Plate solving and goto with AstroTortilla

[AlistairHowie]

All fine for me - 2.44GB of index files downloaded in 15 mins (thank you BT ... not often I say that!). Got a fail half way through but the retry worked just fine and carried on where it left off. Solving my fits files in 8s or less, so I'm very happy! No issues with the log file not closing out and no Ascom errors, at least running under the simulator. Running Windows 7 64 bit, SP1.

[AlistairHowie]

OK ... maybe I spoke a little too soon! I seem to have a problem, but it's not unique to the new index files. Using either set of indices and the File-Open dialog option, my fits files are solved very quickly, often less than 10s. But when I switch on EQMOD and connect the simulator, and select Ascom Telescope in AT, it refuses to solve the same images. Attached below is a spreadsheet of two logs files of the same image. Solved in 8.3s when the telescope option is set to disconnected, and not solved in 22s when the telescope option is set to Ascom. It happens with all fits files that I select. Thoughts anyone? Am I missing something simple here?

Log file.xlsx

[IanL]

Am I missing something simple here?

Yes you are. You have the "search radius" set to 45 degrees, and your pointing position in the simulator will be more that 45 degrees away from the centre of your test image.

With no mount connected, AT will do a blind solve and ignores "search radius". With the mount connected it will only search within a circle of a radius of 45 degrees of the pointing position.

Set "search radius" to 180 degrees when testing, or point the simulator somewhere near the centre of the test image. When using with the actual mount, set it to a smaller value; I use 10 degrees since my mount would never be more than that off the target even on the first slew. One you have an alignment model built up later in the session, you could switch to an even smaller value (maybe a couple of degrees) and get an even faster solution; remember you can save and load different parameter sets for this purpose.

[themos]

Some feedback on this version 0.5.1

(OS: Windows XP)

The LogWindow cannot be closed, despite hitting the cross many times over and over....

I do also get an Ascom error: Getting RA/DEC failed

I'm using my modded EQ1 scope for tests as my EQ3-2 is resting until next year.

If you are using my "Rosedale" EQ1 ASCOM driver, it doesn't pretend to know where the telescope is pointing and I've set all the Can... properties to reflect that. It could be that AT is just reporting that fact to the user. You can't expect the EQ1 driver to accept GoTos, either.

[AlistairHowie]

Yes you are. You have the "search radius" set to 45 degrees, and your pointing position in the simulator will be more that 45 degrees away from the centre of your test image.

Ahhh ... the penny drops! Brilliant, thanks Ian.

[Gonzo]

If you are using my "Rosedale" EQ1 ASCOM driver, it doesn't pretend to know where the telescope is pointing and I've set all the Can... properties to reflect that. It could be that AT is just reporting that fact to the user. You can't expect the EQ1 driver to accept GoTos, either.

of course I'm using "Rosedale" EQ1 ASCOM driver I know you can't do GoTo with it.

I just wanted to try this tool but it seems to be only for GoTo stuff, still it looks like a nicely done tool.

[earth titan]

I'm still puzzled as to which index files I need. Can anyone explain a little more, how to calculate which you need?

Typed by me on my fone, using fumms... Excuse eny speling errurs.

[Eric the Halibut]

I have recently become very interested in Astrophotography and so I downloaded Astrotortilla having seen many very positive comments here regarding it. My setup is a an observatory mounted 12" Meade LX200 ACF with an ED 80 Piggy-backed on top. I have very good Polar alignment and good goto accuracy using either the handbox or Skytools 3 or Stellarium using the Ascom drivers for my mount via POTH.

I have no problem solving images taken with BYEOS using a Canon 1100D - solving usually takes between 10 and 20 seconds but when I attempt to use Astrotortilla to slew to the accurate position it moves in the wrong direction and actually gets further away from the target - you can see this happen if you engage BYEOS during the slew process. Has anybody got any idea why this should happen? Is it a fault of the Autostar II system or maybe an ASCOM driver problem - this would be strange because the mount works well with Skytools3 and also Stellarium?

This is disappointing because Astrotortilla would seem to be an ideal solution for getting the image central on the camera chip. I initially thought that it might be due to using the handbox to perform the initial goto but the same thing happens if I power on the scope and perform the initial goto using Stellarium or Skytools.

[kirkster501]

http://www.astronomyforum.net/astro-imaging-forum/146721-need-help-astrotortilla-30.html

...a good thread on AT, just ignore the bits which go off topic discussing broadband etc...

[Demonperformer]

Quick question to anyone who uses the polar alignment option on AT.

I've just purchased an EQ6 and have been waiting for clear skies to be able to do the polarscope alignment. But if I am going to be using AT for my polar alignment (as is my intention) is there really any necessity to do this fiddly job? What I have read suggests that as long as the scope is within a couple of degrees of PA (which I presume should be the case if I have Polaris anywhere in the polarscope, irrespective of reticle alignment) then AT will do the job. It will need to be set up and taken down each session, as no permanent setup.

What do people think?

Thanks.

