Sky-Watcher Heliostar 76Ha telescope

Holding out for a first-rate solar scope at an affordable price? The wait may be over

- IVANA PERANIC

The Sky-Watcher Heliostar 76Ha refractor is a fresh new addition to the well-known manufacturer's telescope lineup and its first venture into dedicated hydrogen-alpha instruments. The spec is highly attractive, ambitiously promising 'double-stack performance' from a single etalon filter, while offering 76mm of aperture and a 630mm focal length, which is a great midway point between portability and detailed views of the Sun's surface.

By 'double-stack performance' we mean that the overall bandwidth of the light that is passed through is further reduced, allowing for more solar contrast, as well as clearer views of fine surface detail and prominences. The Heliostar 76Ha also comes with a host of accessories as standard, including a padded metal carry case, dual-speed focuser, solar finder, solar shield, 20mm eyepiece and smartphone mount.

The weather was unusually sunny, so we were able to put the Heliostar 76Ha to the test right away. The instruction manual is accompanied by a sheet of safety precautions, the first of which emphasises that the refractor must always be used with the provided solar prism diagonal. We assembled everything easily and, following the instructions, left the telescope outside for more than half an hour to acclimatise the etalon filter. With its weight of 3.8kg, the Heliostar 76Ha will be easily carried by a wide range of mounts. For our review, we placed it on a ZWO AM5 harmonic drive mount.

Instruction snags