Celestron | StarSense Expl. DX 6" AZ

In brief

• Leverage the power of your smartphone to take a guided tour of the night sky—no telescope experience required.
• The patented, award-winning StarSense sky recognition technology uses your smartphone to analyze the star configuration above your head and calculate the telescope’s position in real-time.
• The StarSense Explorer Powered by SkySafari™ app automatically generates a list of currently visible objects. Observe planets, brighter nebulae and galaxies, star clusters, and double stars from the city. Or take your telescope to a darker sky to see faint deep-sky objects.
• The manual altazimuth mount with slow motion altitude adjustment via a sliding rod makes it easy to follow the on-screen arrows to your desired target. When the crosshair turns green, the target is ready to be observed in the telescope’s eyepiece.
• 6" (150 mm) Schmidt-Cassegrain optical tube with StarBright XLT coating and sufficient light-gathering ability to observe all the best celestial objects.
• Includes 40 mm and 10 mm eyepieces, a StarSense smartphone docking station, a red dot finder (in case you want to use the telescope without your phone), a 90-degree diagonal image erecting prism (31.7 mm), and a full-height tripod.

Settle in, move around, explore

Leave behind complicated star charts, inaccurate planetarium apps, and computerized mounts. With StarSense Explorer, locating objects has never been easier, faster, or more precise. Just a few minutes after setting up the telescope, you’ll be confidently navigating the sky. Simply place your phone in the StarSense docking station and launch the StarSense Explorer app.

After aligning your phone with the telescope’s optics (a simple and quick procedure), StarSense Explorer generates a list of currently visible celestial objects. Make your selection, and arrows appear on the screen, guiding you as you move the telescope. When the object is ready to be observed in the eyepiece, the crosshair turns green. While you observe, listen to hundreds of audio descriptions and check detailed information on thousands of objects in the app’s robust database.

Robust altazimuth mount

The simple altazimuth mount of the StarSense Explorer LT allows you to easily move the telescope to find your target. A slow motion altitude adjustment via a sliding rod lets you fine-tune the telescope’s pointing position and track targets as they seem to drift across the night sky. All of this is stabilized by a full-height adjustable tripod.

Perfect for city or dark sky sites

Even if you live in a light-polluted city, the StarSense Explorer is advanced enough to spot Jupiter, Saturn, Venus, the Orion Nebula, double stars, and some of the most famous celestial objects.

But if you can take the telescope to a slightly darker location, more objects will become visible. The entire telescope kit weighs only 6.35 kg, making it perfectly portable and easy to take along on your next camping trip or to a remote observing site.

Patented StarSense sky recognition technology

StarSense Explorer uses patented technology and your smartphone to determine exactly where the telescope is pointed in the night sky. A LISA (Lost in Space Algorithm) algorithm, similar to those used by satellites in orbit to orient themselves correctly, helps the app match the star patterns it detects in the sky to its internal database.

Other astronomy apps claim to help you find objects, but they rely solely on the phone’s gyroscopes and accelerometers, which are not as accurate as LISA technology. No other app can accurately tell you when your target is visible in the eyepiece.

Smartphone adapter 

Take photos of celestial or terrestrial objects with this smartphone adapter! With its lightweight and rigid frame, this accessory allows you to connect any smartphone to any telescope eyepiece with an outer diameter of 45 mm or less. The additional magnification provided by the eyepiece allows your phone to capture stunning images of the Moon, planets, and terrestrial targets such as birds and wildlife. This smartphone adapter easily attaches to the top of the eyepiece. The smartphone is held in place using elastic cords that securely lock it in. While the vast majority of smartphones can be used with their case, some very large and/or bulky cases (like folio cases) may need to be removed for the phone to fit into the adapter.

Everything you need to observe right away

When you unpack your new telescope, you’ll find:

• 6" (150 mm) Schmidt-Cassegrain optical tube
• StarSense docking station for your smartphone
• Low power (40 mm) and high power (10 mm) eyepieces
• StarPointer red dot finder, perfect for using the telescope during the day or without the StarSense Explorer app
• 90-degree diagonal image erecting prism (31.7 mm)
• Altazimuth mount with slow motion control rod
• Full-height tripod with an accessory tray to help you stay organized