Officina Stellare RH Veloce RH300 AT F/3 Astrograph OTA

A design which allows fast f/ ratios with high definition over a wide and flat focal plane. Any Veloce offers pinpoint stars all over the field of view.

This is the definitive evolution of our RH 300. This new athermal design is ready to work at any temperature, in the whole word. The whole mechanic system has been redisegned to satisfy every rigid demand for scientific application. It will work always at best wherever you'll place the telescope. We spent a lot of time to create a new reference point in high-end astrographs.

Image below: RH300AT working at -25°, 800x star magnification . Thanks to O' Telescope for this image

Optics has been improved and optimized for large field imaging and surveys, with a better image quality even on small pixels size cameras. Getting closer to perfection we now add an innovative Nano Coating (copyright) with a better transmission over a wider wavelenght bandwidth range, a feature appreciated by professionals, and an amazing resistance to dust and moisture. The RH300 AT has an athermal construction, perfect for guarantee the maximum focus stability at any temperature variation.
We definitively banned out straylights from the RH300 AT.

The RHVeloce is a really unique design, and uses several unique solutions, created by Riccardi and Honders (from this the "RH" in the name). You can now expect an even better large field photographic performance thanks to an innovative light baffles coating will give you a much better reduction of ghosts and scattered light.

The Officina Stellare Veloce RH 300 AT (Riccardi-Honders) Astrograph offers a fast f/3 focal ratio combined with a very high image definition over the whole corrected field. Veloce in Italian means fast, to indicate its primary vocation: to be a great astrograph capable of stunning performance. It has 300mm of clear aperture and a focal length of 900mm.

The Veloce RH 300 AT is an unique astrograph of its kind, thanks to its renewed optical design from the originally Honders design, made from our master optician Massimo Riccardi. The optical scheme uses a full aperture corrector lens and a Mangin primary mirror. Normally in other optical design the front lens has about the same aperture of the primary mirror, but we decided to change rules. The large corrector lens is bigger respect the primary Mangin mirror, to provide a full illumination, avoiding vignetting over the full corrected field. The secondary mirror is separated from the front lens, assembled on a second, temperature comensated, cell.

Near the focus we have 2 elements rear group, to provide the best definition and corrected field. Its position offers no chromatic aberration and a correction over the whole visible spectrum.

Going deep into details, the RH Veloce uses a big full aperture lens that is weakly convergent, and the primary mirror is a "Mangin" mirror (from the name of its French inventor). A Mangin mirror is a mirror that is coated on the back surface, not on the front. The light passes through the glass, is reflected by the coating and then passes again through the glass. For this reason, a Mangin mirror is called a refractive-reflective optical element, and opens exciting possibilities to optical engineers. This complex design includes also a corrector group before the focal plane, achieving performances impossible otherwise, with extraordinary "fast" photographic performances over wide focal planes.

A curiosity about the RH Veloce: since the full aperture (frontal lens) is convergent, the Mangin mirror is smaller than the "nominal" diameter of the scope, while the meniscus itself is bigger than the nominal diameter, to ensure a good illumination over the wide field of view of such scopes. For example, the 200 mm model has a 220 mm meniscus and a 190 mm primary mirror.

For this reason, we talk about "entry pupil" and not "primary mirror diameter", for this instruments.

The RH 300 AT is a real astrograph, designed to be the best companion of advanced amateurs and professional. A curiosity about the Mangin mirror: normally a primary mirror is front alluminated, but this is not our case. A Mangin mirror is back alluminated. This offers more design possibilities to optical designers.

We developed the Veloce RH 300 AT without compromises both on mechanically and optical, using only premium materials (alluminium 6061/7075, titan, bronze, stainless steel, carbon fiber) and CNC machines to work parts from solid blocks. This offers the best precision available in the market today.

When we selected the materials for each Veloce RH 300 AT component, we considered the derivated problems from thermic dilatation and environmental conditions. This makes our RH 300 AT stronger and capable to get the best performance every time it’s used, providing a stable focal plane, fundamental when operating with a so fast focal ratio, thanks to a athermal design.

Researches uses the Veloce RH 300 AT to do surveys , for example, on: variable stars, supernovae, asteroids, space debris, extrasolar planets, amateurs to get stunning deepsky images.

The Veloce RH 300 AT is still transportable with a weight of only 28kg and convenient to use thanks to compact size and great mechanic. 3 fan primary mirror helps to reach the right working temperature.

The corrected and illuminated field is 60mm. If the user needs to compensate the small misalignment in the imaging train, is possible to adjust the planarity of the focal plane with 4 screws located on the back plate.

Collimation is not only stable, but also intuitive: primary mirror cell has 3 points with large diameter preloaded cup springs (one for each point) operated from oversized bolts. What’s the advantage of this new solution? Well, you only have to rotate right/left each bolt to reach the collimation. No more difficult pull/push screws and locking screws as well. Light scattering are avoided with a circular mask placed on mirror borders. Inside light shield we use micro baffles, combined with special opaque dark painting and flocking, nearly to zero the possibilities to get parasite stray light. If some special customizations are needed, we can evaluate them together. Our big staff is ready to find the best solution.

The Veloce RH 300 AT offers an incredible fast f/3 focal ration with a 60mm corrected field, small stars, great transportability, great optics and great mechanics: this is the best professional astrograph to reach new horizons!

