Celestron SkyScout Personal Planetarium by Celestron

The SkyScout is a revolutionary handheld device that uses advanced GPS technology with point and click convenience to identify thousands of stars, planets, constellations and more.

Identify
Simply point the SkyScout at any star in the sky and click the target button. The SkyScout will tell you what object you are looking at.

Locate
To locate a star or planet, select the object's name from the menu and follow the directional arrows through the viewfinder. SkyScout tells you when you are on target. It's that easy!

Learn
Once you have targeted an object the real fun begins. The SkyScout includes entertaining and educational audio and text information, including facts, trivia, history and mythology about our most popular celestial objects. A fun learning tool for all ages, the SkyScout personal planetarium puts the knowledge of an expert astronomer in the palm of your hand.

SkyScout features

Identifies celestial objects with the click of a button.

Locates over 6,000 stars, planets and constellations from built-in celestial database and provides scientific information for each object.

Provides comprehensive text and audio descriptions providing history, mythology and other entertaining information for the most popular objects.

Tonight's Highlights: a customized list of the 20 best objects to view for your exact date, time and location anywhere in the world.

Constellation lessons: if the star you identify or locate is part of a constellation like the Big Dipper, you can actually take a guided tour through all the stars in that constellation and even see an onscreen map of the constellation.

Built-in field guide includes:

Introduction to astronomy: a six part audio lesson on the origin and history of astronomy
Glossary of terms: text defining popular astronomy terms including planets, comets, galaxies and more
Great Astronomers: text bios on some of the world's greatest astronomers including Galileo, Einstein and Copernicus
Man-made space objects: text description of some of the coolest objects man has sent into space including the International Space Station, the Hubble Space Telescope and the Space Shuttle
Comet guide: text descriptions about history's most famous comets including Halley's Comet and Comet Hale-Bop

SD card slot: for optional Sky Tour audio presentations that provide hours of entertainment on a variety of topics

USB port: allows database to be updated with new objects as they are discovered, comets, etc.

Simple enough for all ages: just turn it on and it's ready to use

Built-in help menu: includes a quick start instruction guide for using the SkyScout

Bring it anywhere: compact and light design makes it easy to carry and durable construction makes it safe for rugged environments

Backed by Celestron's 2-year warranty

Owner Reviews, Ratings, Comments and Criticism
I ordered my SkyScout in September, hoping that the initial rush on this item was over and that it would be in stock (as listed) when I ordered it. Sadly, it was actually out of stock, and took a few months to arrive. The unit powered up and seemed to function, but was unable to get a GPS fix in a clear field. Hoping that it was a simple matter of updating the unit, I attached it via USB to my computer and followed the simple directions on the screen. It updated quickly and easily, but I still was unable to obtain a GPS fix. Using the instructions provided, I contacted Celestron, and was directed to return the unit to them for evaluation and repair. Less than two weeks passed, when a new unit straight from Celestron arrived in the mail. This one worked perfectly and as advertised, and without any problems! Now that I've actually used my SkyScout, I can say that it is great fun to use! Now, December and January in Wyoming isn't the best time of year to be outside at night...wind chill last night was -40F for example, but the SkyScout still works like a champ. Multiple modes of function exist as listed in the description, but my personal favorite is being able to identify just about anything you can see with the naked eye in the night sky. Just view the object through the sky scout, push a button, and you'll get the name of the object as well as at least a few lines of text of information. Brighter objects or better known objects also have an audio commentary that will teach about the history and/or significance of what you're looking at. While I was disappointed about my first SkyScout not functioning properly, the quick customer service and the replacement working flawlessly have overcome my initial disappointment. The SkyScout is quite simple to use and provides a great way for anyone who can read to start to learn the night sky. I highly recommend it for individuals with an interest in astronomy, families, star parties, and youth groups such as the Boy Scouts.