stacking multiple sessions

[Ant]

I, as a trial, just to see if I can do it... too some R G B lights with the mono H9.

I was quite pleased with the results, but conditions weren't great and I managed with only 9 x 10 usable frames in Red, 9 x 10m frames in Green and only 6 x 10 in Blue.

I want to add more data, so last night I managed to grab another 15 x 10 in red. I re-took the flats, so that I have flats for both sessions....

I have no idea how stack all of them...

Do I use the batch stacking (if so I cannot work out how to do it )?

Or stack each session separately and then stack the final autosave files?

I also would like to grab some Ha (after getting more data for the R G B channels), how do I add that in?

Remember I'm a bit dim at times, so simple instructions would be appreciated (with pictures if possible)

Cheers

Ant

[martin_h]

Ok so you have 2 lots of red files to stack.......

I assume you are using DSS to stack the images??

Load the first nights red files as normal, along with darks, flats and bias. you will notice that at the bottom of the box that is holding these files a new tab will have appeared..the "Main Group" which is holding the files just opened and a new tab "Group 1", click on this tab and a new load box will open....load the next nights reds and flats into this...no need for darks or bias as they are common to both sets and stay in the main group tab.

Then register/stack them in the normal way

[Ant]

Hi Martin,

Yes DSS to stack - might have been useful to say that!

Is it really that simple? Now that you mention those extra tabs at the bottom, I have seen them but never really took a lot of notice.

I went into the Batch stacking options and that really didn't make a lot of sense

Thanks for the advice - I'll have a play tonight.

Ant

[Black Knight]

I don't know if it makes any difference, but what I do is just place all common files, like darks and bias in the main group, and put each sessions lights and flats into a separate group tab, so that the Main Group contains only darks and bias files.

In order to do this though, you have to load a "dummy" light into the main group for DSS to create Group 1. Once Group 1 has been created, I remove that light from the main group.

To sort of mirror this, in the file system under the project folder, I create a Main folder for common darks and bias etc. And also Groupx folders corresponding to each of the Group tabs in DSS for each sessions specific lights and flats.

Just helps me keep it organised! Makes it a piece of cake when you come to add further data as well!

[Ant]

So do you need to have each session in a different folder (on your PC) so that DSS knows where to save the registered txt files too?

Cheers

Ant

[Black Knight]

I don't know if you need to ... that's just the way I do it. Makes it easier for my poor old brain to figure out what is where .... . But yes, DSS saves the registration text files in the same folder as the corresponding source files.

[Ant]

I've just sat here and arranged all the files by type (bias, Red, Green, Blue) and then night 1 - night 2 etc inside the type folders... does make it easier on the old noggin.

I think that the extra data has helped. Should really I suppose.

Just for interest here is just the new reprocessed red data - 24 x 10 h9/Vixen NA140SSf. (uncropped, but resized 50%)

Hopefully going to get some more Blue tonight and then green over the weekend.

Thanks for all the tips so far, very helpful.

Ant

[ollypenrice]

I can't help on the stacking since I use different software but well done at what is obviously a long FL. You just cannot ever have enough data! Good focus, round stars. Impressive. What is the scope/mount?

Olly

[Ant]

Cheers Olly!

The mount is a HEQ5, camera the usual H9 mono (with Baader col filters).

The scope is one that I'm doing a review on for Steve. It a vixen NA140SSf, it's a 140mm F5.7 (FL800 - so not that long really).

If you hover the mouse over the main image there is the scope on my mount.

So far so good Run out of narrow band objects (being the spring) so trying my hand at RGB

I'm working on the full review, but here is some data from CCDI.

Cheers

Ant

[Russe]

Noob question - this last pic, which I assume is some sort of image analyser, I have seen examples of it now and again on SGL. What is it? What does it tell? Where can I read up on it?

[Ant]

It's from a piece of software called CCD Inspecor - amongst other things it tells you how flat your FOV is.

Welcome to CCDWare - CCDInspector it can also be used for collimation.

Cheers

Ant