I purchased an Orion Starblast 4.5 telescope. Will this lens make Jupiter stripes visible? It's just a white dot now. Will it enhance Saturn's rings?
1133373
Are you focusing right? I have the same telescope and I can see the bands on it with just the stock lenses. This is in Southern California too with light pollution. I have this barlow lens as well, and it does help with the bands and rings.
1133374
Hard to answer that question without having my telescope setup. I have both this barlow and the longer one, and I can't remember which one I used. I do remember that at one point in time I could not only see at least 5 of Jupiter's moons at one time, but I could also see spaces between Saturn's rings if that's what you're asking. I have an Orion 8Xti telescope. That particular night had to have been an all time great for me. The skies were fantastic for viewing that night.
252925
1.25; if you have better magnification eyepieces the scope does work well with them. The two that are sent with the scope are fine but with a little higher magnification, it still works well. The 20mm and 10mm are great for lunar observation especially near the limb. I can make out Jupiter's moons with the 10mm and I had a 8mm and could easily make out Saturn's rings without too much distortion. I even think this little scope could pick out the Cassini division if Saturn was more inclined.
1263031
I've been able to see Jupiter and Mars, ring nebula, orions nebula. Should be good enough.
1943774
Yes, definitively. But not with the standard lenses. The Sirius Plossi 10mm are good enough for interesting lunar views. Planets are still too small to really enjoy. But I bought 2x, 3x and 5x Barlow lenses and that is really good. A 3x Barlow with 10mm Plossi means 180x power. Nice views of Jupiter (Red Storm quite visible, atmosphere details as well) and Saturn (clearly defined rings). 5x Barlow with 10mm Plossi means 300x power. Good enough views (hard to focus without a 2-speed focuser, much more chromatic aberration). Furthermore, if at 180x it is already difficult to keep plante on view field (due to earth rotation movement), at 300x is almost impossible (unless you keep your eye on and keep adjusting position manually). For planets, a motorized mounting is mandatory. Also, at such high power, a usb camera plugged to a notebook would provide a much more effective way to see images (at notebook screen, obviously, not so "enjoyable" as a direct sight at ocular lens). I just bought a USB camera, as well as two astrophotography cameras, but have not yet opportunity to test. So, all in all: 1) for pleasant planetary views, with low cost, this Orion 120ST + 3x Barlow is really good 2) for formidable planetary views, consider upgrade either to a 100-to-120 APO Refractor or to a 160mm Reflector, with motorized mounting and good cams.
816814
The Star Blaster 6 is a beginner scope that you won't out grow in a week. The only problem with the Intelliscope function is that you have to find two stars to calibrate it and depending on your light pollution this can be difficult. But if you can see Orion and the Little Dipper you should be okay. What you can see will vary with conditions for good deep sky stuff you need to find a dark site away from the light pollution. But you will be able to see the Moon, Venus, Jupiter and it's moons, Saturn (early in the mourning) and Mercury (at dusk in late march). The Star Blaster comes with a 25mm (30X) and a 10mm (75X) which is great for a starter, add a 2X Barlow (it goes between the eye piece and the scope to double the power of the eye piece) and you should be able to see everything your conditions will allow just keep in mind we aren't talking about the Hubble here. The Intelliscope function will find objects for the 25mm eye piece then you have to center and replace it with a higher power eye piece and center again. Each time you increase the magnification it gets harder to center the image and distortion increases. In a lot of cases your clearest view will be with the lower power eye pieces.
1895077
Yes, however, this is not a large aperture telescope so don't expect it to look like the photos you may have seen. But, the darker the skies where you observe from the better you will see everything. You can see the bands on Jupiter and the Martian poles (in season there). The south pole of Mars is much clearer because its ice pack is larger. As I write this May 16, 2014 Saturn and Mars are the two planets of choice. Saturn is very pretty in this scope and you can see it's large moon Titan very well with this scope.
1031365
Stars are pretty good pin-points in the central region of the lenses. I am not sure of all 4 of Jupiter's moons. Maybe with a tripoid.
