telescopes plus

Astrovid 2000s Specs at a Glance

CCD: Sony ICX038DLA 12-inch interline-transfer chip
Pixel size: 8.4 by 9.8 microns
Active image area: 7.95 by 6.45 millimeters
Resolution: 600 horizontal television lines
Electronic shutter: Eight speeds 160 to 110,000 second
Minimum illumination: rated 0.02 lux (0.01 lux acceptable)
Video output: Composite signal 1.0 volt peak-to-peak at 75 ohms
Power requirement: 12 volts DC 10%, 2.4 watts
Lens mount: Standard C thread
Dimensions: 42 by 48 by 95 millimeters (1.6 by 1.9 by 3.7 inches)
Weight: 300 grams (10.6 ounces)
Operating temperature: 20 to +55 Celsius

Delivering 600 lines of horizontal resolution, Astrovid 2000 im-

ages look best on high-resolution monitors, which are available
for less than $150. Standard VHS recorders are typically rated
at about 250 lines of resolution; a better choice is S-VHS or Hi-8
recorders, which are rated at about 400 lines. JVC has a line of
S-VHS models with prices starting at less than $400.

also easily seen. Because of the cameras
extended-red sensitivity, it is ideal for use
with hydrogen-alpha filters.
Video is a great way to watch occulta-
tions of stars by the Moon and asteroids.
Capturing the event with a VCR that
records time signals broadcast by WWV
or another suitable source on the audio
channel allows timing the occultation to
a fraction of a second.
Is Astrovid 2000 right for you? At $595
it is a serious purchase for most ama-
teurs. If your interests in video astrono-
my are only casual and go no further
than the Sun and Moon, then a simple
surveillance camera, or even a home
camcorder, may be a low-cost solution.
If, however, you are interested in serious-
ly pursuing planets or events like occul-
tations, then the durable and trouble-
free Astrovid 2000 should be at the top
of your list.
David Moore is an active amateur living in
Phoenix, Arizona. Sky & Telescope asked him
to write this review because of his extensive
experience with the Astrovid 2000 camera.

A First Look: SBIGs Enhanced ST-7E CCD Camera

T
o paraphrase General Douglas
MacArthur, old astronomical
S&T TEST REPORT
equipment never dies; it just fades
away. Once-favorite telescopes, eyepieces,
cameras, and star
By Dennis di Cicco atlases now gather
dust, replaced by newer ones sporting ad-
vanced features. Nowhere,
however, is this natural
evolution of astronomical
gear more apparent than
in the high-tech world of
electronics. Indeed, since
1989 Ive upgraded desk-
top computers for my
backyard observatory six
times. Two remain in
nightly use, while the
cyber hand-me-downs do
stints with my wife and daughter on their The enhanced-cooling upgrade for the ST-7 and ST-8 cameras requires modification to the cam-
way to the basement shelves. era (center) as well as an additional wall transformer (left) for the thermoelectric coolers (TEC)
Nevertheless, one item of noteworthy second stage and a small water pump (right). When maximum cooling is not needed, the cam-
longevity stands well apart from the elec- era will operate normally without powering the TECs second stage or supplying water flow.

64 August 1999 Sky & Telescope 1999 Sky Publishing Corp. All rights reserved.
tronic flotsam cluttering the observatory ST-7 CCD Camera ST-7E CCD Camera
my ST-7 CCD camera from Santa
Barbara Instrument Group (SBIG). Piles
of Zip disks attest to the thousands of
digital images this workhorse has churned
out since December 1994. Although the
cameras software has undergone multi-
ple revisions, the hardware has stood
firm. That is, until recently. I paid $944 to
have SBIG upgrade my camera with a
new blue-sensitive CCD chip and an im-
proved cooling system. Heres a first look
at the results.

