Mintron MTV-23S85HC-EX-R monochrome 1/3" chip, Deep-sky Mintron

£280.00
(£243.47 ex. VAT)
IN STOCK

Mintron frame-integrating video cameras.

Free Nose Piece and BNC to Phono Adapter with all Mintrons.

The new Mintron cameras differ from previous models in two essential ways:

1: They are only about half the size (length) and are thus more convenient for attaching to the scope and balancing the system.

2: They can now integrate up to 256 frames whereas the previous models could integrate up to 128 frames. This produces brighter images on maximum integration.

As before, the cameras output a continuous video stream that is updated at a rate determined by the level of frame-integration. So the displayed image is updated about every 5 seconds when the camera is set to maximum frame-integration. An on-screen display is used to set up the cameras via buttons on the back of the camera.

Using an appropriate capture card, AVI movie files can be captured at a low frame-rate and Registax can be used to produce an image from the data. The low-cost AstroVideo software from COAA can be used to capture frames at predetermined time intervals and the captured frames can be summed on the fly into 32bit FITS files, or incorporated into an AVI file for further processing in Registax or AstroVideo.

The video stream output by the camera can be displayed in real-time on a TV screen or video monitor screen and can be simultaneously recorded to video-tape or DVD. Recordings thus made can be enjoyed in the future as a way of viewing your imaging data, or they can be played back into a video capture card as previously mentioned for the synthesis of a still image.

With frame-integration set to high values, the astronomer can view deep-sky objects in real time far brighter than he/she will ever see them in the eyepiece. It is the equivalent of adding many inches to the aperture of your telescope.
With the frame-integration turned off, or low, the Mintrons can be used for viewing and imaging the Moon and planets.
There is no more pleasing way of sharing the 'eyepiece' than looking together at the real-time images on a portable TV screen, or directly on the TV in your living room via a long video lead from your scope outside