Meade ETX125 AT 127mm GoTo Maksutov-Cassegrain Telescope

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Meade ETX125 AT 127mm GoTo Maksutov-Cassegrain Telescope

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127mm (5") f/15 telescopes optics with Ultra-High Transmission Coatings (UHTC) for extremely bright images with high contrast and clarity
A full Go-To computerized telescope in an extremely compact form (weighs just 26 lbs. assembled!) - perfect for both the backyard and when traveling to dark sky locations!
The ETX telescope is internally powered via 8x AA-cell batteries (not included), and includes 12v input jack for use with an optional external 12v power source
Includes 26mm Super Pl�ssl telescope eyepiece, Red-dot Viewfinder, eyepiece accessory tray and chrome plated tubular steel tripod
Bonus accessories include a 1.25" moon filter, the MoonMap 260, and a smartphone photo adapter. A $50+ value!

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Item # 56983

Mfg Model # 205011

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The iconic Meade ETX125 AT 127mm GoTo Maksutov-Cassegrain Telescope offers optical quality that has made it a standard in the industry. Features include Meade's best telescope optical coatings, an advanced Meade AudioStar GOTO computer handbox and an easy to use red-dot viewfinder along with a solid mount and tripod. If you are in looking for a high quality portable scope absolutely loaded with features and the performance you desire, look no further.

The Maksutov-Cassegrain Optical System

The optical path and components of the ETX telescope design

Designed in the USA.

The Meade ETX125 GoTo telescope features an advanced Maksutov-Cassegrain design for pinpoint star images and extraordinary contrast, making it a great deep sky performer and ideal for detailed lunar and planetary observation as it easily soars to high magnifications. This 127mm (5.0") telescope has a focal length of 1900mm, f/15, with Meade's best Ultra-High Transmission Coatings (UHTC). Use your smartphone or other dedicated astrophotography camera to take high quality solar system images including the rings of Saturn, cloud bands of Jupiter, and extremely high resolution details of the lunar surface.

The Meade AudioStar features audio files and an internal speaker.

With the included AudioStar telescope hand controller you have easy access to thousands of objects along with a wealth of data about each one! AudioStar Astronomer Inside technology features a built-in speaker that plays over four hours of educational content about the celestial objects you are viewing! After a very simple alignment routine, the AudioStar is ready to take you to any object above the horizon in its database. Can also be connected to a PC for more advanced control.

The Audiostar telescope hand controller database includes over 30,000 objects that you can view with a simple press of a button! AudioStar Astronomer Inside technology features a built-in speaker that plays over four hours of educational content about the celestial objects you view! This computerized celestial object locating system plugs into the telescope's handbox port allowing for a quick and easy telescope alignment. Once aligned with the sky, the AudioStar is ready to take you to any object above the horizon in its database. In addition to GoTo and tracking capability, the AudioStar permits a wide array of fascinating and educational functions such as multiple Guided Tours, digital positional readouts, the ability to link the telescope with a PC using Meade's #505 connecting cable, and much more.

Standard equipment includes a Meade 884 telescope field tripod, Meade 26mm Series 4000 1.25" Super Pl�ssl eyepiece (73X), Red-dot Finder, Smart Phone Adapter, Moon Filter, and Moon Map. The very stable tripod features chrome plated tubular steel legs and for the astrophotographer conveniently has a built in wedge which can be used for polar alignment of the telescope. The ETX telescope is internally powered by 8 (user-supplied) AA batteries which will run it for approximately 20 hours under normal usage. An AC adapter is also available for separate purchase.

A telescope is only as good as its mount and this mechanically sophisticated model includes an extremely rigid dual aluminum fork substructure with high impact ABS shell. The similarly advanced telescope optical tube design incorporates a unique flip mirror mechanism, allowing light to either go to the comfortable 90 degree observing position of the eyepiece or the built in camera attachment port at the rear of the telescope tube. Optional adapters are available for many popular camera models.

The ETX telescope optical tube and motorized fork assembly weighs a mere 16 lbs. making the Meade ETX125 a world class performer in a very portable package.

Warranty

Limited Warranty against defects in materials or workmanship for two years from date of purchase. This warranty is provided by Meade for the benefit of the original retail purchaser only. For complete warranty details contact Meade at 800-626-3233.

Warning

Please note this product was not designed or intended by the manufacturer for use by a child 12 years of age or younger.

