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INDI Library v2.0.6 is Released (02 Feb 2024)

Bi-monthly release with minor bug fixes and improvements

Platesolving offset from center

  • Posts: 37
  • Thank you received: 2
I am wondering if one can tell ekos to platesolve so that the object is not at center but a certain offset off the center. Let me explain what I am trying to do.

I use a 6 inch sct as my main scope. Platesolving does not work off it because it says insufficient number of stars (light pollution plus tiny fov). So I use a guidescope with a second camera and use it to go-to and platesolving. So far so good.

But after platesolving often the object is not centered in my main camera. Because of the long focal length it is often not seen in my main camera. So I have to use manual mount control to bring it in, which is a pain.

I do align the guidescope with the image during the daytime. But I usually dismantle my setup at the end of the night because of limited storage space. So it is a pain to realign the guidescope with the main telescope before every session.

So I was wondering if there was a way that I can take a picture from my guide camera, and my main camera. Then center the object in the main camera once, and see where it shows up in the guide camera. Whatever that offset is, I ask ekos to platesolve for objects from them on, so that they appear at that offset from that point on. In other words I can align the two scopes using the images rather than mechanically, making the process much faster.

Can ekos help me in any way to solve this problem?
1 year 5 months ago #86700

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Not sure about the offset, but platesolving should work for your 6" SCT. I platesolve with a 10"RC (focal length 2000) plus a ZWO ASI1600 camera, very reliably.
Make sure (a) you are in focus, and (b) you have all the appropriate index files are installed.
You can also try ASTAP if the internal solver is not working?
Can you post an image from your SCT (with the platesolving exposure) and we can see if we can plate solve it?

Hy
1 year 5 months ago #86701

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Hi,

I don't think the problem is just with platesolving. Even I cannot see many stars in the image. The camera is otherwise in focus because I use a bahtinov mask when focusing on a bright star.

I think it is a combination of tiny fov and light pollution around where I am. My neighbor has LED lights on his porch, and I am near a big city. The thing is that with my lower power refractor or even guide scope, this was never a problem.

I am using player one Neptune c as my camera, which is a 178mc sensor. No binning. I start with 1 s exposure. I tried 5 seconds or even 10 seconds and the image just gets whiter and white, making it even more difficult to detect stars.

I am not using any filters. Will a filter help?
1 year 5 months ago #86702

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