Bought this telescope for my 16y/o son. It was very easy to set us and easy to use. I would recommend this item to anyone as a start to your astronomy journey.

This telescope is as described, it's worth every penny for a beginner. It's not the most rigidly constructed but works well for the money, the equatorial mount works well and is fairly simple to learn how to use, with patience and some accessories you can take some professional grade photographs, this is a perfect scope for the beginner armature astronomer. It's a well rounded scope fairly decent for viewing almost anything in the night's sky and even terrestrial things too. If this is your first scope you will have to invest some time in learning astronomy and how to use it properly. At first you will need to calimate the scope, takes some trial and error but it seems the more I use the scope the less I need to calimate it. I still have much to learn but as a beginner I had a great time learning on this scope and recommend it to anyone interested in astronomy.

I enjoyed this book. Carolyn Collins Petersen authored an interesting, concise, fun-to-read book. The book covers a lot of astronomical subjects but none in a burdensome amount of detail. And as the title suggests, no background in astronomy is required to enjoy it. The book is roughly divided into three sections: the stuff that’s out there (from the sun to gravitational lensing), the people who study or have studied the stuff that’s out there (from Copernicus to Brown, the astronomer who wrote the book “How I killed Pluto and why it had it coming” which is also a good book) and how to do astronomy (from your backyard to current and past space missions). I recommend this book for anyone who in interested in astronomy and needs a place to start.

My son like glasses but said its Astronomy! He's an Astrophysist, so I can't argue with him..... But they were well packaged and quick delivery.

Astronomy 101, written by Carolyn Collins Petersen, is an excellent introductory source for beginner astronomers. Though clearly biased toward the theories of evolution, Petersen remains respectful toward all beliefs. Astronomy 101 covers all aspects of the cosmos, from the laws that govern it to those that study it, in an accessible and understandable way. When discussing the different tools our scientists use to observe space, Petersen includes links to images taken by the Kepler mission that interested astronomers can use to conduct their own research. Many of history’s greatest astronomers claimed a faith in Christ and glorified God in their scientific work. While Carolyn Collins Petersen’s Astronomy 101 does explain the physics of space with a decidedly evolutionist point of view, when giving the reader a summary of the many contributors to our knowledge of the cosmos she acknowledges their beliefs and respects their religion. Astronomy 101 is perfect if you are interested in the astronomical but are not yet sure which field you wish to pursue. Petersen details the planets of our own solar system as well as explaining the study of the farthest remnants of outer space. She describes the objects we can see like asteroids, stars, comets, and planets; the matter we can only detect with the instruments of our modern age such as black holes and dark matter; the phenomena we can only speculate about including worm holes and the Big Bang. Each section is short and understandable for beginners, yet even amateurs can learn something from Petersen’s book. Petersen gives the reader an understanding of the many observatories, telescopes, and missions that the space organizations of the world have working today. Because the scientific community is constantly moving forward, some of Astronomy 101’s information is outdated. An example being that Petersen gives lists of missions to Jupiter, one of which will land in future 2015. This book is not for the expert looking for the most current scientific data to confirm his hypotheses, but it is perfect for gaining a strong foundation in the study of astronomy. Petersen also provides links and encourages the reader to use the information released to the public, gathered by these instruments, to conduct one’s own research. Written by Carolyn Collins Petersen, a notable woman in the astronomical field, Astronomy 101 holds a wealth of information for the backyard astronomer. No matter your age or experience, Astronomy 101 is sure to teach you something new.

This is perfect for my daughter who is just getting into constellations and astronomy! It is much smaller than expected but I also didn’t pay attention to the size description.

The book is well explained for the novice, like myself, who has only the basic astronomy education of high school but wishes to go a bit further and deeper into the subject. Excellent if you are interested in aviation and space related travel. Gets a little technical in some aspects and raises more questions than it sometimes answers. That is a good thing, because you certainly can't contain all astronomical knowledge into one book; or even hundreds. It is a good positive step forward in a subject that is immensely fascinating.

I bought this for my adult grandson who is very interested in astronomy. He is pleased with it's ease of use and the attachment for his phone that allows him to take pictures.