Product Support

Visit our product support section for instruction manuals and more

Specs

Best for viewing

Brighter deep sky
Best for imaging

Lunar & planetary
User level

User level

Beginner Level - Suited for a wide range of uses, these products are simple to operate and set up. Some initial assembly may be required depending on the type of product. Optical instruments with this rating will have very good optical and mechanical quality. Great for families, young people, and folks who don't want to mess with equipment and complexity. Beginning level telescopes will show you countless lunar craters, Saturn's rings and a myriad of star clusters and nebulae! Referring to the manual is recommended.

Intermediate Level - These products offer higher performance and more advanced features than Level 1: Beginner models. They typically take a bit longer to learn and need some set-up or adjustments. But anyone with the slightest technical bent will have no problem getting familiar with these models. Referring to the manual is recommended.

Advanced Level - These products provide the best performance but may require more skill to master and appreciate. Optical instruments with this rating have exceptionally fine optics and mechanics. Some are easy to use but might be on the large or heavy side. Some are intended for specialized uses. These products will appeal to the more technically inclined. Referring to the manual is highly recommended.

Beginner
Optical design

Optical design

Reflector telescopes use a pair of large and small mirrors to direct incoming light to the eyepiece. Refractor telescopes refract, or "bend" incoming light to a focus by means of an objective lens. Cassegrain telescopes, such as Maksutov-Cassegrains, "fold" incoming light using two mirrors and a front "corrector" lens.

Maksutov-Cassegrain
Front-end outside tube diameter

Front-end outside tube diameter

The maximum outside diameter (OD) of the front end of your telescope will be used to select a solar filter than will fit securely to the telescope for safe solar viewing.

5.83 in.
Optical diameter

Optical diameter

For telescopes, the optical diameter (also known as aperture) is the size of a telescope's main light-collecting lens or primary mirror, measured in millimeters or inches. Telescopes with larger optical diameters collect more light, which leads to an increase in brightness and image resolution compared to smaller instruments.

For binoculars, the optical diameter (also known as objective lens diameter) is the size of each of the front-facing objective lenses of a binocular measured in millimeters. Binoculars with larger objective lenses collect more light, which increases image resolution and brightness. Binoculars with larger objective lenses are recommended for low light situations, and binoculars with at least 50mm or larger objective lenses are recommended for pleasing astronomical observations at night.

127mm
Focal length

Focal length

The distance from the center of a curved mirror or lens at which parallel light rays converge to a single point. The focal length is an inherent specification of a mirror or lens and is one of the factors in determining resultant magnification for a telescope (along with the focal length of the eyepiece being used).

1900mm
Focal ratio

Focal ratio

The focal ratio of an optical system is the ratio of a telescope's focal length to its aperture. Short focal ratios (f/5, f/4.5) produce wide fields of view and small image scales, while long focal lengths produce narrower fields of views and larger image scales.

f/15.0
Coatings

Coatings

Binocular lenses and prisms are often coated with anti-reflective material to minimize light loss as light travels through the multiple optical surfaces of a typical binocular. Coatings help maximize the amount of light transmitted through each glass surface of a binocular, so as much light as possible reaches the observer's eyes to provide a bright and sharp image.
Good lenses are at least "fully coated," with a single layer of magnesium fluoride coating applied to each air-to-glass lens surface. Multiple layers of coatings are even more effective; the term "multi-coated" means one or more air-to-glass lens surface has multiple coatings. "Fully multi-coated" optics are even better, meaning all lens surfaces have multiple layers of anti-reflective coatings applied for maximum light transmission and optimal image quality.

Fully multi-coated
Optics type

Optics type

Newtonian reflectors will have either a spherical shaped mirror, which is less expensive to produce, or a higher quality parabola, which does not result in spherical aberration. Cassegrain telescopes routinely use spheres in addition to other lenses in the optical path to correct for residual spherical aberration. Refractors use a series of lenses to provide a clear image. Designs range from a standard air-spaced doublet (two lenses in a row) to exotic designs such as oil-spaced triplets and 4-element multi group lenses.

N/A
Eyepieces

Super Plossl 26.0mm (1.25")
Magnification with included eyepieces

73x
Resolving power

Resolving power

The theoretical resolving power of a telescope can be calculated with the following formula: Resolving power (in arc seconds) = 4.56 divided by aperture of telescope (in inches). In metric units, this is: Resolving power (in arc seconds) = 116 divided by aperture of telescope (in millimeters). Note that the formula is independent of the telescope type or model, and is based only upon the aperture of the telescope. So the larger the telescope's aperture, the more it is capable of resolving. This is important to keep in mind when observing astronomical objects which require high resolution for best viewing, such as planets and double stars. However, it is usually atmospheric seeing conditions (not the telescope) which limits the actual resolving power on a given night; rarely is resolution less than one arc-second possible from even the best viewing locations on Earth.

