a lifetime for the beginning astronomy enthusiast.

8-inch diameter reflector optics lets you view the Planets and moon in close up detail.

It has enough light grasp to pull in pleasing views of faint nebulas, star clusters, and galaxies.

The ultra-stable Classic Dobsonian base keeps the reflector optical tube balanced for point-and-view ease of use

Conclusion:

This is a great telescope with the optical strength to please both the beginner and other astronomers.

5. Meade Instruments Infinity 102mm AZ Refractor Telescope

Meade Instruments Infinity 102mm AZ Telescope comes complete with all you need to view the wonders of the night sky the first time out. This is the Telescope who views both astronomical and terrestrial objects; the Meade Infinity Series combines an altazimuth mount and best optics for a superb value. For the beginners alike, these refracting telescopes are a nice way for you to discover the cosmos and the outdoors.

General Features:

102mm Telescope delivers bright and detailed images

Good fit for viewing both land and celestial objects.

It has motion controls for precision tracking so that you can easily track objects day or night

It is Included Astronomical Software and Instructional DVD

Low, medium and high magnification eyepieces give you variety for any viewing situation (Moon, planets, or land).

Autostar Suite Astronomy planetarium DVD with 10,000 plus celestial objects.

Red dot viewfinder can help you point your scope at objects

Conclusion:

This Meade Instruments Infinity 102mmTelescope AZ is a great telescope from the Meade company. It is also a quality telescope, especially for the beginner.

6. Orion 09007 SpaceProbe 130ST Equatorial Reflector Telescope(Black)

The Orion SpaceProbe 130ST telescope is perfect for the very serious beginner or intermediate sky viewing lover. With a 130-millimeter parabolic primary mirror, the Orion 130ST provides quality views of deep-sky objects on the enclosed EQ-2 mount and stable tripod. This telescope comes on a durable and precise EQ-2 equatorial mount with twin setting circles and slow-motion hand controls.

General Features:

This 5.1-inch aperture telescope gathers an ample amount of light for good views of the Moon and Planets, as well as nebulas, brighter galaxies, and star clusters

The short 24-inch long optical tube makes it easy portability

Sturdy EQ-2 equatorial telescope mount and adjustable stand provides manual slow-motion tracking of celestial objects

The complete assembled telescope weighs only 27 lbs.

Includes two 1.25 inch Sirius Plossl eyepieces, 6×30 finder scope, 1.25inch rack, and pinion focuser, tripod accessory tray, collimation cap, Starry Night astronomy software, and more…

Conclusion:

This telescope is the best one from Orion Company. It has also good features for the planet and galaxy view.

7. Celestron PowerSeeker 127EQ Telescope

The Celestron PowerSeeker 127EQ is a nice way to open up the wonders of the Universe to the aspiring astronomer. It is the perfect selection for beginner astronomers. The PowerSeeker series is designed to give the first-time telescope user the real combination of quality, price, features and more. PowerSeeker 127EQ is designed and manufactured using is fully coated glass optical components with high-quality transmission coatings for enhanced image brightness and clarity.

General Features:

PowerSeeker 127EQ Quick and easy no-tool setup

Includes 2 eyepieces: 20mm and 4mm

It has a 3x Barlow lens to triple the power of each

Its Slow motion controls for smooth tracking gives an extra benefit.

Erect image optics

It is Fully coated glass optical components with high transmission coatings for enhanced image brightness and clarity

It has Accessory tray for convenient storage of accessories

Conclusion:

This 127EQ is a great telescope from Celestron PowerSeeker series. I personally like this product for its features, quality, and price.

8. Celestron 21061 AstroMaster 70AZ Refractor Telescope

The Astromaster 70 is a dual-purpose telescope that can be used for both land and sky viewing. Its list of features includes a permanently mounted Star Pointer, easy setup and coated class optics. It is accompanied by a pre-assembled tripod fitted with a panhandle control. It sports a quick-release dovetail attachment and a 75x magnification

General Features:

The AstroMaster 70AZ 70 mm refractor telescopes with fully coated glass optics and a lightweight frame.

Accessories include two eyepieces erect image star diagonal, and a finder scope.

It has Panning handle Alt-Az control with clutch for smooth and accurate pointing.

No-tool setup, observe in no time with a quick and easy

Permanently mounted StarPointer

Adjustable height tripod

Starry Night Basic Edition Software download

Conclusion:

The Astromaster 70 is a good one telescope. It provides quality services and reasonable prices as well.

