Posted by Callum Potter at 16:18 on 2011 Jul 14
Hi Opu,you could make yourself a ‘barn door’ or ‘scotch mount’ – it is a very simple device for tracking at the siderial rate, and quite portable. There are many internet sites that explain how to make one, and there is also an article in the latest Sky and Telescope (August 2011) with a very minimal design (but a bit US centric).Also in the August 2011 S&T is announced the Vixen Polarie tracking mount, which looks somewhat more compact than the astrotrac, but is not yet available to buy.Finally there is also the Orion Min-EQ Tabletop Equatorial Telescope Mount for which a drive is an optional extra. I am not sure how good the tracking is (not the best I am sure), but might be adequate for short exposures (up to a minute maybe).Or there is always the option of a small equatorial mount head, like one of the EQ range, or a vixen polaris.I hope this helps.Regards, Callum