Choosing and Using a New CAT Getting the Most from Your Schmidt Cassegrain or Any Catadioptric Telescope

Choosing and Using the New CAT will supercede the author’s successful Choosing and Using a Schmidt-Cassegrain Telescope, which has enjoyed enthusiastic support from the amateur astronomy community for the past seven years.

Since the first book was published, a lot has changed in the technology of amateur astronomy. The sophistication and variety of the telescopes available to amateurs has increased dramatically. Computerized SCTs, Maksutov-Cassegrains, and most recently Meade’s new and acclaimed Ritchey-Chrétiens have come to dominate the market. That means that all amateurs considering the purchase of a new telescope (not only a SCT, and not just beginners) will benefit from this detailed guide. Choosing the right telescope for particular kinds of observation (or even for general work) is far from easy – but Rod Mollise gives invaluable advice and guidance.

Today’s commercially-made astronomical telescopes are more complex than ever, and a new owner will swiftly discover that the manuals shipped with these telescopes leave much to be desired. Further guidance is a must. Choosing and Using the New CAT provides the missing information in a friendly but authoritative fashion, including imaging the solar system and deep space with the CCD cameras, video, and webcams that have almost completely supplanted ‘film’ cameras.

Rod Mollise is a test engineer for Northrop Grumman Mission Systems, and is affiliated to the University of South Alabama (Part Time Faculty (Physics Department)). He is the author of Choosing and Using a Schmidt Cassegrain Telescope (Springer), The Urban Astronomer’s Guide (Springer), Introduction to Astronomy: Activities (University of South Alabama Physics Department (co-author), and a contributor to Night Sky, Sky and Telescope and Amateur Astronomy.