Disadvantages of cooled camera

[Dawson]

We are thinking of getting an ASI 585MM for solar, lunar, planetary, Mercury’s tail, and smaller / brighter DSOs.

Obviously the cooled version will will be beneficial for DSO stuff, but are there any disadvantages (other than an extra £200) of using the cooled version in a non-cooled state for imaging other targets, or do it always have to be cooled?

Thanks.

James

[David Arditti]

I don’t have an ASI cooled camera, but with the cooled cameras I have tried, it is possible to switch the cooling off in the control software. The disadvantage of cooling is that it can result in misting or frosting within the camera, especially if it is kept in an observatory at outside humidity. Combatting this can be a bit of a battle, though obviously there are strategies, e.g storing with desiccant, warming before use. I know of no other disadvantages of cooling. In theory a cooled camera should be more sensitive for all exposures, though for the short exposures used in planetary imaging, the benefit is negligible.

[Nick James]

I use a cooled camera (an ASI1600MM) with the cooling off to image the Sun with short exposures in the daytime and with the cooling on to image the deep sky with long exposures at night. Apart from the extra weight of the Peltier, heatsink and fan there are no disadvantages that I am aware of. Regarding David’s point about frosting up when the cooling is on, none of the more recent ZWO cameras that I own have suffered from this. It was a common problem many years ago but modern cameras are better designed with smaller, well sealed, chambers and, sometimes, window heaters.

[Dawson]

Thanks both. Helpful comments and insight.

James

[Gary Eason]

I wanted to get an IMX571 OSC camera and after reviewing the options have plumped for the Player One Poseidon-C, delivered last week. With their version, if you are not using the cooling you do not even need to plug in the power cable at all (just the USB). I regard this as a handy feature for different use cases. Oh and if you are using the cooling, it has a built-in dew heater to tackle the potential frosting issue David mentioned.

• This reply was modified 3 days, 9 hours ago by Gary Eason.

[Dawson]

Thanks Gary.

[Dr Paul Leyland]

I use cooling all the time, partly from habit but motly because my major interest is photometry where the thermal noise reduction is welcome if not essential. This is especially valuable for exoplanetary transits and precision photometry below, say, 17th magnitude.

[Robin Leadbeater]

The controlled constant temperature that cooling provides also means that calibration frames can be re-used

Robin

[Grant Privett]

The only disadvantage is a bigger battery if you are intending to observe away from home…

[Author]

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