Playing the Blues

The ST-7s Kodak KAF-0400 CCD (and
larger KAF-1600 in the ST-8) have a fine
reputation as astronomical detectors.
While manufacturers guard their sales
figures, an educated guess suggests that
these chips dominate the cameras cur-
rently purchased by amateurs. With small
(9-micron-square) pixels, moderate sen-
sitivity, low readout noise, and low dark
current, these CCDs produce excellent
images when attached to typical backyard
telescopes. But the one feature on every-
ones wish list since the KAF chips first
saw astronomical light has been the de-
sire for increased blue sensitivity.
As with all so-called front-illuminated
CCDs, light passes through a layer of elec-
trically conductive gates on its way to the
silicon substrate at the heart of the KAF
chips. Traditional polysilicon gate material
is increasingly opaque at shorter wave-
lengths and accounts for most of the
CCDs blue blindness. But Kodak recently
developed a highly transparent gate mater-
ial for its KAF chips. As the graph on page
66 reveals, the original chips were relatively
inefficient for wavelengths bluer than 5000
angstroms, and below 4000 angstroms they
could barely muster the light-collecting ef-
ficiency of photographic emulsions. On
the other hand, the new CCDs, which are
popularly know as E chips for the suffix
added to the Kodak part number, continue
strong in the deep blue. Indeed, they are an
ST-7E CCD Camera
CCD camera with enhanced blue sensitivity
Price: $2,950 new
$595 as upgrade
Santa Barbara Instrument Group
1482 East Valley Rd., #33
Santa Barbara, CA 93150
Phone: 805-969-1851
www.sbig.com
The new E chips enhanced blue sensitivity is visually apparent in these back-to-back images
made with the blue filter from a tricolor set and a Meade 16-inch LX200 Schmidt-Cassegrain
telescope fitted with the authors experimental focal reducer yielding f/4.5. Exposure condi-
tions and processing steps were identical for each pair. The spiral galaxy M88 in Coma
Berenices was recorded with 3-minute exposures, while Lyras Ring Nebula, M57, was imaged
with 1 minute exposures. In each case the field is 6 wide with north up.
order of magnitude more efficient than the closest thing Ive yet seen to a free
photographic emulsions at the ultraviolet lunch for amateurs working with CCDs.
wavelength of 3500 angstroms! On the subject of costs, the E-chip op-
While E-chip performance falls short tion for new ST-7s and ST-8s is $300 and
of that possible with expensive back-illu- $900, respectively. Upgrading a current
minated CCDs, it represents a major im- ST-7 to the E chip costs $595, while up-
provement over the ST-7s original KAF- grading to an ST-8 E chip costs $4,800. To
0400. One measure of a CCDs sensitivity help defray the latter expense for current
is the total area under the spectral-re- ST-8 owners, SBIG has established a
sponse curve. As such, the E chip is twice matchmaking service to help these people
as effective at collecting light across the sell their standard chips to ST-7 owners
visual spectrum (4000 to 7000 angstroms) looking to upgrade to the larger CCD (the
as its predecessor. If, however, we look ST-7 and ST-8 cameras are identical ex-
only at wavelengths bluer than 5000 cept for the detectors). Check out SBIGs
angstroms, then the E chip is nearly four Web site for details at www.sbig.com.
times more effective! This is especially I compared the performance of my
significant for those observers interested upgraded ST-7E with a year-old ST-7
in tricolor imaging or photometry with owned by fellow S&T editor Roger Sin-
standard UBVRI filters. nott. The cameras were run with sepa-
Furthermore, except for a modest in- rate computers so that I could make
crease in cost, the enhanced blue sensitivi- back-to-back exposures as fast as I could
ty of the E chip comes with no strings at- switch cameras on the telescope. A typi-
tached. My initial tests agree with Kodaks cal 5-minute white-light (unfiltered) ex-
claims that the E chips have basically the posure with the E chip yielded images of
same readout noise and dark-current solar-type stars that had 212 times more
characteristics as the originals its about signal than those in a corresponding im-

