Player One Apollo-M IMX174 Mono Solar Camera

The IMX174 Global Shutter: 164 FPS at 2.3 MP Without Distortion

For solar, lunar, and planetary imaging, atmospheric turbulence is the primary obstacle. The Apollo-M's Sony IMX174 sensor uses a global shutter, which exposes every one of its 2.3 million pixels simultaneously. This freezes motion instantly, eliminating the wavelike distortions that rolling shutters produce, resulting in significantly sharper raw frames of solar granulation, flares, and surface details.

At a full resolution of 1936×1216, the camera streams 10-bit data at 164 FPS over USB 3.0. This extreme speed is critical for "lucky imaging," allowing you to capture thousands of frames in a short period to select the few captured during moments of perfect atmospheric stability. The sensor's peak Quantum Efficiency of approximately 77% ensures that even with very short exposures, you are collecting a strong signal.

Solar-Optimized Engineering: Passive Cooling and 12.5mm Back Focus

Operating in direct daylight generates significant heat, which can increase sensor noise. The Apollo-M incorporates a Passive Cooling System (PCS) that conducts heat away from the sensor to the camera body, maintaining thermal stability. For even more demanding conditions, an optional Active Cooling System (ACS) accessory is available.

To combat Newton's rings—a common interference pattern in H-alpha solar imaging—the camera features a sensor tilt plate. This allows you to make micro-adjustments to the sensor's angle relative to the incoming light path, effectively canceling out the optical interference. A built-in light-blocking sponge prevents stray light from entering the sensor chamber, further enhancing contrast.

12-bit Data Integrity with Onboard DDR Cache

To manage the massive data stream from its high-speed sensor, the Apollo-M is equipped with a DDR3 cache. This buffer prevents frame dropping by ensuring a stable and consistent data flow to your computer, even if the host system experiences momentary slowdowns. This feature greatly reduces the demand on your PC and makes high-speed capture reliable.

The camera also features Dead Pixel Suppression (DPS) technology. Before shipping, the camera analyzes dark frames to map any non-responsive pixels. During an imaging session, these dead pixels are automatically corrected in-camera by calculating a median value from surrounding pixels, giving you cleaner raw data from the start.

Apollo-M vs. the Player One Lineup: Sensor Size and Speed

The Apollo-M occupies a strategic position within Player One's solar camera series, offering a balance of resolution, field of view, and speed.

• vs. Xena-M (IMX249): While both cameras are based on Sony's Pregius 1st Generation global shutter technology and offer similar noise and sensitivity, the Apollo-M's IMX174 sensor is significantly faster, delivering 164 FPS compared to the slower rates of the IMX249.
• vs. Apollo-M MAX (IMX432) & MINI (IMX429): The Apollo-M's 1/1.2-inch format (13.3mm diagonal) provides a larger field of view than the 2/3-inch MINI, while being more manageable for many telescopes than the large 1.1-inch sensor in the MAX. This makes it an ideal match for a wide range of solar telescopes and focal lengths.