Starwave ASCENT 80 ED Triplet APO Travel Refractor

Suitable for keen visual astronomers, or the astrophotographer who wants a portable scope for imaging, the triplet ED lens system includes a premium FCD100 Synthetic Fluorite glass ED glass element, with equivalent Abbe number to FPL53, but a lower price. High transmission multi-coatings are used on all air-to-glass surfaces for high contrast.

This results in APO level colour correction, and a refractor which gives great performance per millimetre of aperture.

IMAGING UPDATE The Planostar M63 0.8x reducer is available giving a focal ratio of 4.8 for wide field imaging, ideal for astro cameras like the Hypercam 183C, 269C, and 26C series. A special 15mm optical length adaptor is provided, setting the spacing from the rear flange of the flattener to the sensor at a standard 55mm. The rear thread is M48 male. Read here for information about how to connect your camera to the Planostar reducer.
 
The Dual Speed 1:10 ratio micro-focuser gives a good balance between lifting power and stability for large eyepieces or cameras. A smooth brass rack and pinion gear with slanted teeth to reduce backlash to negligible levels. The focuser end-cap has a 2" push-fit adaptor with 3x stainless steel thumbscrews for easy tightening. A 1.25-2" push-fit adaptor with brass insert is included. 
 
The tube is made from light weight aluminium alloy with CNC machined components including lightweight CNC tube rings. A tough matte pearl powder coated tube and hard-anodised fittings give durability and classic looks, as well as fast cool-down compared to telescopes with insulating carbon fibre tubes. An aluminium push-fit lens cap and 1.75" Vixen style dovetail bar completes the package.
 
Visual observing with the Starwave ASCENT 80ED Triplet APO: Detail is easily visible on the larger planets such as Jupiter, with both the four principle moons and main cloud belts easily visible at high power. Saturn's rings and thousands of lunar craters, as well as volcanic plains and mountain ranges are all easily visible. Add a high quality Altair Imaging-Ready Solar Wedge or Daystar Quark Hydrogen Alpha solar eyepiece, and you have the perfect small aperture solar observing system. The 480mm focal length is ideal for the Daystar Quark and it's built-in Barlow lens, enabling viewing of solar prominences and their development over a few hours. This scope will easily reveal detail and structure within sunspots with white light solar filters. Viewing bright, extended deep-sky objects or star-clouds with a low power eyepiece is very rewarding, with the inherent contrast of a high quality refractor giving objects that visual "pop" against a dark background - something just not possible with reflecting telescopes.
 
Finder scopes and guide scopes: For visual observation, the optional Altair 60mm RACI (Right angle Correct Image) finder-scope or the Starwave RDF (Red Dot Finder) both have a quick release dovetail bracket which fits the focuser holes provided, and is left on the focuser, so you can keep it aligned for quick setup. Astrophotographers can choose the dedicated MG60 or MG32 finder scopes with a popular guide camera such as Altair GPCAM which also enables precise polar alignment with the included SharpCap PRO software.
 
Grab 'n go portability: The Starwave ASCENT 80 ED Triplet APO is  a great "grab 'n go" portable telescope-kit for visual observing or astro-photography because it's about the same size as a large telephoto camera lens. It will however have better resolution and Bokeh, because it doesn't have aperture diaphragm blades and is used fully open at full aperture (most camera lenses cannot be used for astro imaging at less than F4.8 without distortion and colour aberration). The lens produces purer colour correction than most APO photographic lenses costing several times the price, especially zoom lenses, because the optics are optimised for only one focal length.
 
Mounting the Starwave 80 ED Triplet to an astro-mount: Most GOTO mounts which support 1.75" "Vixen/Synta-format " dovetails will fit the included dovetail bar directly. Due to it's light weight, you can use quite portable mounts such as the Skywatcher EQ5 series or iOptron CEM or HEM series. Talk to us about your requirements and we'll recommend the right mount for you.
 
Starwave ASCENT 80 ED Triplet APO Specifications & Features:

• Optical tube with air-spaced 80mm F6 Triplet ED lens system (480mm focal length)
• FCD100 Synthetic Fluorite glass element and mating elements housed in a precision adjustable CNC machined lens cell with temperature compensation interleaving. FCD100 has virtually the same performance as FPL53 but lesser cost.
• Super-high transmission multi-coatings on all air to glass surfaces.
• Resolving Power (Dawes Limit) 1.45 arc seconds
• Visual Limiting Magnitude 12.2 maximum
• Weight approx. 3kg, optical tube length with dew-shield retracted, 39cm.
• Precision CNC machined components and tube made from light, tough aluminium alloy with matte powder coat and hard anodising.
• Retractable lens shade / dew shield.
• Rack 'n Pinion" Geared dual speed focuser with 1:10 micro-focuser with a camera rotator on the back enabling easy framing.
• 2" to 1.25" reducer with brass compression ring and 3x Thumbscrews included.
• Front aluminium push-fit lens cap, rear plastic 1.25" dust plug.
• Standard 1.75" dovetail bar with stainless steel M6 cap-head screws included.
• Tube Rings with M6 threaded holes compatible with Altair and most other mounting dovetail plates and bars. 

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