0.91arc*sec
Highest useful magnification

Highest useful magnification

The highest practical limit is different from the often used "highest theoretical magnification" specification. The "theoretical" limit generally is 50x the aperture of the scope in inches (2x the aperture in mm). So for example, an 80mm refractor is capable of 160x, and a 10" telescope is theoretically capable of 500x magnification. But after approximately 300x, theory breaks down and real world problems take over. The atmosphere above us is constantly in motion, and it will distort the image seen through the telescope. This effect may not be noticeable at lower powers, but at higher powers the atmosphere will dramatically blur the object, reducing the quality of the image. On a good night (a night where the air above is steady and the stars aren't twinkling), the practical upper limit of a large telescope is 300x, even thought the theoretical limit may be much higher. This doesn't mean the scope will never be able to reach those higher "theoretical" powers - there will be that rare night where the atmosphere is perfectly still and the scope can be pushed past it's practical limit, but those nights will be few and far between.

254x
Highest theoretical magnification

254x
Limiting stellar magnitude

Limiting stellar magnitude

The limiting stellar magnitude is a measure of the faintest star you can see through the telescope.

13.2
Optical quality

Optical quality

"Diffraction Limited" means that the limits of image detail are determined by the physical properties of light, and not by optical defects in the telescope.

Diffraction limited
Finder scope

Reflex sight
Focuser

Internal
Mount type

Altazimuth
Astro-imaging capability

Astro-imaging capability

The astro-photographic capability of the telescope is based on the style, stability, and accuracy of the mount and tripod. Telescopes on either very lightweight mounts or non tracking mounts (such as Dobsonians) are capable of only very short exposures such as lunar photographs. If a motor drive is attached to an equatorial mount, even a small lightweight mount is capable of capturing some planetary detail. Larger EQ mounts that utilize very precise tracking and excellent stability are capable of longer exposure deep-sky photography.

Lunar & planetary
Computerized compatibility

Computerized compatibility

Some mounts are compatible with a motorized Go-To system for fully automated computer finding of objects in the night sky. Others mounts are compatible with computer finding systems which require the user to manually move the mount to the object's position as indicated by the computer finder.

Go-To included
Alignment procedure

Easy (Two-Star) Align
Number of objects in database

30,000+
Motor type

DC Servo motors with encoders
Power requirement

8-AA batteries
Backlash compensation

Yes
Setting circles

Yes
Tube material

Aluminum
Tripod material

Steel
Tripod leg diameter

1.50 in.
Length of optical tube

14.5 in.
Weight, optical tube

16.0 lbs.
Weight, mount/tripod

10.0 lbs.
Weight, fully assembled

26.0 lbs.
Additional included accessories

SmartPhone camera adapter, 1.25" eyepiece moon filter, Meade MoonMap 260
Other features

Ultra-High Transmission Coatings (UHTC), AudioStar Controller with multiple guided tours, Equatorial tilt plate (wedge) built into tripod
Warranty

Warranty

This warranty gives you specific legal rights. It is not intended to remove or restrict your other legal rights under applicable local consumer law; your state or national statutory consumer rights governing the sale of consumer goods remain fully applicable.

Two year

In The Box

ETX125 -AT 127mm optical tube and fork arm assembly
Tripod
Tripod spreader accessory tray
AudioStar hand controller
26mm Super Pl�ssl eyepiece
Finder scope
SmartPhone camera adapter
1.25" moon filter
MoonMap 260
Bubble level/Compass
Quick Start Guide

Shipping Info

Orders received by 1pm Eastern Standard Time for in-stock items ship the same business day. Order received after noon will ship the next business day. When an item is not in-stock we will ship it as soon as it becomes available. Typically in-stock items will ship first and backordered items will follow as soon as they are available. You have the option in check out to request that your order ship complete, if you'd prefer.

SHIPPING RESTRICTIONS APPLY FOR THIS PRODUCT

This product is available to ship Standard delivery within the 50 US states. Delivery is not available to APO/DPO/FPO addresses, US territories/protectorates or Canada. 3 Day, 2nd Day and Next Day delivery is not available.

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