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IMPORTANT: Our store is located in Canada. All orders that include products manufactured outside of Canada or USA will be subject to tariffs and duties, regardless of the order value. US customers are responsible for all applicable duties and tariffs, and those will be billed by the carrier, except for the Lacerta upgrade kit, for which we collect them at checkout.
Wanderer Astro ND Filter for WandererCover

Wanderer Astro ND Filter for WandererCover

by Wanderer Astro
SKU WA-WC4ND-80
$5.00 - $9.00
$5.00
$5.00 - $9.00
$5.00
Price Match Policy!
  • Available in 7 sizes from 80mm to 240mm
  • Designed for WandererCover V4-EC and V4-EC IR
  • Enables Calibrated Flat Frames with Sensitive Cameras
  • Reduces Panel Brightness Without Affecting Color Balance
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  • Description
  • FAQ
  • Specifications
  • In the Box
  • Downloads
  • Warranty

  • Wanderer Astro ND Filter for WandererCover

    The Wanderer Astro ND Filter, available in 7 sizes from 80mm to 240mm, is the essential accessory for your WandererCover. It is specifically designed to reduce the brightness of the flat panel, allowing you to capture perfectly exposed, non-saturated flat frames with today's highly sensitive CMOS and CCD astronomy cameras.

    Calibrated Flat Frames for Sensitive Cameras

    Modern astronomy cameras often have such high quantum efficiency that even at the lowest brightness setting, a flat panel like the WandererCover can cause saturated pixels, especially when using broadband LRGB filters. This saturation renders flat frames unusable and prevents proper image calibration.

    This Neutral Density (ND) filter solves the problem by reducing the light intensity evenly across the entire visual spectrum. By installing the filter, you can use longer, multi-second exposures for your flats, improving their signal-to-noise ratio and ensuring a perfect calibration without clipping any data.

    • Prevent Saturation: Allows you to gather flats with high-QE monochrome or one-shot color cameras without overexposing, even through high-transmission luminance filters.
    • Improve Flat Field Quality: Use longer exposures to average out any scintillation or minor fluctuations in the light source, resulting in a smoother master flat.
    • Maintain Color Neutrality: As a true neutral density filter, it reduces brightness without introducing any color cast, ensuring your flats accurately reflect the response of your optical system.

  • Which size Wanderer Astro ND Filter do I need?

    You should select the Wanderer Astro ND Filter size that matches the size of your WandererCover. For example, if you own the 125mm WandererCover, you need the 125mm ND Filter.

    When is the Wanderer Astro ND Filter necessary for taking flats?

    This filter is necessary when your camera's pixels saturate even at the WandererCover's lowest brightness setting. This is a common issue with highly sensitive CMOS cameras, especially when shooting through high-transmission filters like Luminance (L), Red (R), Green (G), or Blue (B).

    Will this ND filter affect the color of my flat frames?

    No. The Wanderer Astro ND Filter is a neutral density filter, meaning it is designed to decrease the intensity of all wavelengths of light equally. It will not introduce a color cast to your images, ensuring the color balance of your flat frames remains accurate.

    How do I install the ND Filter into my WandererCover?

    The filter is designed to integrate directly with the corresponding WandererCover V4-EC or V4-EC IR model. Please refer to your WandererCover manual for specific installation instructions and diagrams.

    My ASI2600MM camera saturates luminance flats with my 125mm WandererCover. Will this filter solve it?

    Yes, this is precisely the scenario the Wanderer Astro ND Filter is designed for. The filter will reduce the panel's brightness significantly, allowing you to increase your flat frame exposure time to several seconds. This achieves a strong signal and high ADU without clipping the highlights, leading to perfect calibration.

    I'm using a fast f/4 refractor and a 100mm WandererCover. Do I need the ND filter for narrowband flats?

    Likely not for narrowband, but almost certainly for broadband. Narrowband filters (like Ha, OIII, SII) block a vast amount of light, so saturation is rarely an issue. However, with an f/4 system, your Luminance filter flats will almost certainly saturate. The ND filter is essential for capturing your LRGB flats correctly in such a fast optical system.

  • Compatibility WandererCover V4-EC, WandererCover V4-EC IR
    Available Sizes 80mm, 100mm, 125mm, 150mm, 190mm, 225mm, 240mm

    • Wanderer Astro ND Filter (Selected Size)

      × 1

  • This accessory does not require its own software or manual. Please refer to the manual for your WandererCover for installation and usage instructions.

  • Wanderer Astro 2-Year Warranty