Plate Solving and Mount Syncing - A General Question

Alright everyone, thanks for your input. I had a chance to use my system last night and I was able to blind plate solve using local ASNVR but syncing was not happening. The program just stops after plate solving. Then I also tried out PS2 and I don’t know if it was working or not. The user iterface was populated with a set of coordinates close to that reported by EQMOD and the plate solving continued on for ever.

I have captured a couple of screen shots for you. I think I am close but I still don’t know what to expect from plate solving.

<img src="/uploads/db2508/orig

inal/2X/3/3af86d58034017bbf58924cc272b9eedf28d5bfe.PNG" width=“800” height=“482”>

I’m assuming you setup the APM and/or UCAC3 catalogs?

Unless you have crazy light pollution you can crank up the ISO as well.

Screenshot the Camera, Telescope tabs and PS2 parameters as well so I can see what your dealing with. Make sure you disable the “append on sync” in the EQMOD config. Learned to “let go” and let SGP and plate solving handle it. So far I’ve been imaging for the last 6 hours straight :slight_smile:

Yes, APM and or UCAC3catologs were selected for PS2. I will check the EQMOD
setting you mentioned. And I don’t understand “learned to let go…”.
Please explain. I am letting SGP do what it appears as saying it can do.
But after blind solving, SGP just does nothing.

Thanks

Farzad

…and I don’t see any EQMOD Config anywhere in the folders - just EQMOD
setup. And in that user interface there are no options for the “append on
sync”. Can you please clarify?

Thanks

Ribuck, your explanation is very clear. And when I had a chance I did try
plate solving using local ANSVR and I did get a result. And if as you say
SGP tells the mount “hey, you are actually pointing at point y” then EQMOD
which is driving the mount and getting location information from inside the
mount should get updated as well, is this not right? I dod not see this
happening at all.

Hi farzad,

When you click ok after doing a manual plate solve, it should add a sync point to eqmod. To verify this, at the top right side of the eqascom app, click the button with arrows on it to expand the menu. On the expanded menu you will see a section called “Alignment / Sync”. In that section click on the button that looks like a sheet of lined paper.

This will open the sync list. Every time you perform a platesolve function you should see the sync point added to the list. The important bit is to make sure that the bottom “Append” tick option is the only one selected.

Ticking all the options would start to build and save a pointing model, which we don’t want to do as it tends to have an adverse effect. Pointing models in my opinion only ever work if your are pier mounted and your mount is a high end mount using very high resolution / absolute encoders, which your mount isn’t. I know this through personal experience on my EQ8.

Rich.

Thanks a lot, Rich. I am sure the next time the skies clear I am going to
take a giant leap - finally. Unless I can simulate the sync part of plate
solving because I know I can simulate plate solving itself.

Farzad

SGPro can do this, but right now, only for Pinpoint users.

Its recommended to NOT have the append selected in the EQMOD configuration. I can attest to having better results with the configuration noted in the documentation. Plate solving will make sure everything is lined up (just take not of the pixel error when running it and rerun if its not within a few pixels). I too went from doing the solve and sync method to just solving and imaging so it was a shift in business as usual. I have much more confidence now in my current setup thanks to SGP and the plate solvers that syncing to EQMOD to make sure everything lines up in my planetarium app is no required. I think more value with the solve and sync comes into play if you do a lot of “goto” star hopping.

People may have different experiences but this is mine coming from a guy who has to setup and breakdown his equipment every time he uses it.

Well I guess like everything else in astronomy, it’s trial and error and work out what’s best for you. For me the append on sync seems to give me better results, that said if I build up more than 8 sync points it can have adverse effects.

Thanks everyone. I am able to platesolve now using local astronomy.net.

Disabling/deselecting append is one key factor. The other one is to slew to a “target” defined in your SGP session, and “center” on that. This is when everything starts to happen - all the additional platesolving and centering.

I must say that while I was able to get close to my target, it was a few minutes off. I will keep working on this and to learn it.

Thanks again.

Farzad

Hello, everyone. Reporting back letting you all know plate solving works well now after your help. I am still doing widefield but I now know the process and the linkage between the software and hardware. Thanks.

Farzad

just browsing looking for some pointers and your comments on plate solving has helped me a lot thx

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