Altair Hypercam 174M PRO MONO astro camera air cooled Sony sensor D=13.4 mm

Altair Hypercam 174M PRO MONO astro camera air cooled Sony sensor D=13.4 mm
The Altair Hypercam 174M with active air cooling is equally well suited for deep-sky photography and planetary photography.
♦ SONY Exmor IMX174 mono CMOS sensor - 2.3 MPixel

♦ Sensor size: 1/1.2", diagonal 13.4 mm, 1920x1200 pixels

♦ Pixel size: 5.86 µm x 5.86 µm

♦ Approx. 128 fps at maximum resolution (8-bit mode)

♦ Lens mount: T2 thread, CS mount and 1.25" mount with filter thread

♦ Cooling via fan - more stable operation and less noise without dew problems, still advantages to uncooled DSLR camera because heat is actively dissipated

♦ Equipped with USB 3.0 interface - but also runs with USB 2.0

♦ Autoguider with ST4 interface

♦ Power supply via USB

♦ With the purchase of this camera you receive a one-year user license for the program SharpCap PRO

 
Altair Hypercam IMX174M - USB3.0 Astro Camera with Active Air Cooling
The active air cooling removes the generated heat and improves the noise performance. However, icing problems or increased power consumption are not an issue. The power supply simply works via USB.

This camera features the coveted Sony IMX174 CMOS SW sensor with Pregius Global Shutter, extremely low readout noise, and 2.3 megapixels of resolution. The sensor is especially popular for solar and high-resolution planetary photography at long focal lengths, where high frame rates and wide dynamic range are required to bring out maximum detail during post-processing.

One year license for SharpCap PRO for free!

Includes ultra-accurate polar alignment guide, optimization wizard for CMOS exposure times for deep-sky objects, livestacking for EAA/video astronomy, live capture for dark frames and flats. Simply download the latest SharpCap, connect your camera, register it when the display pops up, and confirm your free license.


Preferred uses for the Hypercam IMX174:
The camera is an all-rounder. Actually it was developed for the photography of objects in the solar system (sun, moon, planets) but the fast Sony sensor with the large 5.86 µm pixels makes the camera also attractive for telescopes with somewhat weaker focal ratio between f/6 and f/10, if deep sky photography is to be done with it. Especially compact objects like globular clusters or planetary nebulae can be captured well with the camera.

In summary, the most important features are:

♦ Large 1/1.2" sensor (diagonal 13.4 mm).
♦ 78 % quantum yield
♦ Global shutter avoids "rolling shutter effect".
♦ No fixed pattern noise (unlike other CMOS cameras with global shutter)
♦ Low readout noise, about 6 e- (electrons)
♦ Full-well capacity (saturation capacity) approx. 32,000 electrons (e-)
♦ High dynamic range of 73 dB

Video astronomy and deep-sky long-duration imaging.
Although the Hypercam IMX174 is considered the best tool for solar photography at high focal lengths, it is capable of long exposures. It will give very good results in deep-sky photography and video astronomy (or EAA) with the live-stacking capabilities of AltairCapture and SharpCap. (Firecapture is also supported, now in beta release). All-sky time-lapse capture and video are fully supported, and the camera can also be used with a CS lens to target meteors and auroras.

Speed and reliability in one camera:
USB 3.0 and on-board memory buffering result in much faster transfer speeds than the USB2.0 GPCAM camera series. The USB3.0 specification is pushed to the limit, but the stable range is not left. Buffering almost completely eliminates frame loss and corrupted video files, both a problem with USB cameras, allowing for consistently faster frame rates, even on weaker notebooks. The fact that video sequences are recorded more consistently and stably is especially desirable in scientific applications.

Even though this is a USB3.0 camera, it is fully compatible with USB2.0. in case a longer cable is needed and slower speed can be accepted, for example in deep sky observations or live stacking video astronomy. In 64-bit mode, Windows 7 to 10 are widely supported.

Quality software and drivers:
Altair Astro has spent a great deal of time developing the comprehensive but intuitive AltairCapture software, which can be downloaded from Altair Astro Customer Support. This program is a stable 64-bit application for Windows and provides complete camera control. AltairCapture controls many settings automatically and supports all major file formats for astrophotography and scientific imaging. The popular PHD Guiding, SharpCap and Firecapture programs are natively supported, and ASCOM drivers can be downloaded from Altair Astro Customer Support. Driver updates are also available there as they become available. Installation is very easy and, unlike cheaper cameras, you also don't have to waste time tweaking .DLL files just to get the camera to work as expected.

