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APM Professional Telescopes

1m F/8 Ritchey Chrétien with dual Nasmyth Foci, Cape Town (South Africa)

Another large telescope for the South African Astronomical Observatory (SAAO). An 1m F/8 Alt-Az mounted Ritchey Chrétien for robotic use. It has dual Nasmyth Foci. The main telescopes used for research are located at the SAAO observing station (32°22.795’S 20°48,657’E) near Sutherland in the Northern Cape, a 4-hour drive from Cape Town.

Astronomy is our job

Observatory Telescopes

Big prime focus telescopes for private or public observatories including installation and full service.

Robotic / Remote

Robotic instruments for automatic imaging or telescopes for remote observation.

UVEX Spectrograph

Uvex Spectrograph

The UVEX is a “crossed” Czerny-Turner spectroscope optimized for wavelengths from near UV (<350nm) to near IR (1µm).

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Diffraction Limited CCD Kameras

Aluma CCD 695 a

Our most popular camera, the SBIG Aluma AC4040 is a large format Scientific CMOS camera, featuring a 16.8 megapixel sensor with 9 micron pixels. The camera is compatible with the StarChaser SC-4 Guider and optional AO-X Adaptive Optics accessories.

Diffraction Limited Overview

Astroshell Dome 4.25 m

CLAMSHELL DOMES provide an unparalleled 360/180 degree field of view for an absolutely breathtaking nighttime experience. When this observatory dome opens, you are truly among the stars!

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Product enquiries

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Please make your enquiries about the products you require here. We will contact you as soon as possible with a customised quote.

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ASA Direct Drive Technology

No gears NO belts. Precise closed loop control.

In professional astronomy direct drive technology has been used for some years now. We developed our own direct drive controller and motor system. No gears or belts are needed, there is no transmission no periodic error or backlash.

On the picture on the right you can see a completely, in-house CAD- and CNC-manufactured rotor of a direct drive motor for a telescope.

ASA DDM Mounts: No gears NO belts. Precise closed loop control.

Direct drive means

Fast acceleration – necessary for satellite tracking
very stable and stiff
precise pointing and tracking
longer life expectancies because there is no wear & tear (since no moving parts)
low to no-sound operation
low power consumption

Increased efficiency:

The power is not wasted in friction (from the belt, chain, etc., and especially, gearboxes).

Reduced noise:

Being a simpler device, a direct-drive mechanism has fewer parts which could vibrate, and the overall noise emission of the system is usually lower.

Longer lifetime:

Having fewer moving parts also means having fewer parts prone to failure

Faster and precise positioning:

High torque and low inertia allows faster positioning with permanent magnet synchronous servo drives.

Drive stiffness:

Mechanical backlash, hysteresis and elasticity is removed by avoiding the use of gearboxes

High torque at low rpm:

All ASA mounts have high precision absolute encoders on all axes.

APM Professional Telescopes

1m F/8 Ritchey Chrétien with dual Nasmyth Foci, Cape Town (South Africa)

Another large telescope for the South African Astronomical Observatory (SAAO). An 1m F/8 Alt-Az mounted Ritchey Chrétien for robotic use. It has dual Nasmyth Foci. The main telescopes used for research are located at the SAAO observing station (32°22.795’S 20°48,657’E) near Sutherland in the Northern Cape, a 4-hour drive from Cape Town.