Telescopes / For deep sky
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Deep Sky Telescopes

Checked 2026-10-24

Powerful systems built to find distant galaxies, nebulae, and star clusters 26 telescopes · 14 brands

For adults For beginners For kids Refractor For moon viewing Portable Tripod included For travel Budget With phone adapter Altazimuth mounts 90mm aperture 80mm aperture Equatorial mounts Reflector 70mm aperture Professional For bird watching For deep sky For astrophotography 600mm focal length Black Smart Digital Dobsonian 800mm focal length Monocular 400mm focal length White 50mm aperture STEM learning Tabletop mounts Maksutov-Cassegrain 130mm aperture 60mm aperture 900mm focal length 114mm aperture 300mm focal length Blue Waterproof 700mm focal length Red Green

Best Deep Sky Telescopes

# Item Level House Notes See listing
1 Adult 150EQ reflector with equatorial system 8.6 MEEZAA Adult 150EQ reflector with equatorial system $330 MEEZAA For adults · For moon viewing · Reflector
$330 See listing
2 Newtonian reflector telescope with 130mm aperture and EQ mount 8.5 SOLOMARK Newtonian reflector telescope with 130mm aperture and EQ mount $270 SOLOMARK For adults · For moon viewing · Reflector
$270 See listing
3 Reflector telescope with equatorial mount for deep sky 8.7 Celestron Reflector telescope with equatorial mount for deep sky $290 Celestron For beginners · Reflector · Equatorial mounts
$290 See listing
4 Black 90mm refractor telescope for deep sky 9.1 Koolpte Black 90mm refractor telescope for deep sky $250 Koolpte Black · For adults · Refractor
$250 See listing
5 SV503 upgraded ED refractor with 80mm lens 9.1 SVBONY SV503 upgraded ED refractor with 80mm lens $430 SVBONY Refractor · 80mm aperture · For astrophotography
$430 See listing
6 Reflector 114mm with smartphone adapter 7.3 Explore Scientific Reflector 114mm with smartphone adapter $79.99 Explore Scientific For moon viewing · With phone adapter · Reflector
$79.99 See listing
7 Mid size 71mm flat field refractor 9.4 Askar Mid size 71mm flat field refractor $599 Askar Refractor · For astrophotography
$599 See listing
8 Refractor telescope with 102mm aperture for precise tracking 7.3 Ningbo Zhanjing OpticalInstruments Refractor telescope with 102mm aperture for precise tracking $300 Ningbo Zhanjing OpticalInstruments For adults · For moon viewing · Professional
$300 See listing
9 Portable six inch Dobsonian with light shroud 9.4 BuiltAstro Portable six inch Dobsonian with light shroud $815 BuiltAstro For moon viewing · Portable · For travel
$815 See listing
10 Deep space refractor with long focal length Bushnell Deep space refractor with long focal length $92.63 Bushnell Refractor · 600mm focal length · 50mm aperture
$92.63 See listing
Before you buy

Deep sky telescope questions

What aperture do I need for deep-sky objects?

The Newtonian reflectors here are 130mm and 150mm, which gather enough light for galaxies and nebulae. The refractors range from 50mm to 102mm; the larger refractors work for brighter deep-sky targets. More aperture means fainter objects become visible, but it also means a heavier setup.

Are these telescopes good for astrophotography?

The 60mm, 50mm, and 71mm flat-field refractors with ED glass and quadruplet APO designs are built for deep-sky astrophotography. They include Vixen dovetail plates for mounting on a tracking mount. The Newtonians and the 102mm refractor are primarily visual instruments, though a phone adapter can be used for basic imaging.

What mount comes with these deep-sky telescopes?

The 130EQ and 150EQ Newtonians include equatorial mounts and tripods, which track the sky's rotation. The 102mm refractor uses a computerized alt-az mount with SkyAlign and a hand control. The flat-field APO refractors are optical tube assemblies only, with dovetail plates for a separate mount.

Can I use these for moon viewing instead?

Yes, all of these telescopes can show the moon, and the 130EQ includes a 13% transmission moon filter to cut glare. The 150EQ also lists a moon filter. For lunar detail, the longer focal length of the 150EQ or the 102mm refractor gives more magnification.

Light grasp and optical designs for faint objects

Deep-sky observing rewards aperture and optical quality, and the samples split into two approaches. Newtonian reflectors at 130mm and 150mm gather enough light to pull in galaxies and nebulae that smaller scopes miss, with equatorial mounts that let you track objects as they drift. The 102mm refractor on a computerized mount uses SkyAlign technology and a hand control to find targets automatically, which helps when you are hunting objects too faint to star-hop to easily.

Flat-field and APO refractors for imaging

The 60mm, 50mm, and 71mm flat-field refractors use ED glass and quadruplet air-spaced APO designs, with Vixen dovetail plates for mounting. These are built for deep-sky astrophotography and visual astronomy, where flat fields and color correction matter for capturing nebulae and star clusters. The 50mm F3.8 is the fastest of the group, while the 60mm F6.8 and 71mm F6.9 trade some speed for a longer focal length.

If your goal is visual observing of faint fuzzies, the 130mm and 150mm Newtonians give you the most light for the money. If you want to photograph deep-sky objects, the APO refractors with ED glass and flat-field designs are the better match. The computerized 102mm refractor sits between the two, offering go-to finding for visual work without the imaging-specific optics.

Related
For astrophotography Refractor For moon viewing For adults Reflector Professional Equatorial mounts For beginners