"Adaptive Optics" - any experience and any good?

[Ags]

Looked at the Starlight Express one - 3 updates per second on M57 in their example. Apparently that is 50x slower than actual seeing jitter. Just do lucky imaging with 333 ms frames and get the same benefit in software for free?

[Xilman]

On 19/05/2020 at 10:44, Petergoodhew said:

I'v been using the SX AO for a few months.  As Olly says, I use it to keep the second scope on my dual rig perfectly aligned and to compensate for differential flexure.  At 1200m focal length, and with minor differences between the scopes (tube, focuser, camera, and adapters are all slightly different) - and for 30 minute exposures - the flexure is enough to cause problems. The AO fixes it perfectly. I wouldn't recommend it as an adaptive optics solution (SX call it Active Optics, not Adaptive Optics). Yes the device is fast, but as Sara says, when I tried it my Lodestar X2 just wasn't able to pick up a bright enough star to refresh at the rate of the AO unit.  Maybe with a faster scope, shorter focal lent=gth, and wider field of view it should be better - but that's just a hunch, not experience on my part. Installing it, and getting it running with PHD2 was very easy.  If the drift exceeds to capacity of the AO then PHD2 sends a pulse to the mount to nudge a little to recentre the AO unit.  It's worth noting that the AO cannot function without a Lodestar - so this does get expensive as it's not just the cost of the AO unit.

 

Peter

Hello Peter,

I also have an SX AO unit which I am trying to get working properly. Right now the AO, MAXI-FW, Lodestar2  fed from a pickup on the FW and a PRIUS 814 are all on the main scope.

Could you explain, please, the arrangement you have where (if I understand you correctly) you image on one scope and have the AO on the other? In other words, which bits go where and in what order?

Thanks,

Paul