Built with a large aperture and long focal length, the Celestron 7" Maksutov-Cassegrain Optical Tube Assembly is a powerful astronomical tool that remains manageable and portable. The Maksutov design exchanges the conventional front corrector plate of a Schmidt with a convex meniscus lens, resulting in a smaller secondary mirror that limits obstruction and increases contrast while eliminating the need for periodic collimation. This modified optical path results in a slower focal ratio and narrower field of view versus a similar Schmidt, but the optical benefits, when coupled with the larger aperture and StarBright XLT coating system, make this an ideal scope for making detailed solar, lunar, and planetary observations, while being able to resolve deep-sky objects like stars, clusters, galaxies, and nebulae.