Your Browser is OutdatedMeade ETX125Observer is Mak-Cass compact, with similar high focal length [1900 mm] & ratio [f/15]. Is ETX125 a Mak/Schm-Cass variation; compare them? — 2 Answers
The manufacturer says:
The ETX125 Observer is a Maksutov-Cassegrain telescope. There is no such thing as a Maksutov/Schmidt-Cassegrain because the Maksutov and Schmidt names refers to the prescription of the optics and there are distinct differences. They are both catadioptric optical systems in that they have a glass optical correcting lens at the front, a primary mirror at the back, and a secondary mirror that produces an on-axis image being the primary mirror. The key difference is that the correcting lens on a Maksutov-Cassegrain has a shorter radius of curvature and smaller secondary mirror. The smaller secondary reduces the amount of light that is diffracted by the obstruction of the mirror and yields sharper and higher contrast images than a Schmidt-Cassegrain.
Mark H.
The ETX125 Observer is a Maksutov-Cassegrain telescope. There is no such thing as a Maksutov/Schmidt-Cassegrain because the Maksutov and Schmidt names refers to the prescription of the optics and there are distinct differences.
They are both catadioptric optical systems in that they have a glass optical correcting lens at the front, a primary mirror at the back, and a secondary mirror that produces an on-axis image being the primary mirror.
The key difference is that the correcting lens on a Maksutov-Cassegrain has a shorter radius of curvature and smaller secondary mirror. The smaller secondary reduces the amount of light that is diffracted by the obstruction of the mirror and yields sharper and higher contrast images than a Schmidt-Cassegrain.
Mark H.