9. Gskyer AZ70400 German Technology Astronomy Telescope, Travel Refractor

As a beginner, these refracting telescopes are a good way for you to discover the cosmos and the outdoors. These telescopes are designed and manufactured using everything fully coated glass optical components with high transmission coatings for enhanced image brightness and clarity.

General Features:

Gskyer telescopes are fast and easy to set up

Everything of Gskyer telescopes includes a full range of eyepieces

Ultra-clear Refracting Telescope

There are No-tools required, No-tools quick set up and easily find your objects

Easy to Carry, has a backpack that can take telescope outside easily with it

Reliable Guarantee, it provides 12 months warranty.

Conclusion:

The Gskyer Az70400 is a German technology telescope. It is also a famous telescope that can you buy.

10. Celestron 21024 FirstScope Telescope

FirstScope pays tribute to the people who brought us one step closer to understanding the universe around us! A beginner’s telescope is inexpensive, lightweight and delivers a powerful performance. The Celestron 21024 FirstScope is a perfect choice for anyone starting to explore the heavens.

General Features:

Top-quality Dobsonian style stands with a 76 mm reflector optical tube that makes FirstScope an ideal entry-level astronomical telescope.

Portable and lightweight table-top design makes it very easy to store, transport and set up your FirstScope Telescope

FirstScope is very easy to observe

The stylish and decorative design makes FirstScope a beautiful keepsake for anyone interested in astronomy

It is an ideal-entry level astronomical telescope.

Conclusion:

Are you beginner and looking for an entry-level telescope, this is the perfect selection for you.

Consumers Guide:

Basic Terminology

Never before have telescopes for Amateur astronomy been more powerful or affordable. There’s a huge range on offer from the Reflector, Refractor, Dobsonian, Newtonian, Schmidt Cassegrain, Maksutov Cassegrain, catadioptric to Spyglass. There are no restrictions on the objects you can view – even as an amateur astronomer you can look at the same stars, planets, supernovae, asteroids, and comets as the professional observers.

If you are new to the world of astronomy, it may be useful to familiarize yourself with some of the basic terminologies, used to describe different features, functions, and types of telescope, as this will be critical when it comes to to purchasing or comparing telescopes. Some of the more common terms are listed below and a brief explanation of each follows thereafter.

Aspect Ratio

Aperture

Refractors

Reflectors

Catadioptric

Eyepieces

Magnification

Optical Coatings

Finder Scopes

Alt-Azimuth Mounts

Equatorial Mounts

Photography

Spyglass

Aspect Ratio

An aspect ratio is a ratio between the width and height of a picture.

Aperture

An aperture is a device that controls the amount of light admitted.

Bringing light to the eyepiece is a very important quality of a telescope, and light gathering ability is limited by the aperture or diameter of a telescope’s mirror or lenses. A telescope with a 70mm objective lens collects 100 times as much light as the human eye, and an 8-inch telescope boosts the eye’s light -gathering ability by nearly 1000 times. Simply put, a larger telescope produces images that are brighter, bigger, and sharper.

Refractors

A refractor telescope is a type of optical telescope that uses a lens as its objective to form an image (also referred to as a dioptric telescope). The refractor telescope with a lens in the front and an eyepiece in the back was invented by Galileo 400 years ago. Small refractors with objective lenses from 60mm to 90mm area unit popular starting observers as a result of they provide crisp, high distinction views of bright objects. A 70mm refractor on an Alt-Azimuth mount is a good first telescope for a student because it is inexpensive, easy to use, and offers pleasing detail on the Moon and planets. Larger refractors can be troubled by “chromatic aberration” also known as false color or blue fringing unless the objective lens is made of exotic and expensive ED or Fluorite glass.

Reflectors

A reflector is an optical telescope consisting of a large concave mirror that produces an image that is magnified by the eyepiece. Reflector telescopes provide additional light-gathering power per dollar than any other telescope style, but they require a little more patience to use because mirrors need to cool to the temperature of the night air before they manufacture their best pictures. The mirror may also need to be aligned or “collimated” sometimes. Dobsonian reflectors up to 8 or 10-inch aperture will be handled simply by one person and are massive enough to point out hundreds of galaxies and resolve globular clusters into thousands of individual stars.

Catadioptric

The compound or catadioptric telescopes are a modern invention. They use a combination of mirrors and lenses to “fold” a long optical path into a compact body. Catadioptric telescopes are well suited for use with high-tech computerized mounts. These computerized mounts help find thousands of stars, galaxies, and galactic nebula, but they need a power source, such as a rechargeable battery, because internal AA batteries only last a few hours. Computerized telescopes featuring 90mm to 8-inch Catadioptric designs are popular because they offer a terrific combination of power and portability.

