Attaching a Gstar CCD camera to a Peltier cooler.

[anthony.tony]

http://www.virtual-village.com.au/60w-thermoelectric-cooler-tec-&-cpu-heatsink-001540-035.html .Hello I need some advice on Attaching a peltier Cooler to a Gstar CCD camera,This Link shows The Cooler and heatsink.I have A image of Steve Quirks setup a cooler and heatsink Ratted from a 7 litre Cooler .I have a 12 volt power souce and fuses and a switch . What other components do I need to control the Temp and Monitor it . I will Need a small digital thermometer. Regaurds Tony

[peter_4059]

Jaycar has some kits that will monitor the temperature and switch the peltier on and off. There's a link in this thread http://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/showthread.php?t=52855

It looks like the peltier is just resting on the case in the last picture? It won't be very effective without it contacting the CCD directly as the heat transfer through the air in the case will be poor.

Peter

[anthony.tony]

Thanks for the reply Steve is Getting Good results even though it is not contacting the CCD. Tony

[peter_4059]

It does appear to be working in those darks.

[AstroJunk]

I have done the same in the past, and made it work even better by making a copper case (easy to make with a sheet of copper from a hobyist shop).

However, make sure you insulate the whole case on the outside very well - in the field, it tries to cool down the entire atmosphere at the same time as the inside of the case and, er, fails.

Keep at it though, it does make a significant difference during these hot evenings.