Sky-Watcher 102mm Achromatic EQ5 PRO with Slow Motion Controls

Sky-Watcher 102AR EQ5 PRO Refractor: Screaming Performance!

Fortunate indeed is the amateur astronomer with a SW 102AR refractor on a clear night with transparent skies and a stable atmosphere. During those cherished moments of transparent and stable air, the refractor delivers the closest experience to actually being there human beings may ever know. But be careful! When you take the keys to this baby make sure you fasten your seatbelt because this race car of an astronomical ride is going to deliver some serious performance. Due to its unobstructed near textbook perfect diffraction pattern this telescope will deliver breathtakingly pristine celestial views with a dramatic coal-black sky background that makes stars glisten like diamonds. The SW 102mm refractor delivers performance second to none in its aperture size. In fact, on lunar, planetary, double star, and bright compact globular clusters this telescope will often perform on a par with a reflector up to perhaps 6.5". It will also resolve bright proto-stars, and brilliant stars in prominent emission nebulae revealing nebulosity from surrounding gasses they illuminate. It is no wonder quality refractors are so coveted by serious amateur astronomers. By the way, this telescope also makes a terrific terrestrial spotting scope for a view home. Don't delay in acquiring this optical marvel. It's a steal at just $525, and quantities are limited.

Industry Leading, World-Class Optical Quality

Sky-Watcher's Crown (BK7) and Flint (F2) achromatic lenses are fabricated to the highest optical standards from Grade-A glass free of striae and other image-degrading imperfections. Each lens set is individually pitch-polished, and hand figured by a master optician ensuring diffraction-limited premium optical performance that is second to none worldwide. All lenses are uniformly air-spaced. Each optical lens surface is coated with exotic anti-reflection metallic coatings (fully coated) to ensure the optimum light through-put. Four layers are applied to each surface (Magnesium Fluorite, MgF2, and Hafnium Dioxide, HfO2). The proprietary Sky-Watcher "Metallic High-Transmission Coatings" (MHC) are the finest photon anti-rejection coatings in their class.

The objective lens cell is light-baffled to reject stray, unfocused light. The draw tube is likewise baffled to insure optimum contrast. The tube's interior is flat blackened to help prevent unfocused internal light reflections from reaching the focal plane. The optical tube is aluminum, powder coated reflective gloss black with gold fleck accent. The front and back cells are cast aluminum painted black. Optical focus is achieved by means of a mechanically ultra-smooth, backlash-free, precision 2" Crayford-style rack & pinion focuser assembly.

Quality Accessories: include Super Plossl 20mm and 7.5mm 1.25" eyepieces, Red-Dot Viewfinder finderscope with bracket, and 2" mirror diagonal.

Observing with the Sky-Watcher 102AR EQ5 PRO Manual Refractor

Turning the telescope to the first quarter Moon, the Apennine Mountains snap into focus revealing a cornucopia of jagged mountain ridges, canyons, and numerous small craters in razor-sharp detail. Not far removed, reaching skyward the crater wall of Archimedes pops into view in bold relief against the smooth flatlands that transverse the distance between it and the Apennine Mountains. This is lunar observing at its best. The gas giant Jupiter displays its swirling equatorial bands in high-definition with festoons, and tonality within the bands. Saturn's storied surface phenomenon is simply stunning. Follow Venus' Moon like phases. Mars is a challenge in most any telescope, but its red-orange color is one of the most colorful in the sky. Hunt down double stars like Epsilon Lyrae, the ""double-double in Lyra. A 102mm refractor will provide a crisp well defined image superior to even a larger reflector. Always a star-party favorite, Alberio the beautiful double located in the tail of Cygnus never fails to please. Alberio appears as if a gold sparkler and its companion appears blue-green. It is a perfect refractor object. Compact globular star clusters lend themselves well to a refractor. Located outside our galaxy the globular M2 may resolve more stars in a 4" refractor than a 6" reflector. M4, M10 and many other globular cluster can be seen well with a 102mm refractor. M13, the fantastic globular in Hercules is a stunning sight in a 102mm refractor. The bright central cores of prominent nebulae can be seen and the brightest stars can be resolved.

Telescope Tube Attachment Hardware:

The optical tube comes with attachment hardware that allows it to be securely fastened to the SW EQ5 PRO mount. These quick-release tube rings are cast-aluminum, power coated white.

