Meade Polaris 60AZ-ME Telescope

I have always wanted to be able to look at the moon, Mars, Jupiter
and maybe even a comet zipping by ever since I was a small child. Going
to planetariums and observatories were always great fun and left me
wanting to see closer, see more, see beyond. I never did get a
telescope.

My husband and I decided to buy a telescope for the kids (ok, maybe, just
maybe I thought it would be cool too! lol). I had not really spent any
serious time looking around to buy a telescope ~ it was just there when
I turned down the aisle. It must have been fate waiting there like that for
me, so in the cart it went, a childhood wish finally coming to pass.

It was pretty much an impulse buy, I admit it. There was no
forethought, no planning, no comparison shopping. There were several
models to choose from with widely ranging prices. I went for the
mid-range price - not too "cheap," and not so expensive that my eyebrows
went up.

What I bought was the Meade Polaris 60AZ-ME (60mm) Altazimuth Refracting
Telescope, made by Meade Instruments Corporation. Meade by the way, has
an excellent website, at www.meade.com, that really showcases some very
spectacular equipment. That's it Judy, do your research after you buy
it! lol Meade is a leader in the field of scopes, binoculars and
telescopes. They have all ranges in price, precision, and quality.

The Polaris 60AZ-ME was designed for both astronomical and terrestrial
observing. What you get with this model is a complete optical tube
assembly with an objective lens diameter of 60mm and a focal length of
700mm, a Altazimuth mount with a metal tripod with telescoping legs-
this type of mount is great for ease in moving the telescope up/down,
and sideways, one 25mm (25x) eyepiece, one 12.5mm (50x) eyepiece, one
terrestrial 18mm (35x) erecting eyepiece which can also serve as a 14x
microscope, one 3x Barlow lens, one diagonal mirror, one accessory tray
that fits into a tri-point bracket between the tripod legs, and a 5 x 24
viewfinder with a bracket.

The assembly instructions are quite explicit, taking you step by step
through each an every assembly operation. Another added piece to the
directions include how to properly select use your eyepieces and/or
Barlow and/or diagonal mirror depending on what you plan to be looking
at through the telescope. For first time users it is nice to know how to
use the eyepieces and lens' most effectively in a step-by-step set up
sequence.

The booklet also explains the purpose of the eyepieces, viewfinder
and lens. For example, it explains that a 5 x 24mm viewfinder provides a
much wider field of view than the telescope's main optical tube --using
the viewfinder lets you more quickly locate a desired object before
actually observing it through the main telescope.

To become accustomed to using your telescope it is suggested that you
start with land objects during the daytime, then move on to the moon
before heading on out into space.

The 25mm eyepiece gives you a bright, wide field of view, and is good
for land and general astronomical viewing of star fields, star clusters,
nebulae and galaxies. The higher power 12.5mm eyepiece is good for lunar
and planetary viewing, like the 4 major moons of Jupiter, Saturn and
it's famous ring, or cloud belts around a planet. Use of the 3x Barlow
lens will increase the magnification possible with any eyepiece - for
example, the 25x (25x)eyepiece used in conjunction with the Barlow will
give you 75x power, with the 12.5mm (50x) eyepiece you acheive 150x
power.

A redemption certificate was included in the Polaris package.
Sending in the certificate with photocopy of your sales receipt and $5 for
shipping and handling gets you a copy of StarFinder Software for
PC-compatible computers.

If you have ever wanted to have a telescope of your own. If you have
ever dreamed of being about to see the moon or the ring around Saturn up
close, you can afford to fulfill your own childhood dream -- the Polaris
60AZ-ME was $75 on sale - not a bad price to pay to be able to reach out
to the stars!~