New telescope lets you see the stars from anywhere, even the back of a truck

There’s an amateur astronomer inside so many, and for those lucky enough to work at NASA, ASRI (our Australian equivalent), or the Canberra Deep Space Communications Complex, maybe even a professional one. But if that’s not you, and you’re merely an amateur, it might be time to step up to a big telescope to better see the heavens.

Evolved from a design that started in the sixties, the SkyWatcher Collapsible Dobsonian telescope is a massive “Newtonian” telescope with a massive 254mm diameter and a focal length that goes over a metre, reaching 1200mm.

For those not terribly familiar with the quintessential science and astronomy gadget that is the telescope, the Dobsonian Newtonian telescope is seen as a deep sky telescope, built to let you see galaxies and star clusters without needing to own your own observatory with its own massive telescope inside.

SkyWatcher’s telescope is like that, and while this fits in our “science” category more than the “gadgets” category, it’s the sort of contraption likely to grab the attention of a geek, especially one with the name “GadgetGuy.”

There are some differences, though, as this one can be packed up with a collapsible tube, making it easy to pull apart and take on a trip, or leave at home to see the sky when you’re itching to see what’s beyond.

As cool as it is, the SkyWatcher Collapsible isn’t cheap, with a price of $1199, but if you’re beyond the basics and want to go further than just amateur sky watching, it might be working looking into, so check out your local science or telescope store (yes, they exist) to see if they stock them.