A lot of people ask what equipment I use, so I figured I'd dedicate a post to it. Here's my current setup:
My narrow field setup:
Telescope: SVBony SV503 102ED — a 102mm f/7 apochromatic refractor. The ED (extra-low dispersion) glass allows this doublet refractor to approach the performance of more expensive 3 element instruments.
Camera: ZWO ASI533MC Pro — a dedicated one-inch square-sensor astronomy camera with a built-in cooling system. The cooling reduces thermal noise during long exposures, which makes a huge difference when imaging faint nebulae and galaxies.
Mount: ZWO AM5 — a harmonic drive equatorial mount. Unlike traditional gear-driven mounts, the harmonic drive is virtually backlash-free and incredibly precise, allowing for accurate tracking of celestial objects over long imaging sessions.
My wide field setup:
Telescope: SVBony SV555 Petzval Astrograph
Camera: ZWO ASI2600MC Pro — a larger format camera than the ASI533MC Pro.
Mount: ZWO AM3 harmonic drive equatorial mount. Unlike traditional gear-driven mounts, the harmonic drive is virtually backlash-free and incredibly precise, allowing for accurate tracking of celestial objects over long imaging sessions.
All of this is set up in my front yard here on Cape Cod. Clear skies don't come every night, but when they do I make the most of them!
