The  16" f/8 Ritchey Chretien Astrograph is a dream telescope for astrophotography. The scope is perfect for observatories. The TS 16" f/8 Ritchey Chretien Truss Tube Astrograph is a true RC telescope and will give you spectacular photo results also with large format camera sensors. The telescope is perfect for small observatories and will be carried from mounts in the EQ8 class.

The OTA comes with carbon trusses having a thermal expansion of almost zero. The OTA weight is 42kg and it has a Losmandy style dovetail rail on both sides. Lightweight yet strong carbon fibre truss tubes have low thermal expansion characteristics. Shifts in focus due to temperature changes are minimized because of this design. The trusses are also designed to flex equally, keeping the optics in collimation. The 16" f/8 RC Astrograph illuminates a max. field diameter of approx. 70mm. Without corrector, 35mm are possible. In the latter configuration, you have a pure mirror system without any lenses. You don´t need an IR cut filter and can use the full spectrum with a suitable CCD camera.

The  RC has a generous back focus allowing to attach many accessories like off-axis guiders, filterwheels and much more. The distance from the 2" connection of the focuser to the focus point is 306mm. To reach the perfect focus position, we suggest the GSRCV1172 and GSRCV1175 extension rings. The position of the rings is between focuser and tube backside. So you always have a good position of the draw tube.

Lightweight yet strong carbon fibre truss tubes have low thermal expansion characteristics. Shifts in focus due to temperature changes are minimized because of this design. The trusses are also designed to flex equally, keeping the optics in collimation.

The 3" Monorail focuser is a further development of the Crayford design. The load is not carried by four (often underdimensioned) ball bearings, but on a stainless steel track on the base, thus preventing tilting and bending even under high loads. It is countered by a big knurled screw that centers the inner tube exactly to the rail. The load is distributed evenly across the rail´s surface.

The hyperbolic primary and hyperbolic secondary are made from low expansion fused quartz, and finished with a scratch-resistant highly reflective 99 % dielectric coating for great contrast. The primary mirror is fixed in place in a metal mirror cell, and the secondary resides in a metal housing that can be collimated. The secondary mirror has a center mark for easy and accurate collimation. The RC telescopes has three small cooling fans in the rear cell that help create an ambient temperature within your telescope for more stable viewing and less fluctuation in focus. The fans are powered by an external battery pack. This battery holder accepts 8 AA batteries (sold separately).

Characteristics:

• Hyperbolic primary and secondary mirror for a large fully illuminated field of view
• Carbon truss tube with 2 Losmandy Level dovetail bars
• Large corrected flat field without need for additional correctors
• 99% dielectric high-reflectivity coating on main and secondary mirror for an even brighter image
• Significantly shorter cooling down time through open construction and active primary mirror ventilation
• Long back focus for correctors, reducers and also binoviewers

Delivery:

• 16" f/8 RC Astrograph with Truss Tube
• High-quality 3" MONORAIL focuser with 1:10 reduction and 2" / 1¼" adapters.
• Rear tube ventilation
• Dovetails Losmandy style on both tube sides