Eyepieces

Most telescopes today come with 1 or 2 eyepieces in the 1.25-inch size. Changing the lens changes the magnification of the telescope as a result of the magnifying power is equal to the focal length of the telescope divided by the focal length of the lense. A telescope with a 900mm focal length and a 10mm eyepiece can magnify the picture by 90 times. (900mm/10mm = 90x magnification). Plossl eyepieces have become the most popular because they provide superb performance for a reasonable price. Avoid telescopes that use the older style 0.96″ size eyepieces because they often use H type or Huygenian eyepieces which are notorious for fuzzy images and a narrow field of view.

Magnification

Sometimes manufacturers will list a specification called “maximum useful magnification” which is usually about 50 times the telescope aperture in inches or 2 times the aperture in millimeters. A 70mm refractor will show good lunar detail up to 140x magnification; If you extend the magnification beyond 140x it may show an image that is larger but fuzzier. Watch out for small telescopes that claim 500x magnification, it may be impossible to see anything at that power.

Optical Coatings

These are coatings put on the glass surfaces to minimize the loss of light and produce a better image result.

The plain glass reflects light. Telescope lenses and eyepieces may lose a significant amount of light due to reflection at each optical surface. Optical designers solve this problem by adding anti-reflection coatings to glass surfaces. Multi-layer coatings can be more efficient than single-layer coatings. The term “multi-coated” often means that one surface has multi-layer coatings while internal surfaces may have single-layer coatings. “Fully multi-coated” means that each air-to-glass surface has multi-layer anti-reflection coatings.

Finder Scopes

A Finderscope is usually a low power small scope mounted on the main scope that allows you to manually locate the object to be viewed before using the eyepiece to view the object under greater magnification. Locating an object through the eyepiece can be difficult simply because of the narrow field of view.

Red-dot finders are perfectly suited for finding bright objects like the planets and moon. A 6×30 or a 9×50 optical finder scope is a small scope with a crosshair that allows the telescope to be aimed precisely.

Alt-Azimuth Mounts

A sturdy telescope mount is essential for getting a good view. The Alt-Azimuth mount is light and easy to use because it moves up and down (altitude) or side to side (azimuth). The drawback is that an Alt-Azimuth mount cannot track planets and stars unless it has a built-in pc. As soon as you get the planet or a moon-centered within the lens system, the Earth’s rotation causes it to drift toward the edge. For this reason, manual Alt-Azimuth mounts work best for smaller telescopes and lower magnification.

Equatorial Mounts

Sometimes called the German Equatorial Mount (GEM) because it was invented in Germany. An equatorial mount uses counterweights to balance the telescope, allowing the telescope to track stars and planets with a single slow-motion knob or with a motor drive. A good equatorial mount can cost more than the optical parts of a telescope, but it will keep a planet-centered in the eyepiece at high power or even allow photography through the telescope.

Photography

After you get started with your telescope you may want to start taking pictures. But be aware that those pictures you see in magazines took years of practice to achieve. The Moon is a good place to start. For close-ups of the planets, a modified webcam like Celestron’s NexImage is a good choice. Combining a web-cam and image processing software can produce amazing images of the planets, but it still takes a lot of practice to get the best results!

Spyglass

This is another term for a hand-held telescope for terrestrial observation

What is a Telescope?

In its simplest form, a telescope is a light-gathering instrument. Its purpose is to make distant objects appear larger/nearer.

Here is a more formal definition: An optical instrument designed to make distant objects appear nearer, containing an arrangement of lenses, or of curved mirrors and lenses, by which rays of light are collected and focused and the resulting picture magnified.

Who uses a telescope?

Just about anyone can use a telescope nowadays. Because of the advances in technology and the general availability of telescopes both the hobbyist and the extreme enthusiast can view the same objects as professional astronomers.

Buying Considerations

Here are some questions you should ask yourself before handing over any cash for a telescope:

How much effort are you willing to place learning the sky? If you are able to navigate your way around the night skies by star-hopping, then you will be able to opt for a telescope that is smaller, cheaper, lighter, more portable than the sophisticated computerized models. How much effort are you willing to spend on your observing skills? It takes time and practice to be able to see fine detail or any detail in celestial objects. But the rewards are well worth it – are you willing to put in the effort? Experienced observers can see details will a less powerful scope that beginners will miss with a much more powerful and more sophisticated scope. How much effort will it take to get your scope from where you house it to where you use it? Are you prepared to do this? A smaller more portable scope that you use frequently will be of more benefit than one that looks great, but remains unused because it is too cumbersome or takes too much effort to set up. Don’t be dazzled by technology – if the technology is a genuine feature that you are looking for and want in your telescope – great – go for it. But don’t buy expensive equipment, because it sounds great, looks great or just for the sake of having it (unless that’s the reason you are buying it of course). Consider the reason you are buying the scope – is it for observation or astrophotography? Astrophotography is a specialized area of observation and an expensive hobby. Be prepared for the outlay! Check if you can join a club, try out some scopes, get a feel for the hobby before purchasing. You might save yourself some money or get some great advice from people who use the technology rather than just write about it!

