MarkS

Interesting image - and good to see this, as it's not within reach of we southerners!

Hi Michael, I'm interested. Please add me to the list of beta testers for Autoslew and Sequence Regards, Mark

Hi Ian, I have been running the fan all the time - it's been pretty dewy at my site. I've seen no problems. Mark

Thanks guys. Good to know. Mark

Is anyone running - or trying to run - Autoslew and Sequence on the Windows 8 platform? I guess sooner or later this will have to be faced, and it would be nice to know that there are no problems. Any info? Mark

Direct Digital Ammeter readings on my ASA10/OK3 using 12V battery: (voltage reading 12.6V) Fan 145mA Focuser idle 127mA Focuser moving 550 - 950mA Hope this helps. Mark

Hi Gerald, All three are great! Not sure which I prefer..... The possibilities with narrow band are endless. Have you tried using the narrow data only, but mixing the channels into RGB in different ratios? Regards, Mark

Shot this one last night from our country property. There was some skyglow - I don't know why - but conditions were generally good. I ran MLPT for 2hours 40min with reported maximum registration error of 2px between two of the subs. All subs were 5min; total exposure 2hr. Processed in Pixinsight, with a little finishing in Photoshop.

Hi Ian, I just received an InfinityXLKP and TelecatXLS, plus the illumination torch. I found it all a bit confusing at first, but used after the LCOL laser collimator the Infinity gave a good check. I find the identification of the four reflections a bit tricky, but I'm sure I'll get used to it! I find the laser gets me very close, but it's important NOT to tighten the holding screws - rather ensuring that the mounting face of the collimator is hard against the focuser face. This also goes for the Catseye tools. Regards, Mark

This was shot in very light polluted sky (Melbourne suburb) during a tracking test on my DDM60. It was also second night out for my ASA10N. I did not really expect any usable images given the conditions, so this was a pleasant surprise. RGB only. Total exposure 65 min (after 25min worth rejected due to cloud interference) STT8300M camera; processed in Pixinsight; finished in Photoshop. Mark

I promised I would report back on using a 10N visually, so here goes. After a run of rotten weather I at last got the 10N under the stars with an eyepiece! I made up an adapter to go between the 3" Wynne and 1.25" eyepiece with a 57mm face to face distance. I used a Pentax 7mm eyepiece. The OK3 found focus at ~10 - 11mm. I don't know if that backfocus is ideal, but it must be close. Unfortunately I couldn't get to my dark sky site, so I had to be content with heavy light pollution and some cloud interruption. As I expected, very bright objects had big diffraction spikes, but the view on fainter ones was excellent. As long as I didn't look at objects below about 50 degrees altitude, viewing wasn't too uncomfortable. I also tried a 3.5mm eyepiece to split some doubles, and it seemed fine, but I was cut short by clouds. The resolution on objects such as NGC 5139, NGC 104 and NGC6752 was excellent - even with all the excess ambient light. And NGC4755 looked gorgeous, with the different star colours showing nicely. So now I must try it under dark skies to see this set-up at its best.

I am in the process of working up my ASA10N/DDM60 system. I just wanted to share how spectacular the tracking can be. Because it is to be mobile, travelling to a number of dark sites, I have been trying to achieve the required tracking performance with the least set-up time. First light with the ASA10N - the DDM60 has been under the stars several times - I set the tripod as close as I could and then used 3-position same DEC solve for PA errors. One iteration yielded reported PA errors of 1.6' RA and 1.2' DE. I used just the second 3-position config, and went straight to MLPT set to 5 exposures along the track. The target was NGC 6744, and I could only get 12 X 5min subs over about 65min total time before a heavy mist rolled in. The enclosed image is approx 1/4 of the full frame of all the subs integrated WITHOUT registering. According to Pixinsight analysis, the maximum dx or dy between any of the subs was 0.61px. By any standards this is excellent. Mark

Thanks again, Dave. The weather here has been atrocious of late, but I did get the chance to re-balance, re-tune and then do a quick test under the stars. First, I reset Autoslew to factory settings to make sure of a fresh start. After balancing as best I could - I can't get it perfect everywhere - I ran Autotune, and got the following: RA DIP 1575, 83835, 18.6; DE DIP 1575, 126644, 28. Noise filter on in both axes. I then tweaked these numbers manually, and found a better result for DE at 2130, 114000, 25.2 Noise Filter on. Slewing and tracking both virtually silent. Both axes now showed about 0.15 arcsec peak to peak. Using these numbers, I set up under the stars (my set-up is also portable). The weather was very patchy, so I just did a quick 3 position same DE routine to get PA to 1.6 arcmin RA and 9.1 arcmin DE errors. With only the 3 position config loaded, I then ran an MLPT track for a 100 minutes and shot some 5 minute frames of of NGC6752. Registration errors according to Pixinsight between the worst two frames (approx 70minutes apart) was 1.3 pixels. There is more tuning to do and a better PA would surely improve things further, but these results look pretty good to me. Mark

Hi Dave, Your information is very helpful. I have found that Autotune gives quite variable results, so I guess it is a matter of fine tuning manually to get to the levels of tracking accuracy you have. Regards, Mark

Dear Dietmar, I have used both manual and Autotuning. The RA sidereal numbers Autotuning gives are D 1575, I 100000, P 15. But it does depend to some degree on what the initial values are set before Autotune is done. So I am interested in what others may have set fo r similar equipment loads. Regards, Mark

I'm interested to know typical PID numbers for this combination. I know it depends to some extent on the camera, but I'd like to get some guidance on this. I'm using a STT8300M with standard filter wheel. Any input welcome Mark

I will certainly be unable to use a diagonal: there is not enough back focus distance. But any target above ~60 degrees altitude should be OK for viewing comfort. The only really bad areas would be close to the meridian in the south (southern hemisphere location). Again. time will tell! Mark

I've had success using Sequence and following the 3 shot same DE method described in Autoslew5100.pdf. This is areally good document. After one or two iterations I get PA close enough to allow >20min subs using MLPT. It's very important to chose a star near the meridian in the North at an altitude close to your latitude. ie I choose a star at ~38N in Melbourne. Mark

Hi Dave and Ian, I have a 10N, and family issues dictate that I make it available for visuals(!) I have no quick fix but what I have done is make an adapter for 1.25" eyepiece to the Wynne Corrector. If I've done my sums properly, it should provide decent viewing. I'll report as soon as I have tested the set-up. Mark

Is there any estimate of the release date of the new version of Sequence? I have been out of the loop for a while, so I may have missed something.....