Begin their microscopic education here, with this 40-640X student microscope from Levenhuk®. Featuring an adjustable eyepiece, variable white LED illuminator, and adjustable iris. Comes with a cover; (5) blank and (5) prepared slides; pipette; brine shrimp, yeast, sea salt and glue samples; forceps; a microtome; 58-page user guide; and a 23-page manual. Includes (2) “AA” batteries and a lifetime warranty through the manufacturer.

Frees up your hands while you examine whatever you’re examining. The approx 2-1/2" dia acrylic lens is 2X (ignore the surplussing 2.5X on box) and is mounted in a black fold-out frame with a pair of white LEDs underneath the lens for your examining pleasure. Measures 4-1/4” long and includes 2 replaceable AG7 batteries.

From Levenhuk®, this Rainbow Plus student biological microscope has a 16X eyepiece; magnification of 64X, 160X and 640X; dual adjustable LED illuminators; adjustable iris; and coarse focus. Can be powered by (3) “ AA”s or the included adapter so you can do microscopic viewing in the field or at home. Includes the K50 experiment kit with specimens, forceps, slides, pipette, brine shrimp and more, along with an overview booklet and user’s manual. Metal body with glass optics. Has a lifetime warranty through the mfr.

This excellent, ultra-light, refractor telescope kit from Celestron™ and the National Park Service Foundation comes with a custom backpack so you can tote it to where you can actually see stars. Offers super-fast, no-tool set-up, and weighs just 16 oz. Has a 5X24 finder scope, a collapsible tripod that extends from 16” to 48”, a 1.25” moon filter, 8mm and 20mm eyepieces, a 3X Barlow lens, a 45-degree erecting prism for land viewing (so you can spy on the bad guys!), a compass and a tiny white LED flashlight with (3) button-cell batteries.

Mini scientists need appropriately sized lab equipment, and, what a coincidence, we have a Mini Duo Scope from My First Lab™ with your kid's name on it. It's two microscopes in one, and won Creative Child Magazine's 2015 Product of the Year Award. Has 40X, 100X and 400X magnification, top and bottom LED illumination, and includes more than (40) pieces and accessories, including brine shrimp eggs and yeast specimens. Ages 8 and up, and requires (2) AA batteries. Today, the Mini Duo. Tomorrow, the Large Hadron? Hey, it could happen.

Best done with this computerized StarNavigator 90mm Maksutov-Cassegrain telescope from Meade® Instruments. Enjoy the stunningly sharp images while you let the telescope take you on a guided tour of 30,000+ celestial objects. Includes the AudioStar hand controller, which not only guides the scope but also tells you, through its built-in speaker, all about what you’re viewing. Features a 1250mm focal length (F13.8), 90mm (3.5”) aperture, single-speed internal focuser and an internal flip-mirror for celestrial/terrestial viewing or photography. Includes (2) Plossl eyepieces, 26mm (48x) and 9mm (139X), full-sized aluminum tripod, red-dot finder and vixen-style dovetail. Works on (8) “AA” batteries or external power source, not included. Additional shipping charges may be required.

A Sherlock Holmes-type magnifying glass is good, but this is better. It frees your hands and throws light on the subject! This 120-volt magnifying desk lamp has a white or black (our choice) heavy 7-3/8" x 5-1/2" x 2" base with a power switch, standard lamp cord, and 11" gooseneck ending in a 5-1/4" dia shade. Under the shade is a circular fluorescent bulb and a 3-3/8" dia lens with a flip-back cover. The box says the lens is 5X, we think it's closer to 2X. Either way, it's a major improvement if you need help to examine scientific specimens, to inspect stamps or jewelry, or just to read. And we won't even talk about how your nail care is going to improve after you see your cuticles under this thing!

Our newest Celestron® compound (biological) microscope is even better than the last one we offered. This one comes with a 3.5" color LCD viewing screen that rotates 180° for easy sharing in a lab, classroom or at home. It has an upgraded 5-megapixel camera that can record 625 hi-res photos or 20 minutes of 30fps video to the included 1GB SD card. The 4X, 10X and 40X objectives provide 40X, 100X and 400X optical magnifications, and the digital zoom raises it up to 1600X. On-screen, button controlled settings allow you to easily adjust exposure, image effects, a digital measuring reticle and other visual tweaks. Top and bottom independently adjustable LED illumination and a built-in 6 position filter wheel allow complete light adjustability. Also included are an AC adapter with 3 extra European adapters for those who travel, (5) prepared slides, USB and video out cables and a rigid lined 15" x 7" x 8.5" OA carrying case with a suitcase-handle and shoulder strap, for storage, field work or classroom visits. Carries a 2-year manufacturer's warranty.