1999 Sky Publishing Corp. All rights reserved. Sky & Telescope August 1999 65

0 First-stage TEC
turned on
Temperature drop (Celsius)
10
Enhanced-Cooling
Package for ST-7
20
Second-stage TEC
turned on
30
Water flow
turned on
40
50
10 20 30 40 50
Time (minutes)
Left: Starting at room temperature, the author tested the ST-7s enhanced-cooling package by
sequentially pushing each of the systems three stages to the maximum level of cooling. A
drop of 47 Celsius from ambient air temperature is possible with the system fully operating.
Right: A comparison of sensitivity of the original and new Kodak CCDs.
age made with the standard CCD.
While the E chip certainly lived up to
my expectations in the sensitivity catego-
ry, there are some caveats worth men-
tioning. Like many amateurs with 10-
inch and larger Schmidt-Cassegrain
telescopes, I do much of my CCD imag-
ing with focal reducers. The popular
0.33 MAXfield focal reducer manufac-
tured by Optec gives somewhat degraded
Advertisement images at blue wavelengths, and the com-
pany recommends that the unit be fitted
with a Kodak Wratten 12 (deep yellow)
filter. This filter blocks light bluer than
about 5000 angstroms and would thus
render the E chips enhanced blue sensi-
tivity moot. Nevertheless, compared to
the standard KAF-0400 chip, the ST-7E
still gives superior performance because
of its higher sensitivity across the rest of
the visual spectrum. The E chips broader
spectral response may also be a problem
for observers working with refractors,
since most lens designs do not give opti-
mum performance over the full range of
wavelengths covered by this CCD.
Another possible issue with the E chip
involves flat-field exposures. Over the
years I have refined a system for making
so-called dome flats using an artificial
light source in the observatory. Because
this light is predominantly red (a low-
wattage incandescent bulb regulated with
a dimmer switch), it creates noticeably
inferior flat exposures with the E chip.
My first-order remedy has been to place
a strong blue filter over the light source,
but I plan to do some additional tweak-
ing in the future, including switching to
a halogen lamp.
The other upgrade now available for
66 August 1999 Sky & Telescope 1999 Sky Publishing Corp. All rights reserved.
80%
Spectral Response of
70%
Kodak KAF-Series CCDs
60%
E chips
Quantum efficiency
50%
40% Standard
chips
30%
20%
10%
0
60 4,000 5,000 6,000 7,000 8,000 9,000 10,000
Wavelength (angstroms)
the ST-7 and ST-8 cameras is an en-
hanced-cooling package for the CCD
($349 with water pump, $299 without).
It consists of a two-stage thermoelectric
cooler (TEC), improved forced-air cool-
ing, and a water-flow system for remov-
ing waste heat from the TEC. The graph
above tells the whole story.
In a nutshell, my tests show the cam-
eras regulated TEC first stage can lower
the CCDs temperature by more than 30
Celsius from that of the ambient air. The
unregulated second stage delivers 8 C
more cooling, while adding water flow
provides another 8. SBIG cautions against
using ice water in the system (which
would deliver even greater cooling pow-
er) because of possible damage caused by
condensation forming on the cameras in-
ternal electronics. Since the KAF chips
have inherently low dark current, only
observers working in exceptionally hot cli-
mates will likely resort to using the water-
flow system. For example, with an air tem-
perature of 30 C (86 Fahrenheit), the
two-stage TEC can maintain the CCD at
10 C, at which point each pixel generates
an acceptably low dark current of less than
0.5 electron per second. Why did SBIG
even bother with a water-flow system? Be-
cause the cost was a trivial addition when
the modifications needed for upgrading to
the two-stage TEC were made.
The enhanced blue sensitivity of the
new E chips and the additional cooling
power now available for the ST-7 and
ST-8 will certainly keep these popular
CCD cameras at the forefront of amateur
equipment in the years to come. I only
wish the same could be said for the com-
puters used to run them.