ASTAP analysis of ASKAR FRA 300 Pro

[iantaylor2uk]

I recently got an ASKAR FRA 300 Pro telescope, and had the chance to try it out last week on the Orion Nebula. I took 60 thirty second exposures (with gain on ZWO 071 MC Pro camera set to 200, and sensor cooled to 0 deg C) and stacked the best 54 of these frames, along with dark, bias and flat calibration frames, and then processed the stacked image with GraXpert and Nebulosity 4. I was pretty pleased with the final image which can be seen at: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ekx3ibz3QnfTha3xX3PBIaGB36Vh1LLn/view?usp=sharing

Anyhow, I took one of the FITS frames and analysed it with ASTAP - with results as shown below:

It looks pretty good to me: median HFD = 3.4 pixels, tilt is 5%, described by ASTAP as almost none, and off-axis aberration = 0.16 pixels.

Althought the HFD looks low, since the scale is about 3.3" per pixel, it is actually equal to 11.1", which doesn't sound quite as good. 

However, the final image looks good and the stars look round right out to the edges. It is a nice change not to worry about flatteners and spacings etc.

I would think if someone is looking at a WO81GT or a WO71GT, with a 0.8x flattener/reducer, the ASKAR FRA 300 Pro may make a good, and possibly cheaper alternative.