Meade 8 Inch LX200-ACF f/10 OTA with UHTC

The Meade 8-Inch LX200R f/10 Advanced Ritchey-Chretian OTA with UHTC Coatings is among the most widely used research telescopes on earth. Ideal for researchers and astronomy enthusiasts this all-new model comes with Advanced Ritchey-Chretien optics found in virtually every observatory in the world as well as NASA's Hubble Space Telescope. This telescope builds upon the classic Ritchey-Chretien design to create coma-free pinpoint star images and flatter fields reduce astigmatism and eliminate diffraction spikes - all at a fraction of the cost of traditional RC format.With maximum practical visual power of 600x a Series 5000 26mm 5-Element Plossl eyepiece and 8x50mm viewfinder this scope is both versatile and powerful. Primary and secondary mirrors are crafted from durable Pyrex glass and the correcting plate and lens are made of water-white glass. The Ultra-High Transmission Coatings increase total light transmission and image brightness by up to 20 percent in comparison to standard coatings making stars and nebulae appear significantly brighter.Other features include a Sony GPS receiver sensor AutoAlign technology primary mirror lock 10-inch (254mm) aperture image-shift micro-focuser oversized primary mirror 30- to 44-inch variable tripod and more. Compatible with both equatorial and altazimuth mounts Smart Mount refines pointing accuracy each time an object is centered. Smart Drive provides permanent periodic error correction on both axes and the Auto Star II controller allows quick access to 145000 objects in the celestial database. This telescope weighs approximately 73 pounds and runs on eight C-cell batteries with an approximate lifetime of 20 hours.This professional-grade telescope is crafted at Meade's state-of-the-art facility in Irvine California. Originally founded in 1972 as a small start-up Meade Instruments Corporation is a world leader in both the design and manufacturing of telescopes for amateur astronomers. Meade combines innovation technological advances and a commitment to customer satisfaction product quality and value.