Aplanatic Schmidt-Cassegrain Telescopes

The Aplanatic Schmidt-Cassegrain is a derivative of the standard Schmidt-Cassegrain design that substantially reduces coma. This can be highly advantageous when imaging with today's larger format CCD cameras, but the difference is also visibly noticeable. Coma is an optical aberration that results in star images that are less than perfectly round as you move from the center towards the edge of field. In extreme cases stars at the very edge of field look more like small comets, complete with a fanned tail.

Standard Schmidt-Cassegrains feature two spherical mirrors and a weak lens corrector plate. Spherical mirrors are used because they easily mass produced at minimal cost. The aplanatic Schmidt-Cassegrain features an aspherical secondary mirror. An aplanatic Schmidt-Cassegrain produces a sharper image across the entire field, with stars that remain as points of light all the way to the edge of field.

Celestron CGEM 800 HD

The Celestron CGEM 800 HD features an eight-inch coma free aplanatic Schmidt-Cassegrain optical tube with built in field flattener mounted atop the CGEM German equatorial mount.

$2,399.00

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Celestron CGEM 925 HD

The Celestron CGEM 925 HD features a 9-1/4 optical tube with Celestron EdgeHD optics mounted on the CGEM German equatorial mount.

$3,099.00

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Celestron CGEM 1100 HD

The Celestron CGEM 1100 HD features Celestron's EdgeHD eleven-inch aplanatic Schmidt-Cassegrain optical system that produces pinpoint star images all the way to the edge of the field, combined with the capable CGEM German equatorial mount.

$3,499.00

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Celestron CGE Pro 925 HD

The CGE Pro 925 HD features Celestron's Aplanatic Schmidt-Cassegrain optical system with built in field flattener, producing pinpoint star images all the way to the edge of the field.

$5,099.00

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Celestron CGE Pro 1100 HD

The Celestron CGE Pro 1100 HD features an Aplanatic Schmidt-Cassegrain optical system that reduces coma, producing pinpoint star images all the way to the edge of the field. It also has a built-in field flattener producing true Astrograph quality images.

$5,999.00

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Celestron CGE Pro 1400 HD

The Celestron CGE Pro 1400 HD features an Aplanatic Schmidt-Cassegrain optical system that reduces coma, producing pinpoint star images all the way to the edge of the field.

$9,999.00

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Meade 8-inch LX200-ACF

The 8-inch Meade LX200-ACF is an advanced amateur telescope suitable for both imaging and visual observation. The new Advanced Coma-Free optics are a significant improvement standard over Schmidt-Cassegrains, producing tighter star images.

$2,599.00

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Meade 8-inch LX90 Telescope

Meade's most popular Schmidt-Cassegrain Telescope just got even better. The new LX90-ACF features Meade's Advanced Coma-Free Optics provide pinpoint stars all the way to the edge of field.

From: $1,799.00

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Meade 10-inch LX200-ACF

The 10-inch Meade LX200-ACF is the most popular telescope within this series. It is 40% larger than the eight-inch model, with the telescope and fork assembly tipping the scales at 68 pounds. Many find this to be the largest telescope they can handle.

$3,599.00

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Meade 10-inch LX90 Telescope

Weighing in at 50 lbs. for the optical tube assembly, the Meade 10" LX90 telescope is lighter and easier to handle than competing scopes of similar aperture. The Advanced Coma-Free optics produce pinpoint star images across the entire field.

From: $2,399.00

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Meade 12-inch LX200-ACF

The 12-inch Meade LX200-ACF telescope is equipped with the Meade giant field tripod, which tips the scales at 50 pounds vs. 20 pounds for the standard tripod. This is the largest model that should be considered for a one-man setup in the field.

$4,499.00

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Meade 12-inch LX90 Telescope

If you are a visual observer who craves a large aperture Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope, the 12" Meade LX90 may be for you. This is definitely a large telescope, yet the optical tube assembly tips the scales at only 60 lbs.

From: $2,999.00

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Meade 14-inch LX200-ACF

The 14-inch Meade LX200-ACF is a LARGE telescope that is more suitable for permanent setup in an observatory. Occasionally they are seen in the field; however, we do not recommend a one-man setup due to the size and weight of the instrument. More...

$6,999.00

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Meade 16-inch LX200-ACF

The Meade 16" LX200-ACF telescope is an observatory class instrument typically found within university based observatories. The large aperture and long focal length of this instrument make it useful primarily for deep space astrophotography.

From: $13,999.00

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Meade LS 6

The innovative Meade LS 6 telescope with LightSwitch technology literally aligns itself without human intervention. Simply turn it on and the telescope does the rest.

From: $1,299.00

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Meade LS 8

Meade’s revolutionary LS 8 LightSwitch telescopes does what no other consumer telescopes can: take all the hassle out of using a telescope. Simply flip the switch and the LS automatically aligns itself.

From: $1,799.00

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Meade LT-6 Telescope

The Meade LT telescopes are essentially LS telescopes without the completely automated alignment capability. They are optically equivalent to the ETX-LS Series and mechanically very similar.

From: $999.00

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Meade LT-8

The Meade LT-8 is a fully featured computer-controlled 8” telescope ideal for any astronomer who demands superior optics, mechanics and computer control in a compact high-performance package.

From: $1,399.00

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