8 hours ago 1

Get a closer view of comet Lemmon and save money — 20% off the Celestron Inspire 100AZ

The Celestron Inspire 100AZ refractor telescope aimed to the right of the screen with aperture and finderscope visible, on a white background with a black Space.com Prime Day deals badge in the upper-left corner.
(Image credit: Jamie Carter / Future)

Amazon's Prime Day in October is on its final day and this deal is a scorcher. The Celestron Inspire 100AZ is at its cheapest price since May. It's a great budget telescope that is perfect for levelled-up views of the moon and the planets. We think it's one of the best telescopes you can buy and is also one of the best for a quick set-up if you are a beginner skywatcher.

You can get the Celestron Inspire 100AZ refractor telescope on sale right now on Amazon for $304.

Comet Lemmon, also known as Comet C/2025 A6 (Lemmon), has been wowing astronomers and astrophotographers over the past few months, with some calling it the 'comet of the year'. Since its discovery, the comet has brightened in magnitude and is becoming more and more visible. Comet C/2025 A6 is reaching its closest point to Earth on Oct. 21, so now would be a good time to get a decent telescope like the Celestron Inspire 100AZ for a better chance of observing this wandering celestial body.


A side profile view of the telescope against a corrugated iron backdrop
The Celestron Inspire 100AZ refractor telescope comes with a simple-to-use alt-azimuth mount. (Image credit: Jamie Carter)

Telescopes can get very expensive very quickly and sometimes you just want some decent optics to get a good view of the full moon or of rarer celestial events like the appearance of comet C/2025 A6 (Lemmon). Comets are quite faint celestial objects and whilst they do sometimes become visible to the naked eye, your best bet for observing one is with a telescope or binoculars. Observing and photographing the comet yields different results, with photographs often looking much more impressive due to stacking, so while the comet won't look like the photograph below, it will still be an amazing sight and memory to cherish.

Comet C/2025 A6 (Lemmon) in the starry night sky with a green coma and wispy white tail.

Comet C/2025 A6 (Lemmon) will reach its closest point to Earth on Oct. 21, which also coincides with the new moon. (Image credit: Javier Zayas Photography / Getty Images)

The Celestron Inspire 100AZ is a quality telescope that is also within a reasonable budget and is now $74 cheaper on Amazon. During our testing, we found it was very easy to set up and take down, which makes it stress-free for beginner stargazers or those who are unfamiliar with telescopes.

The 3.94-inch aperture on the Inspire 100AZ gathers more light for faint objects in the night sky but it is most suited for planets, the moon and stars. It even has a smartphone adapter so that you can do some quick astrophotography too. It's the perfect telescope for someone looking to get into stargazing or who has never used a telescope before, including children!


Key features: Refractor optical design, 3.94-inch (100 mm) aperture, 26-inch (20 mm) focal length, f/6.5 focal ratio, 2x eyepieces (20mm and 10mm), weight 20 lbs (9.1 kg), alt-azimuth mount type.

Breaking space news, the latest updates on rocket launches, skywatching events and more!

Product launched: August 2016

Price history: This telescope usually retails for around $380 but this deal drops the price to $304, the cheapest the model has been since May.

Price comparison: Amazon: $304 | BHPhotoVideo: $380 | Walmart: $380

Reviews consensus: In our Celestron Inspire 100AZ review, we praised the sharp views of the moon and liked the handy smartphone adaptor and built-in red light for preserving night vision. There was some chromatic aberration but we thought it was a great value optical instrument nonetheless.

Space: ★★★★ | LiveScience: ★★★★ | Digital Camera World: ★★★★

Featured in guides: best telescopes, best telescopes for beginners, best telescopes for seeing planets, best budget telescopes, best telescopes for kids

✅ Buy it if: You want a cheap telescope that is easy to operate and will give you good views of the moon and planets.

❌ Don't buy it if: You need a massive aperture for observing deep space targets or you want a more helpful system for locating targets.

Check out our other guides to the best telescopes, binoculars, cameras, star projectors, drones, lego and much more.

Join our Space Forums to keep talking space on the latest missions, night sky and more! And if you have a news tip, correction or comment, let us know at: community@space.com.

Harry joined Space.com in December 2024 as an e-commerce staff writer covering cameras, optics, and skywatching content. Based in the UK, Harry graduated in 2019 with a Bachelor's degree in American Literature with Creative Writing from the University of East Anglia. A keen photographer, Harry has strong experience with astrophotography and has captured celestial objects with a range of cameras. As a lifelong skywatcher, Harry remembers watching the Perseid meteor shower every summer in his hometown and being amazed by the wonders of the night sky.

Instagram

Read Entire Article

From Twitter

Comments