Australian Sky & Telescope — July 2017

70 AUSTRALIAN SKY & TELESCOPE July 2017

AS&T TEST REPORT

of computerised alt-azimuth tracking

doesn’t allow for long exposures.

Nevertheless, I could expose for 30

seconds in many areas of the sky.

Stacking 20 of these exposures into

a single image resulted in respectable

photos of bright objects, including a

globular cluster and the Ring Nebula.

The modular nature of the Evolution

makes the scope particularly attractive

for users who might consider upgrading

the mount in the future, whether by

buying the optional equatorial wedge,

or by replacing the mount for deep sky

astrophotography at a later date.

Battery life

How long will the built-in battery run

the Evolution? Celestron says it will

allow up to 10 hours of operation, but

the exact figure will depend on how

much Go To slewing you do, as well as

the outside temperature. The Evolution

naturally draws considerably more

current when slewing at high speed than

SLeft: Aligning the Evolution using the SkyPortal app begins by touching the telescope icon, then choosing ‘Connect and Align’ to proceed. Middle:

The app will then instruct you to centre a bright star through the telescope’s finder, and then through the eyepiece using the on-screen buttons at the

side of the screen. Right: After centring the third object, tap ‘Enter,’ and the alignment process is complete.

SAs supplied, the NexStar Evolution 9.25

telescope in proper balance can only point

about 70° up before its star diagonal hits the

drive base. Adding a tube weight to the rear

cell can alleviate the issue.

simply tracking the stars. Despite doing

a lot of slews, I never ran the battery

down during several 4-hour observing

sessions. If you do get a low-battery

warning, operation can continue with

the AC charger plugged in or with an

optional DC power source.

What I liked most about the Evolution

9.25 wasn’t just the wireless control, or

the built-in battery, or the great optics.

It was the combination of all of these

things that resulted in a telescope that

is enjoyable and convenient to use. Not

having to lug a big battery and rustle up

a hand control meant I was willing to

take the Evolution into the backyard for

short observing sessions. What Celestron

has in the Evolution 9.25 is a powerful,

user-friendly, high-tech telescope that

encourages its owner to get out under

the stars.

„ROD MOLLISE has used more

Schmidt-Cassegrain telescopes than

you can shake a Go To controller at.