Second imaging run with my new Askar 130PHQ APO Quad refractor. Disclaimer: I AM NOT an influencer; I bought this OTA with my hard-earned cash (aka debt).
The tight focus of a 'Frac and an EAF cube caught me off guard with how small HFRs could be compared to a SCT.
I use an iPad to remote control my AP laptop. I pixel-peeped my laptop by accident two hours into a six-hour run and realized the focus was soft. I paused the run and after 30 minutes of tweaking got the HFR down to, for me an astounding, 2.1 - the smallest stars I have ever seen from my light polluted backyard. I tossed the previous two hours and started the sequence over. As an AP'er's luck would have it, after about two hours the SoDak wind came in and ended my night.
The uploaded image - a stack of 55 out of 56 two-minute Ha subs captured - was processed in PixInsight WBPP, ran through ABE four times (3x Function Degree 1 then 1x FD 2), EZ Denoised, EZ Soft Stretched, a very slight soft S-curved in Levels, and then saved as a 16-bit TIF. I did not use BXT only because I did not want to alter star sizes for those curious about the capability of the 130PHQ.
Thanks for the support from those who commented/Liked the First light with this 'Frac.
I am very happy with this OTA. It is solid, has a high-quality finish, flat to the edges and focuses tack sharp. Any distortion in the corners is the windy guiding through the final third of the run. The weight of the 130PHQ is 24 pounds - it squashes my EQ6-R Pro and makes for very sensitive balance and tracking (0.8 - 1.1 Total RMS) with 12 pounds of optics/focuser/FW/rotator but I am making do. A new CEM70G and tri-pier is on its way.
Clear Skies & God Bless to all!
Comments