The Slik ECH-630 Astro Tracker is a compact, motorized tracking mount designed specifically for long-exposure wide-field astrophotography.
Using two ball heads, it can be polar aligned and used as an equatorial tracking mount across the right ascension. It mounts onto a photo/video/field tripod outfitted with a ball head to set the altitude and point it to True North. A second ball head is then installed on the tracking unit itself to carry your DSLR. With the tracking unit polar aligned, the camera's ball head can be swiveled to point at any area of the night sky for accurate imaging. To help with polar alignment, two peep holes are engineered into the body. The tracker can also be laid flat to capture time lapse or panoramic terrestrial shots.
Depending on what you are photographing, you can choose one of the four tracking modes—lunar, solar, sidereal, and starscape—to capture images without star streaks or loss of focus even if your exposure times are seconds or minutes. The mount can carry up to 11 pounds of gear when it is lying flat, or 4.4 pounds if set at a 45° angle. Ideal for off-the-grid use, the unit weighs just 22.4 ounces, is very compact and easy to pack and carry, and runs on four AA batteries for up to 20 hours. If you have an external battery pack, you can power it using the micro-USB port.