ToupTek ATR2600C Colour Cooled Camera

The ToupTek ATR2600C is a cooled colour astronomy camera with Sony’s IMX571, the APS-C sensor behind many of the most widely used deep-sky cameras. It gives 26 megapixels of 3.76 µm pixels, a 16-bit output and no amp glow.

The sensor needs a corrected field of about 28 mm, which most modern flatteners and reducers cover. Refractors and astrographs from roughly 300 to 1000 mm suit it well: at 500 mm it samples at about 1.55″ per pixel. A high full well mode roughly doubles capacity to 100 ke⁻, so bright star cores take longer to clip.

The SkyEye26AC Plus uses the same sensor. The ATR2600C is lighter and slimmer, at 577 g and 80 mm across against 785 g and 89 mm. That counts in front of a RASA or Hyperstar, where the camera blocks part of the aperture, and on smaller mounts. The SkyEye adds built-in tilt adjustment, an M54 thread for a heavier imaging train, and a four-port USB hub against the ATR’s two.

Choose the window when you order. The IR-cut version is for normal colour imaging. Clear AR-coated glass lets infrared through, for use with your own filters in front of the camera, such as a dual-band or UV/IR-cut filter.

Cooling, dew and power

Two-stage cooling takes the sensor up to 42 °C below the air temperature. It holds the set point to within 0.1 °C, so dark frames can be reused from night to night. A heater on the front window has four power settings and can be switched off in software. Cooling needs 12 V; the 12 V 3 A power supply is in the box.

Back focus and connections

Back focus is 17.5 mm from the M42 thread. Adapter rings and extension tubes are included to build out to the spacing your flattener or reducer needs, usually 55 mm. A two-port USB 2.0 hub on the back takes a filter wheel and guide camera, so fewer cables run down the mount. A 512 MB buffer holds each frame while it transfers, so a slow USB link doesn’t drop frames.