Orion StarBlast Astro Review:

The Orion StarBlast Astro is a real reflecting telescope with the kind of quality. The Orion StarBlast Astro is a point-and-view telescope that swivels smoothly on its sturdy, low-profile base. Orion StarBlast Astro comes pre-assembled and ready for action right out of the box! Just carry it outdoors by its built-in handle, place it on the ground or on a picnic bench, and let the fun begin!

There are plenty of telescopes available for adults, but very few good instruments sized for a child just getting interested in astronomy. Most “kid’s scopes” are little more than toys, and not very well made ones at that. There are a few telescopes that rise high above all of the small, junk telescopes. One of the most popular is the Orion StarBlast Astro from Orion Telescopes & Binoculars–but don’t let the “kid’s scope” designation fool you. Anyone who likes panning across the Milky Way or viewing broad-field targets like the Pleiades and the Andromeda Galaxy will really it.

The Orion StarBlast Astro, a compact 4.5-inch (113-mm) f/4 Newtonian reflector, comes ready to use, with a tabletop altitude-azimuth mount, 6- and 17-mm Explorer II 1.25-inch eyepieces, an EZ-Finder II unity finder for aiming, dust caps, a collimation cap, a copy of The Sky CD-ROM planetarium program, and an instruction manual.

Like Orion’s larger Dobsonian-mounted telescopes, the StarBlast mount is made from laminate-covered chipboard (just like your kitchen countertop). This may sound low-tech, but it works amazingly well. Simple Teflon-on-laminate altitude and azimuth bearings produce smooth motions in both directions. Tension on the altitude bearing can be easily adjusted by loosening or tightening a large knob, which presses against a ball-bearing collar sandwiched between two washers. The Orion StarBlast Astro’s tube can also be easily rotated in its hinged, felt-lined metal clamp just by loosening a large thumbscrew. Rotating the tube can make viewing through the eyepiece easier, depending on the angle at which the telescope is aimed.

Since the Orion StarBlast Astro stands only 25 inches tall, it makes a great “grab-and-go” telescope for impromptu observation sessions. Just be sure to bring along something to get the scope up off the ground as well, since it’s much too short to use alone. I prefer to use a patio table, which lets me sit while viewing.

Unlike some beginner telescopes, which come with poorly written instructions, the Orion owner’s manual gives detailed information about setting up, maintaining, and using the telescope. The instrument itself pulls out of the box almost completely set up from the factory. Just attach the base of the EZ Finder II unity finder to the matching mounting screws that protrude out of the metal telescope tube, and the Orion StarBlast Astro is ready to go.

The telescope’s mirrors are very good indeed. Showpiece objects like the Orion Nebula, the Pleiades, Double Cluster, and the Lagoon Nebula are all sharp and clear through the 17-mm Explorer II eyepiece (26x). Although the 6-mm Explorer II (75x) could resolve a few individual stars around the edges of the Hercules Globular Cluster (M13), the eyepiece’s inherently short eye relief, which forces you to get very close to see the image, made viewing uncomfortable. I would have preferred if Orion charged a little more and included their 10-mm Explorer II eyepiece and a 2x Barlow lens. The 10-mm eyepiece would produce 45x alone and 90x with the Barlow. Not only would that combination magnify images a little more, it would also be easier to view through than the 6-mm eyepiece.

The Orion StarBlast Astro is a great telescope for young astronomers. Its compact size and light weight makes it an ideal telescope for ages 9 and above. And when I say “above,” I mean the rest of us, since kids from 9 to 90 will really enjoy this little telescope. Although it is not as suitable for viewing the planets as Orion’s longer focal length Orion StarBlast Astro XT4.5, I have spent many enjoyable hours with Orion StarBlast Astro just going back and forth between deep-sky objects and scanning the skies.

Pros:

* Compact design
* Excellent optics
* Sturdy mount with smooth motions

Cons:

* Small size makes a table or other support necessary for viewing
* Wide field not suitable for viewing the planets
* Supplied 6-mm eyepiece not comfortable for viewing
Orion StarBlast Astro User Said:

Orion StarBlast Astro is my first telescope. I was looking for an inexpensive one, but I didn’t want a cheap toy. I researched every telescope I could find in the under $250 category and bought this one based on the reviews on Amazon, which appear to have given this telescope the highest rating in its price range. I’m very satisfied with it. No complaints.

The Orion StarBlast Astro telescope appears to be well built and has impressive features for the price, most notably the parabolic mirror. It’s small enough to be easily portable and is easily set up on a table or milk crate. All you have to do is attach the finder scope and it is ready to use right out of the box. Mine needed no adjustments. The red dot finder scope makes aiming the telescope simple.

One of the more difficult aspects of shopping for a telescope was trying to determine just what an image would look like in actual use. Having never used one before, specifications and comparisons were of little use to me, so I’ll try to describe what you can expect to see with the Orion StarBlast Astro: The smaller magnification eyepiece shows the moon in sharp detail, and you can clearly see craters and surface features. When you look at the moon with a telescope, its features seem three-dimensional compared to any photographs you may be familiar with. With the larger magnification eyepiece, the moon’s image more than fills the field of view, and you can see individual surface details. However, this larger magnification is more suitable for viewing more distant objects. For example, while looking at Orion, I clearly saw what appeared to be a cloud surrounding one of the stars. With a little research I determined I found the Great Orion Nebula. Cool! This is why I bought a telescope - to see things I would never have known about looking around with a pair of binoculars.

—– By Glenn G. Bruckno

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