Autoguiding:
The camera has an ST4 autoguider port and can work with mounts from all major manufacturers that use the ST4 format. The sensitivity of the IMX174 is more than adequate for autoguiding.

Cooling via fan:
The Hypercam is cooled with an internal, low-vibration fan. It can be turned on or off via AltairCapture and SharpCap, but you can also adjust the speed with these programs. Cool air is drawn in through the ventilation slots on the side of the case, past a large internal heat sink. This is directly connected to the sensor, much like a computer CPU. The air flowing freely through the housing cools not only the sensor, but all internal electronic components. Cooling is especially desirable during long exposures to reduce thermal noise. Some camera housings become uncomfortably warm during a sun photography session and the sensor can reach 60 or even 70 °C (140 or 158 °F). This can cause the electronics to become prone to failure and unreliable. The Hypercam is designed for steady, reliable sun photography using a sun filter or Altair sun wedge (Herschel wedge). If the fan is running, the Hypercam's housing will always remain cool.

File formats:
Under AltairCapture and SharpCap, video can be saved as uncompressed AVI and SER files, and images in all common image formats such as JPG, PNG, TIFF, BMP, and FITS (deep sky images). Bit depth can be 8 bits or 12 bits, the latter being preferred for deep-sky to require fewer individual exposures or to increase the intensity range.

Long exposure up to 1000 seconds
An important new feature is the trigger mode, useful especially for exposure times over 5 seconds. With most cameras, you have to wait until the end of an exposure in video mode before the camera will accept an abort of the exposure, for example because of clouds, an airplane in the picture or a change of the exposure parameters. In trigger mode, you can stop the camera immediately, make adjustments (or wait for the problem to disappear), and then continue the sequence of shots. Another feature of hypercams is the frame buffer, which stabilizes the transmission at high frame rates (fewer dropped frames) and increases compatibility with a wider range of computers. The transfer rate becomes more consistent with both USB2.0 and USB3.0 connections.

Hardware requirements for Windows PC:

CPU: Intel Core2 2.8 GHz or higher
Memory: 2 GB or more
USB interface: USB2.0 or USB3.0 high-speed port
Screen: 17" or larger
Software purchase: Online download with saving to hard drive
Sensor type: SONY Exmor IMX174 CMOS SW sensor
Sensor size: 1/1.2", diagonal 13.4 mm
Exposure time range video mode: 0.025 ms (0.000025 s) / 5000 ms (5 s)
Exposure time range photo mode: 0.025 ms (0.000025 s) / 1000 s (16.66 min)
Bit resolution: 8 bit & 12 bit, switchable
Pixel size: 5.86 µm x 5.86 µm
Resolution: 1920x1200 pixels
Recording method: Single frame and video
Region Of Interest (ROI) Support: Yes
Approximate maximum frame rates (8-bit mode): 1920x1200 - 128 fps, 640x480 - 286-300+ fps (ROI mode), 320x240 - 514 fps (ROI mode)
Maximum frame rates in 12-bit mode: About 50% of 8-bit values
Gain: 1016 mV
Dynamic range: 73 dB
Readout noise: 6 e-
Shutter: electronic global shutter
Power consumption: 0.905 W (standby), 1.68 W (operation without fan), 2.525 W (operation with fan)
Maximum operating temperature: 50 °C
Minimum operating temperature: -10 °C
Maximum relative humidity: 80
Power supply: 5 V DC (via USB cable)
Cooling: Powerful cooling system with heatsink and fan
Case length: 80 mm
Housing diameter: OD 65 mm
Weight: 320 g (net)
Entry window (removable): clear, anti-reflective protective glass, transmission 350-1050 nm
Thread on camera: M42x0.75 (T2) thread
CS mount lens compatibility: CS mount lenses with male thread and 12.5 mm backfocus requirement
Adapter for astro filters: included, 1.25" female thread
Distance sensor surface to flat part of CS mount adapter: 12.5 mm
Distance sensor surface to flat part of 1.25"-/T2-Astroadapter: 37 mm
♦ Camera housing with built-in protective glass