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Who invented the telescope?

A: The telescope was invented by Prince Fredrick Sesi in the year 1611.

Q: Where does the word telescope come from?

A: “Telescope” comes from the 2 Greek words, “tele” means “far” and “skopein” means “far-seeing”

Q: How does it work?

A: The basics behind the telescope are the ability of a lens to redirect light to a desired particular point. Different lenses are used for different desired magnifications of objects present in the universe. A refracting telescope uses a convex lens but has magnification limitations. A reflecting telescope uses a concave lens and doesn’t have the same limitations as the refractors.

Refracting telescopes depend on one amazing fact. As light passes through the glass, it slows down. Slowing down a light beam makes it bend. When a light beam passes through a glass lens within a telescope, it moves toward the lens. When the light beam comes out on the opposite side, it’s best!

The shape of the lens means light close to the top of the lens is bent down and light near the bottom of the lens is bent up. Somewhere within the tube, the light beams cross, but before they can spread out again the eyepiece lens bends the light beams once more and sends them to the eye.

Q: What’s the most common type of telescope?

A: Telescope covers a wide range of instruments that is a bit difficult to define. Every telescope has the ability to collect electromagnetic radiation so it can be studied. The most common type of telescope is an optical telescope.

Q: What is the best telescope for viewing planets and galaxies?

A: We introduced here world best top 10 planets and galaxies viewing telescopes here. You can easily choose any telescope as your needs.

Q: What does refraction mean?

A: Telescopes came into being when scientists discovered the property of light and its characteristic of deviating when it passes from one medium to another which is more commonly known as the property of refraction.

Q: What’s the difference between a Reflector and a Refractor telescope?

A: Refracting telescopes are simpler than reflecting telescopes, but they have an important limitation. Mind that the light passing through the glass lens gets bent. It happens that different colors are bent by different amounts, and that causes the light to become unfocused. Sir Isaac Newton solved this problem by replacing the lenses with mirrors.

When light hits a mirror, it doesn’t bend. Instead, it bounces off. Just like a ball bouncing off a wall, a light beam comes off a mirror identical approach it comes in. In the alternative, the angle equals the angle out. And that rule is true for all the light, no matter its color.

The primary mirror in a reflecting telescope is curved just the right amount to bounce everything the light onto the secondary mirror. From there, the light passes through the eyepiece lens that bends the light into the eye.

Interesting Facts

Probably the world’s most famous telescope today is the Hubble Space Telescope. It is a reflecting telescope that orbits 600 kilometers above the Earth. Because it is above the Earth’s atmosphere, Hubble is able to see far distant objects more clearly than any telescope in history.

Telescopes are not limited to just the light we can see. Invisible kinds of light, like radio waves and x-rays, are also important to astronomers. Each time astronomers use a new kind of light to view the universe; they make new and unexpected discoveries. The first time scientists used x-rays to look at the sky, they discovered black holes. When they used radio waves, they found the light leftover from the birth of the universe, the event we call the Big Bang.

X-ray telescopes are possibly some of the strangest devices ever invented. Because x-rays are so powerful, they would pass straight through any mirror they hit straight on. In order to capture x-rays, scientists use the same principle you use when you skip a rock across a pond. The x-rays come in at an angle, touching the mirror with a glancing blow that focuses them onto the detector. To increase the number of x-rays collected, the telescopes are designed like nested barrels, with the insides of the barrels all covered in mirrors.

Food for thought

Currently, scientists all over the world are working on new kinds of telescopes that don’t use light at all. Instead, these telescopes are searching for gravitational waves. Once these waves are detected, the chances are we will have a whole new set of strange and amazing discoveries to ponder.

However, you don’t need a multi-million dollar orbiting telescope or a gravitational wave observatory to make some fantastic discoveries of your own. Even with a low-power telescope you can make some of the same observations that Galileo made all those years ago, see the craters on the Moon, spot the phases of Venus, marvel at the amazing rings of Saturn, observe the four moons of Jupiter, still called the Galilean satellites.

Safety Note

NEVER look at the Sun through a telescope or any other optical device. You can permanently damage your eyes!