Meade LX200-ACF + GPS

Meade LX 200 ACF with UHTC
The Meade LX 200 ACF with UHTCis the most used research telescope in the world and it now comes with the most advanced optical system. The Meade LX200-ACF telescope brings Advanced Coma-Free (ACF) optics within reach of aspiring astronomers. Nearly every observatory reflector in the world has an aplanatic (coma-free) optical system such as the Ritchey-Chrétien (RC), including NASA's Hubble Space Telescope. Now you can possess optics similar to the optics used by the professionals! The Meade  LX200-ACF telescope has all the features that have been proven in the field. This includes GPS, Primary Mirror Lock, Zero Image-Shift Microfocuser, Oversized Primary Mirror, SmartDrive, SmartMount, AutoStar® II and many more. Also, the LX200-ACF comes with observatory-class optics and a Meade 5000 Series 26mm 5-Element Plössl eyepiece.

The advanced one in Advanced Coma-Free.
A traditional Ritchey-Chrétien (RC) is a type of reflector that delivers a coma-free, flat field of view via hyperbolic primary and secondary mirrors. RC telescopes (from different manufacturers) are found in most of the world's top observatories, and also in NASA's Hubble Space Telescope. Because the mirrors in these telescopes have always been very costly to make, few amateur astronomers could enjoy them. Fortunately, Meade engineers developed a radical new Advanced Coma Free design which is a combination of a hyperbolic secondary mirror with a corrector lens and spherical-primary-mirror combination that performs as one hyperbolic element. This ACF design yields a coma-free, flat field of view that works like rival traditional RC telescopes but it is much more inexpensive. The design gets rid of diffraction spikes and considerably improves astigmatism. Both are part and parcel of traditional ACF design. A review of Meade's LX200-ACF Advanced Coma Free telescope in Sky and Telescope magazine said: "It performs like a true Ritchey-Chrétien. The difference between the off-axis images (compared to a Schmidt-Cassegrain) was dramatic at least. "

f/10 Advanced Coma-Free Optics
This new design by Meade is based on a classic RC design, and it has the same precision coma-free images and a flatter field of view that observing astrophotographers and most professional observatories have come to expect from classic Ritchey-Chrétien optics. Meade's Advanced Coma-Free system also reduces the astigmatism and it eliminates diffraction peaks occurring in classical RCs. The LX200-ACF is the perfect platform for the demanding researcher. The telescopes are available with apertures of 8, 10, 12 and 16 inches.

What other properties does the LX-200 have:

• Meade Ultra-High Transmission Coatings (UHTC):UHTC increases the total light transmission and brightness by almost 20% over Meade's standard coatings. Space objects like stars, galaxies and nebulae will appear considerably brighter.
• Zero Image-Shift Microfocuser: Lets you maintain precise image focus with no image shift.
• Primary Mirror Lock:Locks the mirror in position for long-exposure astrophotography.
• Oversized Primary Mirror:Diameters are larger than the specified aperture (e.g. the diameter of the 8 "LX200-ACF is actually 8.25"). This additional ¼ "gives a wider, fully illuminated field of view.
• Smart Mount:Continuously refines pointing accuracy every time an object is centered and updated. Compatible with most equatorial and altazimuth mounts.
• Smart Drive:Offers permanent periodic error correction (PPEC) on both axes by learning from one or more training programs periods. Thereby guiding corrections are minimized during long-exposure photography. PPEC is available on both axes and functions in both polar and the altazimuth mode.
• Sony GPS Receiver Sensor:Automatically enters the exact time, date and geographical location helping to quickly and precisely align the telescope.
• AutoAlign :Telescopes with Meade's new AutoAlign are delivered pre-aligned. These are smart scopes that know the night sky right out of the box. AutoAlign chooses two alignment stars and place them directly into your viewfinder. Then you just need to centre to fine-tune your alignment, and you have the marvels of the universe at your fingertips.
• AutoStar® II controller:Has "Hot Keys" for quick access to a database of 145,000 celestial objects. AutoStar II can be updated with the latest software upgrades, guided tours and temporary objects such as comets. Free on Meade.com.
• Coma Killer:What is coma? It is not a kind of astronomical state of unconsciousness. It's an optical aberration. More precisely, coma is a distortion occurring when the image of a star cannot be focused on one point but takes the form of a comet.
• High-Precision Pointing:For ultra-precise pointing during astrophotography. The HPP High-Precision Pointing function puts objects in the middle of the field of view. This enables you to quickly and easily locate deep sky objects in the farthest reaches of what this telescope can.

Different versions of the Meade LX 200:

• 8 inches = 203 mm (including mount & tripod)
• 8 inches = 203 mm (without mount & without stand)
• 10 inch = 254 mm (including mount & tripod)
• 10 inch = 254 mm (without mount & without stand)
• 12 inch = 305 mm (including mount & tripod)
• 12 inch = 305 mm (without mount & without stand)
• 14 inch = 355 mm (including mount & tripod)
• 16 inch = 406 mm (including mount & tripod)
• 16 inch = 406 mm (including mounting & column)
• 16 inch = 406 mm (including mount & without stand)

Some pictures taken with the LX 200



M83

M20 - The Trifid Nebula

M13