Celestron App Reveals Astronomical Potential

Amateur astronomy app and add-on reach for the stars.

Torrance, CA (January 10, 2011) – Celestron, a leading designer andmanufacturer of telescopes, binoculars, spotting scopes, microscopes, weatherstations, GPS devices and related accessories, recently released the spectacularnew SkyQ™ astronomy app on iTunes and are now complementing it with a SkyQ™ Link Wi-Fi Module for their line of computerized telescopes.

At its essence, SkyQ is a personal, pocket-sized guide to the cosmos that canlocate and identify virtually any object in the night sky. From helping to plan adeep sky viewing session, or charting the landmarks of the lunar landscape, totracking the International Space Station, SkyQ is a star map unlike any other –intuitive, interactive, and eminently engaging.

The remarkable SkyQ database includes thousands of heavenly bodies,including the complete Messier and NGC catalogs, hundreds of breathtakingcelestial images, and hours of entertaining and educational audio covering themost famous sights in the Universe. Plus, there are built-in links for expandedinformation, a Tonight's Sky feature for current viewing suggestions, and even amoon phase calendar.

And now, the innovative new SkyQ Link Module add-on takes the technologybehind SkyQ even further by activating a wireless control feature forcomputerized Celestron telescopes. More than merely enabling remotealignment, the SkyQ Link Module will allow you to automatically slew the scopeto an object with a simple tap on your iPhone/iPad planetarium interface. And aSkyTour feature will even generate a list of the best stars, galaxies, and nebulas tosee based on the user's time and location.

"Celestron has a driving mission to create innovative, superior quality opticalproducts that make astronomy accessible to everyone," says Celestron Presidentand CEO, Joseph A. Lupica, Jr. "And with SkyQ and the SkyQ Link Module wehave once again pushed the boundaries of what is possible to take users on anunforgettable journey."
SkyQ is compatible with all iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch devices using the mostrecent firmware. Compass support requires iPhone 3GS/4 or iPad/iPad 2.Celestron will be offering free, hands on demonstrations of SkyQ and the SkyQLink Module at this year's Consumer Electronics Show.