Specifications
ENTRY PUPIL DIAMETER:
300 mm (12'')
FOCAL RATIO:
F/3
FOCAL LENGTH:
900 mm (36'')
LINEAR OBSTRUCTION:
55%
FULLY CORRECTED AND ILLUMINATED FIELD:
60 mm
WEIGHT:
28 Kg
BACK FOCUS EXTRACTION:
about 85 mm

Some items that are showing as in stock are in stock at our holding warehouses, not at the shop. To double check the stock levels at the shop, please contact us on 01909774369 or sales@rothervalleyoptics.co.uk.

The delivery times for most items is 1 - 2 days but again, please double check stock levels on important orders before placing an order via the website.

The delivery costs for courier next day are for mainland UK only. If you live in the Scottish Highlands/Islands, Channel Islands or Northern Ireland, then a shipping surchage will apply. please contact us for prices. Smaller items can still go 1st class via Royal Mail.

Please note that if you are wanting to take advantage of our Saturday and Sunday timed services or next day pre 12 or pre 10:30 services, you MUST check that the stock is here at the shop before placing orders. Also, orders using the Saturday and Sunday services must be placed before 1pm the previous working day. Also, please remember to check that the stock is here at the shop before placing orders. If the stock is not at the shop, we won't be able to ship on any of the timed services. 

Please note International customers will need to contact us for a shipping price prior to ordering via the website. We don't ship all items internationally. It is at our discretion what we ship outside of the UK. This all depends on the size and weight of the items. Please get in touch with us for any postage costs. Please note we do NOT ship telescopes or heavy items outside of the UK. This is due to massive postage costs and problems regarding returns.

If you have any questions regarding stock levels or delivery, please get in touch.

Zygo Interferometer Testing For ED Refractor Telescopes!

We are extremely pleased to announce our Zygo Interferometer is now installed and ready for use! Our experienced staff can test refractor lenses up to 120mm aperture and provide a comprehensive 2 page report showing the optical quality and Strehl ratio, plus much more information. We are using the very latest Zygo MX software to provide a more detailed report compared to other standard reports.

The interferometer is essentially a measuring instrument. Within the interferometer is a calibrated laser that is pointed through the optical test surface, then onto a high quality reference sphere, then back through the test subject then to an internal camera which gives us the measurement on the screen. From this, we can adjust the position of the test optic and the reference sphere to obtain a perfectly calibrated system. The more central the laser to the test optic and then on return, the better and more accurate reading and measurement we can take. This takes a lot of adjustment to get the best results from the optical surface. Once the measurement has been taken, we are provided with a series of results that show the optical quality of the surface plus other information. Continue reading for an explanation of the individual values and you can also see a test report that was done on one of our RVO Horizon 60 OTAs. 

We are offering certain telescopes with a Zygo test at an extra cost. Mainly ED doublets and triplets. All available telescopes with a Zygo test report are listed here. Just select Zygo Test Report from the drop down box at the top of the listing and we will test the optics in house and provide a full 2 page report with your scope. This will show you the optical quality of your telescope optics. We can also offer this service on your refractor telescope. Please get in touch for more details about this. 

At Rother Valley Optics, one thing we pride ourselves on is customer service and quality of our equipment. When we test your telescope, we will ensure that it is of the highest quality otherwise, we will reject the scope under our strict quality control and test another model for your peace of mind. One of the main values to look at when testing a refractor is the Strehl ratio. The higher this number, the higher quality lens you have. At Rother Valley Optics, we will guarantee the highest possible Strehl ratio for your telescope.  We will aim to provide 0.95 Strehl or higher on Takahashi, RVO Horizon, William Optics and many more! Generally, the higher the Strehl ratio, the lower the Astigmatism and Coma meaning a better image quality from your instrument. 

Other measurements such as the PV and RMS are important too. With these measurements, the lower the number the better as it shows less curvature on the lens. The flatter an optical lens, the better it will perform. The PV rating (Peak To Valley) is a measurement from the highest point (Peak) to the lowest point (Valley). From this we get the RMS (Root, Mean, Square). This is a similar figure to the PV and measured exactly the same way. The RMS is basically an average height difference from the PV so again, the lower the better. As you can see form the example below, we measured an RMS of just 0.027 wave which is a very good value.

We also measure the Power with our systems which is essentially the error from the reference sphere to the test optic. The reference sphere we use on our system is a very high quality sphere so the closer to zero the Power, the less error between the 2 elements thus ensuring a higher quality optical surface. 

You will also see some more values such as Astigmatism and Coma. Again, these are measured by the interferometer when we take measurements of the optical surface after adjustment. These are values which ideally would be at 0 but as our test optics are all curved lenses, there will always be astigmatism and coma present. The lower the number, the less of these aberations you will effectively see but with most refractors, you can buy field flatteners which will compensate for the coma anyway. The astigmatisms value is explaining the error between the symmetrical curvature of the lens. Basically, no lens will be perfectly symmetrical, the lower the astigmatism, the more symmetrical the lens surface is. 

Once the Zygo test report has been completed, the optical alignment is thoroughly tested and tuned to ensure they are spot on before they leave us. 

All available telescopes are on the website at the link below and ones we've tested already that are available straight away are also listed.

https://www.rothervalleyoptics.co.uk/zygo-tested-refractors.html

Here is an example of the test what we provide. This was a test on one of our Horizon 60 ED OTA's.

For any questions about this amazing new service, please either call 01909774369 or email sales@rothervalleyoptics.co.uk.

Are you interested in this product but would like to speak to someone with some more information? Simply fill in the form below and we will get back to you as soon as we can!

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