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• Advanced Coma-Free catadioptric designed to emulate the optical performance of a Ritchey-Chrétien telescope: 12” aperture catadioptric (3050mm focal length f/10). Fully multicoated UHTC (Ultra High Transmission Coatings) group optics for 15% higher light transmission. Oversized primary mirror for brighter field edge illumination. Aluminum tube construction with glare-stop baffling and mirror lock. 2” electric focuser with 1.25” eyepiece adapter. Guaranteed diffraction-limited performance with a flatter field edge-to-edge than other commercially-available catadioptric optical systems. For more details, click on the “optics” icon above.

• Finderscope: 8 x 50mm straight-through achromatic design, with a 5° field of view and 12mm eye relief.

• Star diagonal: 2” mirror with UHTC multicoatings and 1.25” eyepiece adapter.

• Eyepiece: 1.25” 26mm Series 5000 5-element Plössl (117x). The eyepiece field of view is 0.51° (as wide as the full Moon), for expansive lunar and deep space views.

This Telescope’s Mount . . .

• Fork mount/drive system: Drive base and dual fork arms of die-cast aluminum. The mount includes servo-controlled 12VDC slewing and tracking motors in both altitude and azimuth. The motors are powered by eight user-supplied C-cell batteries that fit into the fork arms. Optional adapters (with 25’ cords) are available to power the scope from 110-120 volt 60 Hz AC household current in your back yard to conserve battery life, or to power the telescope from your car’s cigarette lighter plug or a rechargeable battery for extended use in the field. For more details, click on the “mount” icon above.

• GPS/Autostar computer: A 16-channel GPS (global positioning satellite) receiver is built into the top of the telescope’s left fork arm. The GPS receiver, in conjunction with a built-in electronic compass and Autostar computer control, automatically aligns the scope on the sky so that the Autostar computer can locate for you the more than 145,000 stars and objects in its memory.
      In addition to quickly and automatically moving the scope to any desired object (with an accuracy typically in the two arc minute range) and flawlessly tracking the object while you observe at your leisure, the Autostar computer provides numerous visual, tracking, and photographic tools and functions to make your observing easier and more enjoyable.
      Unique “Smart Mount” technology can constantly improve the already high pointing accuracy of the telescope with every object that you center precisely and synchronize on during a night’s observing. For more details on these features, click on the “computer” icon above.

• Adjustable height tripod: The 50 lb. giant field tripod adjusts from a height of 40” to 50” and damps vibrations quickly. It has 3” diameter steel legs, with a center leg brace for rigidity. Six 1.25” diameter holes in the leg brace can hold eyepieces while observing. A single threaded rod with a large hand-tighten knob simultaneously holds the scope firmly on the tripod and locks the legs rigidly in the most stable position.

• AutoStar Software Suite: This standard equipment software package is designed to integrate the telescope with your Windows-based PC or laptop computer for an enhanced range of performance features. The AutoStar Software Suite includes a planetarium program with a database of 19,000,000 stars and deep space objects for display on your computer screen. It includes all the standard planetarium program features for stand-alone use when nights are cloudy. In addition, it contains programs for controlling the telescope from your laptop or PC. For more details on the many capabilities and features of the AutoStar Software Suite, click on the “software” icon above.

What can you see through an 12” LX200-ACF with Advanced Coma-Free UHTC optics?

    With the 15% higher light transmission of UHTC optics and two and a quarter times the light gathering capacity of an 8” scope (45% more than a 10”) for a visual limiting magnitude of approximately 15, this scope’s 12” coma-free flat-field optics give the Universe an astonishing depth, dimension, and grandeur at dark sky sites. The Orion Nebula grows to twice the area you see through an 8” scope, with subtle color variations becoming visible. Jupiter becomes an interlocking web of fine structural detail, with shadowy detail often visible on the surface of its largest moon, Ganymede. Faint galaxies and planetary nebulas, barely visible blurs in smaller scopes, often reveal structure during visual observing that rivals that in long exposure observatory photos. Densely packed globular clusters are usually resolved to their core. Open clusters show stars that are sharp and point-like all the way across the field thanks to the flat field of its unique Advanced Coma-Free optics. With a photographic limiting magnitude of 17.5, all of it can be photographed in superlative detail (and with surprisingly short exposure times) by adding a few inexpensive accessories.
    The altazimuth drive of the LX200-ACF is more than accurate enough for piggyback, lunar, and planetary 35mm photos and much CCD imaging. However, field rotation causes stars at the corners of an image to streak during exposures longer than five minutes if a field derotator or an equatorial wedge isn’t used to align the scope on the celestial pole. So, if you plan on doing deep space photography, you’ll need to add either an optional #1220 field derotator or an optional #2570 Ultrawedge to the 12” LX200-ACF.
    This 12” scope will perform quite nicely on faint deep space objects such as galaxies and nebulas under mildly light-polluted suburban skies, if it is provided with the proper light pollution filter. However, truly dark skies are essential if you want to take full advantage of this scope’s large aperture, high light transmission, and superb optical performance. This is not a scope that’s happy having its performance limited by a light-polluted suburban observing environment.
    The scope is substantial in both size and weight. One very motivated individual can lift the 75-pound scope up onto its 50 lb. tripod, although probably with some difficulty and a few anxious moments. However, once on the tripod, a blind hole in the base of the scope has to be aligned with a blind hole and threaded rod in the top of the tripod to lock the scope in place. A second person to help lift and to steady the scope while you thread the rod into the scope base is almost essential to make the job easier and less adventurous in the dark.
    If you have regular access to dark skies, and the size and weight of the scope isn’t an insurmountable obstacle, the 12” LX200-ACF with coma-free UHTC optics may be the last telescope you ever want or need to buy. It has superb flat field optics, high light transmission, and all of the aperture you need to keep you busy observing and photographing for the rest of your life. And it has enough useful features to handle almost any observing and astrophotographic chore you set for it . . . at a price that’s surprisingly within reach.