I decided to set up the 8-inch Edge HD and try getting more than a quick snapshot of something, anything I could get. So I turned it to the globular cluster M-3 and started gathering 60-second subs with a ZWO 1600MC color camera, filter drawer and an Astronomik IR-cut filter. I could not get the OAG I have to focus the guide camera so I borrowed the guide scope from the Astro-Tech refractor instead. At least the ZWO EAF I installed worked perfectly from the start. I used the ZWO Studio sweet to process the subs as Nebulosity will not deal with them properly. Why it won't I have not been able to determine while the subs from my ZWO 533MM are processed without any issues. The light pollution was of course creating gradients requiring the use of GraxPert to remove them. A total of 60 subs were obtained, all of them guided well enough to be usable. As a test image goes, this one turned out well. The image scale is much better than what my 80mm apochromatic refractor offers. I used the .7X reducer made for EdgeHD SCT's because I was using a separate guide scope and so far I have not been able to exceed exposure times of one or two minutes without trailing, possibly due to flexure.
Taras
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Edited by Achernar, 23 March 2025 - 06:35 PM.
