70 August 2014 sky & telescope
Astro Gear- http://www.luntengineering.com Lunt Engineer-
ing USA, a sister company of Lunt Solar
Systems, made its debut at NEAF with a line
of apo refractors with ED objectives ranging
from 80 to 152 mm in aperture. The com-
pany is also the exclusive U.S. dealer of APM
products, including triplet apo refractors and
observatory-class instruments. - http://www.celestron.com Celestron unveiled the
Rowe-Ackermann f/2.2 Schmidt Astrograph,
which is a 21st-century optical update of
Celestron’s Schmidt cameras from the fi lm
era. This 11-inch Rowe-Ackermann astro-
graph boasts a 70-mm-diameter image circle,
and is designed to accommodate DSLR and
CCD cameras alike. - http://www.telescopehercules.com A newcomer
to the U.S. market, Hercules Telescopes
proudly displayed its carbon-fi ber truss-tube
Newtonian astrographs with lightweight cel-
lular primary and secondary mirrors made
from borosilicate glass. The astrographs
feature a secondary mirror that rotates to 4
indexed positions, allowing users to rapidly
switch between photographic and visual
confi gurations. - http://www.inova-ccd.com Another newcomer to
the U.S. market, iNova Technologies demon-
strated its series of modular CCD cameras for
capable autoguiding, high-speed planetary
imaging, and deep-sky imaging. - http://www.sxccd.com Starlight Xpress rolled out
its newest line of CCD cameras. The Trius
series features a built-in USB hub for control-
ling fi lter wheels, focusers, and autoguiders,
as well as an argon-fi lled chamber for the
detectors to reduce the possibility of frost
buildup on the sensor in humid conditions. - http://www.vixenoptics.com A highlight of the
Vixen booth was a new motorized attachment
for the Polarie Star Tracker that slowly pans
your camera during time-lapse recordings. - Saturday’s Solar Star party featured crystal-clear
skies and good seeing so visitors could enjoy some
great views of the Sun through dozens of solar
instruments. CCD pioneer Richard Berry off ers an
attendee a helping hand viewing the solar spectrum
through a Lhires Lite visual spectroscope from
Shelyak Instruments.
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