Sky at Night review

“Compared to our own 250mm f/5 Newtonian reflector, the extra light gathered by the Explorer-300P was obvious. We got impressive views of a wide range of celestial objects. Galaxies such as M65 & M66 in Leo were wonderful, with strong hints of subtle detail along their spiral discs. The nearby galaxy NGC 3628 also stood out well. Nebulae shone against the background sky. M1, the Crab Nebula, showed varying degrees of mottling and scalloped edges – very satisfying indeed. The Orion Nebula, M42-43, was awash with nebulosity and we found we could easily get lost amongst the detail.. At its centre, the Trapezium group of stars sparkled and, at the highest magnifications , we spotted several of its fainter mag. +10 stars, even though the atmosphere wasn’t as steady as we would have liked for such high-magnification views. Detail Explosion: Late into the night we selected the globular cluster M13 from the hand-controller. As it swung into the field of view it was breathtaking, with swarms of stars looking like bees around a honey pot. The view was so good that we noticed a dark feature, commonly known as the Propeller, superimposed on one side of the cluster. It was easily the best view of the cluster we’ve ever had….For crystal clear views of deep space, this is hard to beat!” BBC Sky At Night Magazine