The Celestron EdgeHD telescope: Corrected image - sharp right up to the edges!
EdgeHD is the name for Celestron’s “aplanatic Schmidt Cassegrain telescope”. After over 50 years of success, Celestron has revolutionised the classic Schmidt Cassegrain telescope.
EdgeHD telescopes ( "Edge High Definition") are true astrographs. This optical system delivers distortion-free, sharp images right to the edge of the visual field. This means that not only the coma outwith the optical axis is corrected, as is the case in currently available “coma-free” lens designs, but also field curvature.
Lots of optical systems are advertised as “astrographs”. As desired, they display stars with pin-sharp clarity, but along a curved image plane. Photographing this using a camera results in a noticeable image field curvature which rises towards the edge of the image field, resulting in increasing star size and aberations with larger sensors. The stars at the edge expand into small rings (“doughnuts”). As well as the coma, the Celestron Edge HD telescopes correct field curvature right up to the edge of the image. This also significantly improves resolution and magnitude limits in comparison to rival optical systems.
The XLT multi-coating helps to give the EdgeHD scopes a significant performance boost compared to similar systems on the market.
The Edge HD telescopes’ mechanisms and lens tube have been fully overhauled:
- mirror clamps hold the primary mirror securely in any desired position without putting pressure on the optical elements. The image is stable, even during long exposure times.
- Air vents behind the primary mirror provide fast air exchange so that the lens cools amazingly quickly. Thanks to an air filter system, dust is prevented from entering the lens tube.
Included in delivery with the telescope:
- Celestron EdgeHD SC 1400 OTA with 356mm aperture and 3910mm focal length
- 2" star diagonal
- 2" to 1.25" eyepiece adapter
- 2", Axiom LX 23mm eyepiece
- 9x50 finder scope
- dovetail mounting rail
In addition to being fully computerized with a database of over 40,000 celestial objects, the New CGE Pro German Equatorial mount has been completely redesign to offer numerous design advantages for the Astrophotographer:
- Increased Payload Capacity
Able to hold our 14" SCT telescope more securely as well as larger optical tubes up to a maximum payload of 90lbs. - All-Star Polar Alignment
Choose any bright alignment star for a software assisted alignment of the mounts polar axis that will have you ready for imaging even if you can't see the North Star. - No-Tool polar alignment
Larger hand knobs for both Altitude and Azimuth adjustments. - Meridian Tracking
Extended tracking past the Meridian of up to 20 degrees of uninterrupted imaging through the best part of the sky. - Faster slew speed
Improved gearing and motors provide faster slew speeds than ever before with a maximum slew rate of over 5°/per second. - Power Management
Redesigned electronics deliver constant regulated power to the motors making them capable of driving the telescope even when not perfectly balanced. This allows the CGE Pro to have the payload capacity of that of much larger (and expensive) mounts without sacrificing smooth tracking motion and pointing accuracy across the entire sky. - Accuracy
The hallmark of any telescope mount is its ability to find, center and track celestial objects with the highest degree of accuracy. - Pointing
With just a standard hand control alignment, CGE Pro has the ability to center a star in your eyepiece or ccd chip to within 5 arc minutes. Using NexStar's advanced pointing features such as Calibration Stars, Sync and Precise GoTo, further improves the pointing accuracy to as low as 1 arc minute in the desired region of the sky. - Tracking
With larger .75" pitch diameter worm, precision made cut-steel gears in gearboxes, and seven slot skewed armature motors the CGE Pro delivers typical tracking performance of +-9 arc seconds, which can be further reduced with the mounts permanent periodic error correction (PPEC). - Mount Modeling
Celestron's NexStar hand control has built-in mount modeling features essential for accurately placing small objects on the center of your ccd chip or high power eyepiece. Aligning on multiple Calibration Stars creates a mathematical model of the opto-mechanical inaccuracies inherent in all equatorial mounts. This model is stored within the hand control and is used to compensate for these inaccuracies thus improving your pointing precision each time you slew your telescope. - Portability
Set up and transportation of the CGE Pro telescopes is made easy by separating the mount into smaller, easy-to-carry components. Unlike fork arm mounted telescopes, the CGE's optical tubes can be quickly removed from their mounts making even the CGE Pro1400 easily assembled in minutes. - Stability
Recognized for superior stability, German Equatorial mounts place the center of gravity directly over the tripod legs and can be easily polar aligned without the use of an optional equatorial wedge. This proven design reduces the "tuning fork" vibration that can be associated with undersized fork mounts. An improved Super HD Tripod supports the CGE Pro mount. This fully extendable tripod is made from the finest 2.75" stainless steel and can be raised to a height of 55". The tripod uses a dual leg support for maximum rigidity with an upper leg brace to provide an outward preload and a lower leg brace providing inward tension. - Balance
CGE Pro equatorial mounts can easily be balanced in both axes. Simply sliding the counterweight for Right Ascension and moving the optical tube along its dovetail mounting for Declination accomplish balancing the weight of camera equipment and other visual accessories. This means that no additional weight needs to be added to balance the telescope when additional accessories are added. - Clearance
CGE Pro mounts support their tubes at a single contact point allowing the tube to move freely around its polar axis without making contact with the telescope's mount. Software features allow the user to set the mounts slew limits to guaranty safe motion. This is particularly useful when adding photographic and CCD instruments that extend from the rear of the telescopes.
All CGE mounted telescopes are compatible with Celestron's CN-16 GPS accessory. Combine the GPS and built-in real time clock and these telescopes will keep track and remember their exact location and time without having to enter the information into the hand control.
