From: Milton Aupperle <milton@outcastsoft.com>

Date: June 5, 2010 3:16:12 PM MDT

To: Astro_IIDC@yahoogroups.com

Subject: Re: [Astro_IIDC] Plate solving

Mark;

Once again, I have to ask you to use some COMMON SENSE in what you post.

This has NOTHING TO DO with Astro IIDC and is of ZERO interest to anyone else because none of them have any clue who Brian Allan is!

I really have to ask, why is this so hard for you to follow the rules?? If it doesn't have anything to do with Astro IIDC or Mac Imaging, then DO NOT POST IT!

Jabbering about Maxim DL, ASCOM or other products on a Application Specific list is just plain ignorant. Do you go on the Maxim DL list and start blathering on about Astro IIDC?

So this is your final warning, there will be no others. If you break the rules again, I'll send you a private e-mail telling you are gone and then remove you from the group listing. You can directly e-mail me for Astro IIDC Support - but you will not be on this list.

Milton J. Aupperle

Moderator

On 5-Jun-10, at 3:05 PM, Mark Gaffney wrote:

Milton,

The room I`m sitting in here is at present 15 degrees Centigrade at about 7.00 am in the morning.

It`s not a really cold night for here though. Surprisingly our lowest temperatures during Winter here match those for Sydney quite often, though the day time temperatures (if it`s sunny) can get up into the mid-late 20`s.

Not like your Summer extremes which appear to be at a low of 5 degrees..

I don`t know if the weather fluctuates in Alberta more up near the mountains..Here`s that picture of Brian Allan`s view of the horizon..

He`s managed this picture the other night of a comet;

I`ve been playing with that free plate solving app.

You can obtain an X & Y position in the image & Angles between selected stars in minutes for a basic FITS (it does do jpeg & BMP) image by doing a basic callibration from the FITS header.

To Analyse for re-centring you need to be connected to the telescope via ASCOM (or CDC is another option) & to take a reference image for re-centring you need your camera working.

The notes mention the common problem of putting an object inside the CCD frame. If you have an image of stars but can`t find the object you can re-centre quite accurately on the image centre (& object) & it`s co-ordinates by using this reference image method.

There`s a guy on the CAA group who does his alignments every night using the plate solving abilities of Maxim by taking a shot then re-centring according to it`s GSC data base then syncing his mount..

Maxim`s a rather expensive option (though it has many other aspects) & he uses it for guiding also, preferring it`s accuracy to PHD.

Elbrus will do this for free apparently on a PC or Mac emulator.

I realise you must have your own tried & true methods of doing this!

Mark.

On 06/06/2010, at 5:39 AM, Milton Aupperle wrote:

Mark;

On 5-Jun-10, at 12:40 AM, Mark Gaffney wrote:

> I had a reasonable PA done recently with All Star such that stars

> slewed to with the HC were just a little off centre in the DSLR`s

> FOV after hibernating the mount & waking it a couple of nights

> later. After a week of sleep however, the Tarantula nebula had

> migrated to the outside of the frame of the DSLR.

Then your not Polar Aligned if this is happening.

> I was intending to use the preserved alignment (which included a 3

> star done before the All star) & do the All Star again next time

> centring the star more precisely with the reticle of my illuminated

> reticle EP (I stretched the spring on it`s LED & it now will stay on

> permanently)

> Since then it`s rained heavily & consistently for several days & I

> brought the scope inside so have to begin again anyway..

> I have marks on my bricks at the base for the tripod legs but

> putting the OTA & weights back is always a little different to last

> time I`ve found...

I can guarantee that you will have to completely re-do the Polar

Alignment. As soon as you move the scope, it's back to square one.

This has been the worst May / June weather we've had for at least a

decade. We've had up to 18" snow, set 100+ new record low temperatures

for May / June across North America and right now it just started with

marble sized hail. The rest of the week :

http://www.weatheroffice.gc.ca/city/pages/ab-52_metric_e.html

is rain and below normal temperatures, so much for Global Warming

drying us out and cooking us. I have my scope double bagged with an

inner plastic bag liner and an outer heavy nylon shell (BBQ Cover)

which works great for keeping the sky dry.

TTYL..

Milton Aupperle

Milton J. Aupperle

President

ASC - Aupperle Services and Contracting

Mac Software (Drivers, Components and Application) Specialist

#1106 - 428 Chaparral Ravine View SE.

Calgary Alberta T2X 0N2

1-(403)-453-1624

milton@outcastsoft.com