Today we would like to present a unique item that astrophotographer Andreas Zirke built entirely himself.

The triple telescope consists of three Takahashi Epsilon 130 astrographs. The mount was milled from aluminum, designed and built by Andreas Zirke. Three Atik One 9.0 mono cameras complete the custom-built setup. Everything is controlled via three laptops (one laptop per telescope and camera).



``` Components:

3 x Takahashi Epsilon 130 F 3.3

Hyperbolic flat-field astrograph with corrector
Optical tube D = 130 mm, f = 430 mm, f/3.3
Perfect imaging down to 44 mm image diameter (5.9° field of view)
Secondary mirror D 63 mm
Tube diameter 166 mm, length 460 mm, weight 4.9 kg
Tube rim diameter (e.g., for solar filters): 190 mm
Connection thread: Wide eyepiece connection 1.25"

3 x ATIK One 9.0 Mono CCD camera

Camera specifications:
Sensor: CCD - Sony ICX814
Horizontal resolution: 3380 pixels
Vertical resolution: 2704 pixels
Pixel size: 3.69 µM x 3.69 µM
ADC: 16-bit
Readout Noise: 5e- (typical value)
Interface: USB 2.0 High Speed, with embedded hub
Power Supply: 12V DC 2A
Maximum Exposure Time: Unlimited
Shortest Exposure Time: 1/1000 s
Cooling: Thermoelectric set point with max ΔT=-38°C
Weight: Approx. 900 g

Mount: Skywatcher EQ8-R Pro Synscan GoTo mount for telescopes up to 50 kg