The SW EQ5 PRO Manual Mount is Standard-Equipment:

To facilitate precise equatorial alignment of the SW EQ5 PRO mount, a polar alignment scope is installed as standard equipment in the center of the R.A. axis. A transparent etched glass screen displays the region about the north celestial pole. The screen shows the position of Constellation Cassiopeia, Ursa Major (Big Dipper), and the defining position of Polaris, the North Star. It also shows Constellation Octans whose star Sigma Octantis visually defines the south celestial pole. The Sky-Watcher EQ5 PRO equatorial mount is a premium-grade observing platform utilizing quality throughout:

Equatorial Body. The elegantly appointed equatorial body is cast from virgin aluminum and powder coated in classic scientific instrument white. The professional fit & finish of the SW EQ5 PRO mount is abundantly obvious from the very first minute the mount is uncrated. The large polar and declination castings provide large, stable thrust bearing surfaces with tight tolerances. Setting-circles are provided in both RA and Dec. axes. All gears are internalized within the equatorial body. The counterweight shaft is made from solid stainless steel. The provided 7.5 lb. and 4 lb. counterweights are cast iron, powder coated white. SW EQ5 PRO Series telescopes come with optical tube mounting rings and/ or dovetail attachment brackets of cast aluminum.

Slow-Motion Manual Controls are Standard. Sky-Watcher EQ5 PRO manual EQ5 PRO mounts offer precision slow motion control in both axes via spring-steel cable controls with deluxe knobs. Bronze-metal worm-gear control systems enable precise, incremental mechanical movement with minimal gear backlash in RA and DEC. Gear size in R.A. and DEC. is a robust 72mm (2.83") with 144 teeth. Sealed ball-bearings are used on load bearing surfaces in RA and DEC. Mount tracks celestial objects in R.A. axis when equatorially aligned.

Mechanical Surface Controls. Thumb-locks are provided in RA and Dec. to allow swift manual orientation of the optical tube assembly. Micrometric elevation and azimuth controls are provided to help achieve precise polar alignment. For manually operated SW telescope models, deluxe spring-steel cable control knobs are provided in R.A. and Dec. to enable precise manual tracking of sky objects.

Rock-Solid Tripod, and Payload. Every SW EQ5 PRO mount includes a metal tripod commensurate in rigidity and load bearing capacity to the EQ5 PRO mount itself. Tripod legs are made of industrial strength tubular steel of 1.75" diameter, except for the SW 250N EQ5 PRO, and SW 11" SCT EQ5 PRO which are supplied with 2" diameter legs. The tripod head is rigid cast aluminum. A spreader-bar with tension lock is integral to the tripod to help insure optimum rigidity. The mount and tripod support a hefty payload of up to 25 lb.

Advantages of the Sky-Watcher EQ5 PRO Equatorial Telescope Mounting System:
The equatorial mount is the most versatile telescope platform ever designed. Without question it is the most popular and most utilized mounting system favored by amateur astronomers today worldwide. There are several important reasons for its popularity:

Versatility. In the process of becoming serious amateur astronomers, observers at some point often desire to vary their viewing routine. More often than not, this involves changing the optical configuration used for observing between reflective, refractive, or compound systems. It is a well established fact that no one optical design serves every situation perfectly. The SW EQ5 PRO mount, for instance, will hold a large SW 6" refractor offering pristine, textbook-like images of subtle planetary surface phenomena. It will also carry a SW 10" Newtonian reflector with huge light gathering capability for observing faint, gaseous filamentary structure in galaxies and nebulas. The versatile SW EQ5 PRO mount will also house a SW 11" Schmidt-Cassegrain optical tube assembly. In contrast, fork-mounts typically work with one telescope optical configuration only. There is no flexibility for changing optical tubes based on observing needs or preferences.

Portability. Equatorial mounts, like the Sky-Watcher EQ5 PRO, also offer great convenience to observers seeking portable equipment that disassembles into manageable components that can be easily lifted and carried. This is especially helpful with larger aperture optical systems. In contrast, one piece optical tube/ mount configurations can be surprisingly heavy to lift and awkward to transport by one individual.

Stability and Balance. The equatorial mount is renowned for stability, and ease-of-use in achieving mechanical balance of the optical tube and mount. The SW EQ5 PRO is mechanically rigid, and mechanical motions are smooth and inherently vibration-free. An industrial strength tubular steel tripod is standard equipment.