Sky-Watcher 8" Flextube 200P Collapsible Truss Dobsonian* - S11700

Sky-Watcher 8" Flextube 200P Collapsible Truss Dobsonian

Additional shipping surcharges may  apply on top of standard shipping costs

You may have noticed the escalating "aperture fever" that has gripped amateur astronomy for several decades. This leads to the idea that an 8" diameter is generally regarded as the minimum entry-level aperture for serious observing. The low cost, large diameter, and fast focal ratio of the 8" Sky-Watcher Flextube 200P Collapsible Truss tube Dobsonian make it an ideal dedicated telescope for wide-field, deep-space observation of faint galaxies, nebulae, and star clusters. The low-power inherent in this scope dramatically captures wide swaths of sky in a single view. the 8" Sky-Watcher Flextube 200P Collapsible Truss tube Dobsonian makes galaxies and nebula appear to pop out of the heavens as bright, expansive masses of stars, gas, and dust. If you have never before observed through a high-quality, wide-field Dobsonian scope like the Sky-Watcher 8" Flextube 200P Collapsible Truss tube Dobsonian, you are in for a truly enjoyable, sweet experience which you would expect from amateur astronomy!

This 8" Flextube 200P Collapsible Truss Dobsonian telescope from Sky-Watcher USA is a nice size telescope for the whole family to use, either in your own back yard or taken to a favorite dark-sky site for better observing of night sky objects. It is so easy to operate, being a Dobsonian design of mount. Just grasp the scope and move it by hand in the general direction of the objects you want to observe.

Observing with a Dobsonian scope has been compared to shooting ducks in a gallery; it is so easy to find your target. An 8x50 mm right angle optical viewfinder provides both magnification and light-gathering to help narrow your search. The standard-equipment backlash-free 2" Crayford Focuser provides reliable, ultra smooth focusing. Multi-coated, 4-element Plössl eyepieces (25 mm and 10 mm) provide a spacious 52° apparent field of view. To ensure mechanical ease-of-use, Sky-Watcher uses a high-performance Teflon bearing system in both axes combined with tension adjustment in altitude to facilitate setting the appropriate amount of friction, assuring smooth vertical and horizontal manual movements. Also reduces movement from accidental small bumps. This also eliminates the need for a balanced optical tube as would be required with an equatorial mount.

Sky-Watcher's Teflon bearing system is preferable to the use of ball-bearings. Ball-bearings make unintended movement of the optical tube more difficult to control. Fortunately, at low power, deep-space objects will seem to leisurely drift through the field of view of the Sky-Watcher 8" Flextube 200P Collapsible Truss Dobsonian telescope, so constant mechanical adjustment of the telescope's orientation isn't needed to keep objects in your field. Sky-Watcher's revolutionary Collapsible truss-support concept allows the optical tube's front and back cells to collapse together, aligning on the truss support rods. They can be locked down for easy and secure telescope transport. This one piece, hassle-free OTA design is mechanically simple. A Dob scope of 8" aperture can be reasonably handled and transported by one individual. This innovation gives Sky-Watcher users tremendous ease of transportability, which is a feature you will love each time you have to move your telescope from its storage location to an observing site.

The Sky-Watcher 8" DOB utilizes quality components throughout. The polishing process for primary and diagonal mirror yields smooth mirror surfaces ensuring good contrast, and properly corrected optics show minimum aberrations. Each primary mirror and elliptical diagonal mirror is coated with aluminum and then over-coated with hard quartz (SiO4). Additional layers of titanium dioxide (TiO2) and (SiO4) are then applied to protect the coatings. Dust covers help keep your DOB clean when not in use. The mechanical and structural components of the OTA exhibit rigid construction and stability you will appreciate every time you observe.

Imagine the exhilaration of opening a clam and discovering your first pearl. The Celestial sphere we call the sky is full of astronomical pearls. While they won't make you rich financially, for amateur astronomers at least, observing the fabled pearls of deep-space is a rich and truly exhilarating pastime. A night observing with the SW 8" Flextube 200P Collapsible Truss tube Dobsonian can leave you with a lingering sense of contentment. Some of amateur astronomy's most revered and enthusiastically observed extra solar-system objects are now within your discovery with this fine 8" Dob telescope.

The summer sky is aglow with astronomical pearls: In the constellation Sagittarius several of the sky's most prominent emission nebulae can be seen well in your 8" SW DOB. The Lagoon Nebula (M8) is a rich aggregation of dust and gases illuminated by its central stars. This is actually an area of star formation. The Lagoon Nebula appears fiery red in astrophotographs due to the hot hydrogen gas. Located nearby is the smaller, but very beautiful Trifid Nebula (M20). These two nebulae can actually be seen in the same field of view with this 8" telescope from Sky-Watcher. The magnificent Swan Nebula (M17) is also located in Sagittarius.

The most awesome globular star cluster, M13, is located in the constellation Hercules, a bee-hive of thousands of stars swarming about a central core. Since globular clusters are no longer being formed in the universe, you are observing fossil light, a glimpse back in time. This is the brightest object of its kind and always fun to view. The globular cluster M92 is likewise very interesting and can also be found in Hercules. The winter sky holds several stunning pearls often referred to in popular culture, not only in astronomy. Our closest external galaxy, the beautiful Andromeda, perhaps the defining galaxy of the classic spiral form can essentially be seen almost in its entirety within one eyepiece field. Winter's diffuse Great Orion Nebula (M42) is the brightest emission nebula in the heavens. It is really spectacular in an 8" SW DOB.

The preceding is just a short sampling of objects that can be seen. Many more fascinating celestial objects in our sky await you.

Specifications: