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JUNE 2004

PRODUCT REVIEW:
Celestron Nextstar GPS

by Mitchell Levine

The best way to take advantage of the educational benefits astronomy has to offer as a natural science is the simplest—observation. Not all teachers can coordinate field trips, since in New York, the twin problems of light pollution and obstruction of the horizon necessitate a position in a flat open area like Central Park; classes for whom this would be difficult might be best off using videos or multimedia presentations.

Those classrooms which do have the opportunity to directly observe the heavenly bodies in the nighttime sky, and can afford it, should take advantage of a product like Celestron’s Nexstar GPS. This revolutionary telescopic system is one of the very first to exploit Global Positioning technology, which uses communication with a geosynchronous satellite to locate a vast catalogue of stars, planets, and other astronomical objects on command. By programming a user interface built into the Nexstar, a presentation not unlike a PowerPoint display can be registered which takes the viewer on a tour of the universe without any prior knowledge of the subject. The Nexstar 11 even has a tour mode that analyzes the available objects at the location time and coordinates

This is probably the optimal way to present astronomy to a group—it requires no expertise on the part of an instructor, and offers the very best feasible means an amateur can use to gain experience with the heavens. The Nexstar GPS series is expensive—an average of $3000 per scope. There are also some limitations for an urban user: if the horizon is obstructed to any appreciable extent—a certainty to any viewer in New York City—the user may still be able to take advantage of the positioning system, but the complete database of objects visible from that point may not be accessible and it may take some time to gain a satellite uplink. Also, for those that travel, if transported a long distance, across the equator, for example, there may be a reorientation period lasting as long as several hours. However, if used consistently in the same location, the Nexstar 11 can be “trained” to recognize the signal of the local satcomms despite a less-than-perfect viewing environment.

For schools that can meet the price tag, an automated observation system takes all the guesswork out of astronomical observation, and removes one of the most persistent obstacles to using the sky as a dynamic classroom for students. Classes that don’t specifically know how to locate solar system and constellatory phenomena within the standard matrix schemes on their syllabus should benefit from having that hurdle taken out of their way. More information about the Nexstar 11, as well as the other scopes in the series, can be obtained from www.highpointscientific.com.#

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