1069144
Im not sure how good orion is but im very pleased with my celestrons keep them in my truck everywhere i go, they are pretty impressive from my point of view the only thing to keep in mind is that they dont give you the full extent to which these guys are specified for if you try and zoom in to its fullest things get blurry but if you back out a little bit things are sharp i didnt know that power towers on the sides of the roads have a yellow square thats about 6x6 in with a black number for the tower and i found this out from about a mile away
214744
It all depends on the eyepieces. However, you can see Jupiter and Saturn in good detail with the supplied eyepieces. Naturally, the better eyepieces you get, the better images you will see. Keep in mind, however, that this is a very good entry level/novice telescope. But, I can say that it is perfect for my 12 year old junior astronomer. We are fortunate to live in a college town that has an observatory, so we are able to visit it to see higher quality images. But, I'm very pleased with this telescope and would purchase it again -- the only "upgrade" I would get would be the motorized, GPS based tracking system to make finding objects easier. It all depends on the eyepieces. However, you can see Jupiter and Saturn in good detail with the supplied eyepieces. Naturally, the better eyepieces you get, the better images you will see. Keep in mind, however, that this is a very good entry level/novice telescope. But, I can say that it is perfect for my 12 year old junior astronomer. We are fortunate to live in a college town that has an observatory, so we are able to visit it to see higher quality images. But, I'm very pleased with this telescope and would purchase it again -- the only "upgrade" I would get would be the... » Read More It all depends on the eyepieces. However, you can see Jupiter and Saturn in good detail with the supplied eyepieces. Naturally, the better eyepieces you get, the better images you will see. Keep in mind, however, that this is a very good entry level/novice telescope. But, I can say that it is perfect for my 12 year old junior astronomer. We are fortunate to live in a college town that has an observatory, so we are able to visit it to see higher quality images. But, I'm very pleased with this telescope and would purchase it again -- the only "upgrade" I would get would be the motorized, GPS based tracking system to make finding objects easier. « Show Less
179362
I don't see why not. I use mine all the time with my Orion 130ST. The Barlow lens should work on pretty much any reflector or refractor for that matter. It slips into the eyepiece socket on the scope and then your regular eyepiece fits into the Barlow. It does make the lens stand out from the scope another inch, but just rotate the scope on its mount to get a comfortable view. BTW, I've been so impressed with this lens that I also ordered a 5X Barlow to see if I can really bring Saturn in. Good viewing and Happy St. Patrick's Day!
1069763
You can see the Moon and Saturn with your naked eyes and binoculars, so I think the question is "How much detail can I see with this telescope?" The answer to that is that the surface of the moon is pretty amazing. You can see lots of detail on moon craters, particularly when the moon is a crescent. The full moon will be VERY bright through this telescope and is best viewed using a moon filter. Saturn also looks very neat. You can see the rings and even a little bit of surface coloration if you have very clear skies. But Saturn will at most appear to be the size of a pea at greatest magnification. You can see the Moon and Saturn with your naked eyes and binoculars, so I think the question is "How much detail can I see with this telescope?" The answer to that is that the surface of the moon is pretty amazing. You can see lots of detail on moon craters, particularly when the moon is a crescent. The full moon will be VERY bright through this telescope and is best viewed using a moon filter. Saturn also looks very neat. You can see the rings and even a little bit of surface coloration if you have very clear skies. But Saturn will at most appear to be the size of a pea at... » Read More You can see the Moon and Saturn with your naked eyes and binoculars, so I think the question is "How much detail can I see with this telescope?" The answer to that is that the surface of the moon is pretty amazing. You can see lots of detail on moon craters, particularly when the moon is a crescent. The full moon will be VERY bright through this telescope and is best viewed using a moon filter. Saturn also looks very neat. You can see the rings and even a little bit of surface coloration if you have very clear skies. But Saturn will at most appear to be the size of a pea at greatest magnification. « Show Less
1798472
yes, the filters just enhance the view. I generally don't use the filters much and still can see clearly defined cloud bands on Jupiter, and can see the ring around Saturn.
1522120
I've seen Pluto with my CPC 1100 and a 20mm lens but it is "extremely" small...no surface detail...just a small dot. It's possible to use a more powerful lens to make Pluto larger but you will definitely loose detail with a more powerful lens. If you expect to see surface detail...you need a much larger scope...possibly an 18 inch or bigger.
1266624
100% you can see Jupiter. Very sad that khatibamm and gene are giving false info... I've got pictures through this scope of Jupiter, its two weather bands, and its four moons! Is it the best scope money can buy? Nope, but it's worth the money if this is in your budget. Also, the rings around Saturn look awesome through this scope.
1873328
You can see Jupiter and if you're in the right place, Mars and Venus. You will need to purchase the lens expansion pack to get good detail on either, but the expansion should also let you get some pretty good views of Saturn and its rings.
1596749
Yes. ..I was also able to view Jupiter & Saturn, but that took a little work. The sight provided works poorly for targeting celestial objects. The lenses are fine for amature moon gazing though...
1706393
I cannot, but I can give you my perspective on the StarMax 90 mm by Orion. It is small, portable, and clear, but I wear glasses, and it is hard to see through with the 10x eyepiece. I think all of the small scopes will be. I wish I had spent the extra $100 and bought the 6" Dobsonian mounted reflector, but I wanted to use this during the day for spotting animals from a distance. I gave this as a present to my wife who hasn't worked with the telescope yet, and she may have different opinions. I did get her the camera mount, polar lens, and an extra eye piece that doubles the magnification. I think that you'll find that both are probably one in the same IMO. I do like the table top mount that the Orion has. I think once the weather warms we will be able to give a more thorough opinion. I think I will end up getting the reflector with the Dobsonian mount the color CCD eyepiece from Orion, and a few extras. If you have room I'd suggest the 6" reflector, or this http://www.telescope.com/Orion-XT45-Dobsonian-Telescope-amp-Beginner-Barlow-Kit/p/102027.uts . I feel that we may outgrow the Starmax 90, but I think the 4.5 or 6 with Dobsonian would well used for the lifetime of star gazing.