How Good is the Astro Tech 115EDT for Astrophotography? - Reviewing my First 15 Images

[@JamesAdams-ev6fc]

Wonderful images. It's encouraging that the AstroTech performed so well. Thanks for the information!

[@AstroDNAObservatory]

My pleasure! Thank you for the comment!

[@KevinRudd-w8s]

Nice summary of the last four months David. You have picked a good variety of targets to image which seems to show off the versatility of this scope very well, but I am surprised you haven't added a globular cluster as well. I've been using the Altair version of that scope over the last three months and have been happy with the results, I captured M13 last week and it was the best image I have taken of that class of object. I look forward to your extended review of the Stellarvue 90 and comparison with the AT115.

[@AstroDNAObservatory]

Love globs... My last image of M13 was in November 2023 with the C8. I really should have captured one as a test. I'll be sure to do so when I redeploy late in the year. Cheers!

[@larrychristianson2244]

I'm sure you'll love your Stellarvue, although I think the comparison with the AT115 is a bit like oranges and tangerines (or something like that). My Stellarvue 127D is great optically and mechanically, but I'm finding my eyes are the limiting factor. I'm debating if I want to jump into AP or EAA, it's a whole new level of expense and expertise to develop.

[@AstroDNAObservatory]

"Oranges and tangerines" - I like that. It is not quite as extreme as Apples and Oranges... They way I see - we have two refractor telescopes, both triplets, both with quality low dispersion properties. The indisputable differences are first in aperture, then speed (focal ratio), and of course the resulting focal length. Then there is the actual build quality and the precision in figuring the optics... I'll be focusing on how well these scopes perform on the same targets, under similar conditions, and the same image train - given those differences. In the end, it will be about what I can comfortably produce with the telescope and if it "feels good"! Cheers - thank you for the comment - Good to hear from you Larry...

[@larrychristianson2244]

@@AstroDNAObservatory It will be interesting and educational to see. A good experiment.

[@jackbernstein3029]

David, I am having some issues with flats on my 115EDT. Can I send you some images for your feedback? Thanks!

[@AstroDNAObservatory]

Hi, @jackbernstein3029. Shoot me a message with your issues and tell me how are you taking your flats... I use a light panel in combination with the NINA flat wizard. This seems to work better than sky flats (clear blue sky). Shoot for a histogram with a spike about 1/3 to 1/2 from far left. I usually hit around 26000 ADU. Grab about 20 flats for each filter. You also have to make sure and pre-process them properly. I use SIRIL for all my calibration work. I published a tutorial on Manual Calibration with Siril which covers how to properly create Flat masters (and other pre-processing steps) with Siril. Happy to help if I can!

[@AmatureAstronomer]

Nice looking optical tube. Budget class? Depends on one's budget.

[@AstroDNAObservatory]

Relative to triplet APO's in the mid-focal length range, it is "budget" - having said that, it is not an inexpensive instrument... I would encourage folks to look for used samples which can be found in classifieds at savings of perhaps 25%. Thanks for the comment - point much appreciated!

[@MountainFisher]

I'm a retired engineer and after refiguring my 150mm mirror I basically rebuilt my whole scope except the tube. 1/12th wave and .98 Strehl mirror was about as close to perfect as one can get, but I lucked out that it came out so well. Guys in my club use it for AP, but I did the Pleiades where the gas wisps were just visible, but not so much it hides stars. Just my preference, but it only took 90 seconds to get what I wanted under dark sky.

[@AstroDNAObservatory]

Got to love the high desert in NM. I will be making a trip out there in the fall... Best!