A recipe from the Elizabethan Cable Food Network? No, just a couple of samples from our collection of (48) specimens preserved for your classroom examination, with (4) well-labeled specimens on each of (12) standard-size slides. You get animal, plant, insect, textile, and pollen and spore specimens, including camel hair, camellia leaf, plant louse, fruit fly, fern spore, bee wing, nylon, wool, lily pollen, bamboo shoot, goldfish scale, and three dozen more, including our homonymic favorite, hare hair. Grades three and up.

Up close and personal. From My First Lab™, these prepared microscope slides are Biology 101 in a box. Fungus slides (“Fun Guys”) have bread mold, penicillum, lichens, mushroom and yeast samples. The guts group has human stomach, heart and blood, plus brain and kidney cells from a small mammal. For ages nine and up.

One wiseacre assumed we meant any package leaving our shipping room that once had a glass object in it. That is a malicious rumor. . . Ground glass is thin plate glass, the surface of which has been physically ground or acid-etched to create a grainy, grayish, opaque surface. Use it to produce an image from a lens or lens system. Even a simple magnifier, held between the ground glass and, say, a window, will produce an image of the window scene on the ground glass. Ground glass has another magical property: it is opaque to any object viewed at a distance, but not if that object is in direct contact with the glass surface. A necessary element of your optical education. #2728 (square) is 2"sq x 1/32" thick. #2610 (rectangular) is 3-1/2" x 4-3/8" x 1/16" thick.

This 96pp, full-color, heavily illustrated book, "The Usborne Internet-Linked Book of Astronomy & Space," is written with a quick-link to the publisher's website, where there are updated links to internet sites that correspond to specific pages of the text. Sections include the solar system, stars, constellations, telescopes, photography and a plethora of astronomical facts and lists. From Usborne Publishing.

From Celestron©, who rules the skies! These are our best-selling binoculars! The very nice pair of 15 X 70 binoculars have multi-coated optics to reduce refraction and a weather-resistant rubber housing, and are a relatively light 5.2 lbs. They come with a carrying case, chamois and neckstrap, plus a handle/adapter for a standard 1/4" - 20 mount for a tripod. A lifetime warranty is available from Celestron©

This 20-200X digital microscope from Celestron® has a built-in 5-megapixel digital camera that will take still photos and video of any scientist's discoveries. It's easy to use--perfect for looking at stamps, bugs, coins, rocks, circuit boards, plants and tons of other tiny things. Good for professionals but completely appropriate for curious kids, too. Has a manual trigger on the USB power cord, plus an 8-LED illuminator and a 6" adjustable stand on a 6-5/8" x 4-3/4" base. Comes with Celestron® Micro CapturePro software for Windows XP/Vista/7/8 and Mac OSX 10.6-10.7. USB 2.0.

From Levenhuk®, this nice student microscope has an adjustable Barlow lens and objectives at 40, 100 and 400X. Has an adjustable iris and course focus. Comes  with a blow-molded storage case, (5) blank and (5) prepared slides; pipette; brine shrimp, yeast, sea salt and glue samples; forceps; a microtome; 58-page overview booklet; and 27-page manual. Has metal housing with glass optics, and a lifetime guarantee. Dual adjustable LED illuminator is powered by (3) included “AA” batteries or a 5VDC adapter.

You get a half-dozen of these 2-1/2" dia x 3/32" thick back-surface mirror glass discs. Call it the crafter pack. What you do with them is a reflection on you, or perhaps a reflection of you. Made in the USA.

Capture stars and amoebas on your smartphone with the Orion® SteadyPix™, which allows you to take phone pics through a telescope, binocular, spotting scope, and some microscopes. The rubber-coated clamp fits phones from 2-1/8” to 3-3/4” wide, and the twist-lock clamp fits devices with eyepieces between 1” and 1-3/4”. For best results, set the phone timer so you don’t have to touch it and cause vibrations.

New, international-standard, full-sized illuminated student microscope, professional quality at a student price. Now comes with a variable intensity 5.5V LED cool illumination system with a built-in rechargeable battery and wall transformer for use or charging. It has turret-mounted achromatic objectives, fine and coarse rack-and-pinion focus and substage diaphragm light control, and a metal frame. It is built to international DIN standards and accepts all DIN eyepieces and objectives. With extras like focus stop for slide protection, adjustable tilt and (2) spring clips, it is a fine instrument for most home science work and projects in the field. If you are looking for more magnification purchase the spring loaded 100X (oil immersion) objective lenses. Brings your scopes total magnification up to 1000X magnification. Our (36) piece assorted specimen set comes on (12) slides. All are great additions.