Our astronomical instruments
You will find on this page the description of the astronomical instruments currently available in the Observatory. Most of the instruments were supplied over time from my trusted dealer Artesky.
Newton Artec 250E 10''
This fixed astronomical station on a steel column is equipped with a sophisticated Artec 250E F/4.5 Newtonian telescope featuring an aperture of 250mm (10'') and a focal length of 1,140mm (also taking into account the 1.14x coma corrector). This is a high-quality astrograph, used exclusively for deep sky astronomical photography, that is, very distant objects that emit very weak light. The acquisition system is composed of the ToupTek 571M PRO monochrome cooled camera. The focal length of the optical tube and the APS-C format CMOS sensor with 3.76μm pixels of the camera allow a field of view of 1.18°x0.78° and an image scale of 0.68''/px. Focusing is achieved through the electronic Prodigy Microfocuser 3" . Also included is the ToupTek AFW 7x2" filter wheel equipped with Optolong 2'' RGB and L-PRO broadband filters and Optolong 3nm SHO narrowband filters dedicated mainly to emission nebulae. The 320mm V4 PRO Wanderer Astro flat panel also allows to close the optical tube when not in use preventing dust and small animals from entering the optical tube. The tube and its optical train are mounted on the GM2000 HPS 2 COMBI 10micron robotic german equatorial mount. The robotic mount allows to point and track astronomical objects without the aid of a guiding system thanks to extremely high-precision mechanics and the presence of absolute encoders on both axes. The mount is anchored to a 4mm thick hot-dip galvanized sand-painted (mat black to avoid any reflection) square 20cmx20cmx103cm steel column. Welded onto the column and its base are 4 wings (30cm high and 5mm thick) specially designed to keep vibrations to a minimum. Both lower and upper column plates Two solid plates (base and top) 38cm in diameter and 15mm thick are welded onto the column. An MSGBox V2 is connected to the mount to provide real-time atmospheric pressure values needed to make the necessary corrections for a perfect sky traking. The precision leveling of the telescope is achieved through a stainless steel plate which is fixed to the upper plate of the steel column with a system of four 12mm threaded bars with nut and counter nut. Above this plate is coupled a second stainless steel plate which in turn couples to the black plate supplied with the mount. The column and the 2 upper stailness plates were made by my friend Orazio Venditti nella sua officina meccanica di precisione.
GoTo Dobson Flextube 16''
This telescope is mainly intended for visual observation and planetary imaging. Because although deep sky astrophotography certainly allows access to wonderful details invisible to the human eye, visual observation remains for me the most exciting among amateur astronomical activities ever. Just think that you are observing in "direct view" objects far away in space through the eyepiece therefore consequently you are literally looking "into the past". The instrument is a Skyliner Flextube Dobson F4.4 from Skywatcher, featuring a diameter of 406mm (16'') and a focal length of 1,800mm. The Dobsonian (altazimutal) mount is motorized on both axes and allows for pointing and tracking of objects in the sky. A Skywatcher GPS device provides the Dobsonian's Skyscan system with real-time date and time as well as exact position to simplify setup before use.The system is powered by a RoyPow Power Bank (86wh, 30w ). The telescope is arranged on a stainless steel trolley on rails which allows for easy transport on the dedicated external platform adjacent to the Observatory. Once positioned on the external platform (as shown in the picture), it is possible to fully extend (over 2 m) the sliding tie rods on which the secondary mirror and focuser are mounted, thus making the telescope easily orientable in all directions. The trolley/rail system was designed by me and Antonio Di Folco and built by my friend Orazio Venditti. For visual observation we use following eyepieces : Auriga Serie Super Wide Angle 38mm 70° 2″, Sky Watcher 1.25'' eyepieces with focal lengths of 10mm and 25mm, Celestron Omni 4mm eyepiece and a Celestron X-CEL LX 3X 1.25'' Barlow lens to further increase the focal length and therefore the magnifications. Planetary imaging is possible thanks to the Omegon veLOX 290 C color camera. Looking at the picture you might wonder how can you put your eye on the eyepiece? The answer is a simple and sturdy ladder at the moment. However, in the coming months we will start the a construction of the raised metal platform around the "Dobson platform" to allow easy access to the eyepiece for relaxing observing sessions or planetary imaging.
ALL SKY camera
The ALL SKY camera, on the left in the picture, supplied by Astrottica, is installed on the pole in SE corner of the observatory and allows to observe the sky at 180° / 24 hours a day. It is equipped with a ZWO ASI178MC color camera, 1.25mm F2 fisheye with 185° field provides sharp, contrasting images right to the edge of the field and dome made with UV/IR cut treatment to minimize reflections and avoid overheating the room even during the hottest hours of the day. In the lower part there is the heart of the system with a raspberry5, internal anti-condensation, external humidity and temperature sensor and fan for cooling (automated process). The camera, in addition to allowing visual control of weather conditions, is also useful for calibrating the Cloudwatcher weather station. At night the All Sky camera automatically takes a picture every 60'' allowing to immortalize events such as the Northern Lights visible at our latitudes and meteors. Do you want to take a look now? Click here.
Reflex on the star-tracker
The Observatory is also equipped with a Canon EOS 6d Mark II Reflex with a Full Frame sensor and its original glass. The camera is used with lenses with a "range" of focal lengths that go from 14mm for very wide fields to 300mm for small portions of sky: Samyang f2.8/14mm, Canon EF f/1.8 STM 50 mm, Canon EF f/4-5.6 III 75-300 mm Telephoto Zoom. The camera is supported by the Skywatcher Star Adventurer 2 i PRO PACK star-tracker on which the SIRUI KH-20 ball head is installed. The star-tracker is supported by the stable Artesky 36mm carbon tripod. The star-tracker allows to significantly extend the exposure time, collecting all the necessary light to take wonderful night pictures. This instrument is particularly suitable for pictures of the Moon, landscapes of the Milky Way and large portions of the sky such as entire constellations for example.