Introducing PlaneWave’s revolutionary DeltaRho 350 f/3 telescope. The DeltaRho 350 is designed for unsurpassed wide-field imaging and ease of use in the field. Since the primary mirror is fixed in place collimation is quickly achieved by adjusting the tip and tilt of the secondary mirror. With the DeltaRho 350, your astrophotography experience will be second to none!
Capturing the most stunning astrophotographs possible is something our team is passionate about. From design to manufacture, our goal with the DeltaRho 350 was centered around creating a game-changing wide-field telescope. The DeltaRho 350 is a Cassegrain optical design which means the imaging train is secured at the back of the telescope and does not block the light path compared to prime focus designs, which severely limit the user’s ability to operate with filter wheels or large cameras.
No Off-Axis Coma or Astigmatism
The DeltaRho 350 is an incredible breakthrough in telescope technology and produces no off-axis coma and no off-axis astigmatism. Operating at f/3 and 1050 mm focal length, the DeltaRho is a wide-field telescope that is sure to revolutionize your astrophotography!
Zero Field Curvature
Additionally, the DeltaRho 350 provides a perfectly flat field so your astrophotographs will have stunning clarity from corner to corner of the image without field curvature degrading the photos. Offering the simplicity of single-mirror collimation, the stray light control of advanced baffles, the structural performance created through finite element analysis (FEA), and decades of telescope design experience, the DeltaRho 350 is an exceptional diffraction-limited telescope. DeltaRho 350 users can experience pinpoint stars edge-to-edge and a 170 x 170 arcminute field of view when using large 16803/4040 size camera sensors. This field of view is nearly 3 times as large as our CDK14! When equipment fades into the background and simply performs, the astrophotography experience becomes even more fun and rewarding!
The Series-5 Focuser
To maximize the DeltaRho 350’s performance, we have created a slimmer focuser and rotator solution, called Series-5. The Series-5 focuser (6011001) and rotator (6021001) are stackable, which means more flexibility to the imaging train. Users can install either the standalone focuser or the stacked focuser and rotator for greater imaging capability. The DeltaRho 350 offers 5.60″ of back focus from the mounting plate on the rear of the OTA. Thickness of the standalone focuser is 1.675” and the rotator is 1.105″. Combined, the Series-5 focuser, and rotator occupy 2.78” of back focus. With the Series-5 focuser and rotator installed and racked out halfway, the DeltaRho 350 has a remaining back focus of 2.495”.
In order to account for image plane tilt, we have designed multiple new tip-tilt adapters. Users of the DeltaRho 350 will require the Series-5 to SecureFit tip-tilt adapter (6001006) that is 0.545″ thick. This will allow users to adapter their cameras with our standard SecureFit interface.
More about Delta Rho
The DeltaRho is a widefield astrograph designed for astrophotography, research surveys, and space domain awareness applications where large fields of view are required. With 1,050mm of focal length, the DeltaRho 350 operates at f/3 and yields a corrected 60mm image circle, perfect for pinpoint stars on full-frame sensors. Since the DeltaRho 350 optical design is Cassegrain with four corrective lenses permanently aligned within the backplate, users can install large imaging trains without blocking the light path of the primary mirror.
This telescope is designed not only for remote observatories under pristine dark skies but also for astrophotographers looking to push the boundary with short exposures from light-polluted suburban skies. The signal-to-noise ratio that the DeltaRho 350 provides is impeccable. PlaneWave captured the North American Nebula data at the link below by using only 5 x 1-minute sub-exposures per LRGB filter, from suburban Adrian, Michigan:
Specifications
Aperture350mm (13.75″)
Back Focus147.5 mm
Dawes Limit0.33 arcseconds
Focal Length1050mm
Focal Ratiof/3
Highest Magnification700x
Light Gathering Power2500x
Optical DesignCassegrain
Tube Diameter457 mm/9.37 inches
Tube Length584mm
Tube Weight46 lb
