I Upgraded My DIY Giant Smart Telescope with a Bigger Camera

I upgraded my “giant smart telescope” — my 10-inch Sky-Watcher GoTo Dobsonian — with a larger cooled camera, a filter drawer, a power hub, and a mounted tablet control screen. For this test, I used the ToupTek ATR2600C cooled camera with the Sony IMX571 APS-C sensor. The larger sensor gives the Dobsonian a wider field of view, which is useful for larger deep-sky objects. I’ll still use my 585MC for smaller targets, but the ATR2600C gives this setup a wider-field option. Tonight’s target is NGC 3576, also known as the Statue of Liberty Nebula. It is an emission nebula in the constellation Carina, about 9,000 light-years away and roughly 100 light-years across. I captured it from my Bortle 7 backyard using short 5-second exposures, gain 200, and bin 2. This video shows the full upgraded EAA setup, including the filter drawer, IDAS NBZ II Nebula Booster filter, SV241 power hub, mounted tablet, NINA plate solving, 3-star alignment, live stacking in SharpCap, and a quick process in Siril. Equipment used: I’ve included links to some of the gear I used, in case they’re helpful. Some of the links below are affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases, at no extra cost to you. Telescope: Sky-Watcher 250P Flextube GoTo Dobsonian (10″): https://amzn.to/4dXxxXM Camera: ToupTek ATR2600C cooled colour camera Filter: IDAS NBZ II Nebula Booster Filter Drawer: SVBONY SV226 filter drawer: https://amzn.to/4tSSIz1 Power Hub: SVBONY SV241 power box: https://amzn.to/3RFExzQ Clamp: SMALLRIG magic arm with clamp: https://amzn.to/3PUswGd Collimation Tool: SVBONY red laser collimator: https://amzn.to/3PMiQ0E Control Software: NINA Stacking Software: SharpCap Pro Processing Software: Siril, Photoshop Computer: BOSGAME E3 Mini PC: https://amzn.to/3Rsdb03 Power Supply: EcoFlow River 2 Dew Heaters: • WW Astro Secondary Mirror Dew Heater (Small) • TESTAR Dew Heater Regulator Image credit:: ESO/G. Beccari ESO/G. Beccari/N. Risinger (skysurvey.org) #EAA #Dobsonian #Astrophotography #NGC3576 #SmartTelescope #DeepSky #Astronomy #ToupTekATR2600C #SkyWatcher250P