[perfrej]

The further away from perfect polar alignment you get, the more field rotation you get. Based on your longest anticipated exposure and the pixel scale/FoV of your imaging rig you can decide how much rotation you can accept.

/per

[Demonperformer]

Thanks for the response.

I realise that I will need accurate polar alignment, and this will be achieved through the AT module. It's more a question of how close to PA do I need to be for AT to be able to polar align the mount accurately, and if it doesn't need to be that close when it starts, is there any benefit to getting the polar scope properly aligned?

Or I guess on an even more basic level, it is a question of how good is AT's polar alignment module? As I will always be observing from the same location, the alt setting is always going to be very close (allowing for slight variations in tripod setup), but (for example) if the azimuth was within 5 degrees of N (and I would expect the polar scope will already do that without alignment), would AT still be able to work out the correct adjustments to get accurate PA, or would it be unable to cope?

Thanks.

[autonm]

tag

[Gina]

I feel such a fool

I've been wondering how to get AT to plate solve and go to any previously not imaged DSO, trying images from the 'net etc.  I knew AT could use CdC to do the job but I couldn't work out how.  Have to say I haven't tried recently due to gear problems, illness and the inevitable cloud, but I'm about to try again. 

After a Google search I came to this thread and started scanning through it (being quite long), got to page 5 where I was referred to the OP which I read carefully and there for all the world to see (but not me at first) was the answer .

So how does the GoTo perform? Last night I set up on my pier and started up the software - no star alignment - and told CdC to slew to M33, the initial unaligned slew was inaccurate as youd expect - almost an hour out in RA and a couple of degrees in DEC. So, with the three lower right tick boxes selected I hit Capture and solve, AT calls APT to fire off a 5 second image, reads it solves it, re-slews the scope to it's calculated position and triggers off a second image to check the slew and there is M33 bang in the center of the image, ready to start imaging... total time from unpark was less than two minutes.

I thought I had tried this before but maybe not quite in the right way - I can by pretty daft at times!!   So next clear hour or so of clear night sky I'll finish off my PA (with AT) and give the above a try.  I'll come back with the results   I'm not using APT but Artemis Capture with an Atik camera and use the Open dialog in AT as AT doesn't seem to link to Artemis Capture automatically (but that's no problem).

Maybe I should add that I find AT really great at plate solving and getting the scope accurately aligned on an object in previous images.

Thank you very much to Roger for starting this thread

[libraryman]

I have been using AT for some time, i find it works well, i have never tried the go to image tool !

Quick question: will this function allow me to select any previous raw sub. say a 20min Ha and AT will use that to plate solve.

Ray

[brancusi]

Once you get the hang of a few details, I find AT to be indispensible. For me the main gotcha's seem to be;

1) ASCOM needs to think your mount is pointing in roughly the right direction to start with and this means setting the date / time on the mount is a key step otherwise the RA is too far off to be usable. This has caught be out at least twice with my AZ-EQ6 and it's possibly an argument for moving to EQDIR which takes the handset out of the equation. I don't do any other start alignment before using AT.

2) Making sure you actually have all the required index files is, er, vital. When I started I hadn't downloaded the correct set and my f10 wouldn't solve at all. I've found that I only need the index sets 5 and 6 to be able to switch between f10 at 2000mm and using the 6.3 focal reducer. If you know which setup you are using, you can move index files out of the AT folders so that it only has the ones it needs - makes solving much faster.

3) If AT solves (it's great at this) but your scope won't sync, it means that ASCOM is likely rejecting the sync command because it thinks it is too far away from where the scope is pointing now and it will reject the sync command in a huff because it thinks you are being stupid. See point 1)

4) If AT won't solve and you think it is your image, try uploading to nova.astrometry.net before blaming your image. See what the online service thinks is your centre RA/DEC and then look at where ASCOM thinks you are pointing, check that you aren't restricting AT to only searching to within a few degrees of the target as that's another way you can get caught out.

Once you get the hang of it though, it's a huge timesaver and I can be aligned and getting DSO bang on the CCD within a few minutes of firing everything up - and that's for a scope on a field tripod. Can't quite make it to 2 minutes as I'm using an ancient Laptop for plate solving and so it generally takes 3 minutes or so - but I love the freedom it gives me.

[AndyKeogh]

I have been trying to get AT working with my camera and mount but I am not having much success

CdC has told the scope to goto Alcyone  and I can see in the camera image that it is there.

When I tell AT to capture and solve  It asks Nebulosity to take a 5 second image  and appears to solve it  but instead reports that it has failed to solve.

I would appreciate help from those who have AT working.  I am on Windows 7.

TIA

Andy

In the log it says:-

2015-03-08 20:20:48,368 - astrotortilla - INFO - Field size: 52.8659 x 39.3494 arcminutes

2015-03-08 20:20:48,371 - astrotortilla - INFO - Field center: (RA H:M:S, Dec D:M:S) = (03:47:25.252, +24:07:18.210).

2015-03-08 20:20:48,382 - astrotortilla - INFO - Field center: (RA,Dec) = (56.86, 24.12) deg.

2015-03-08 20:20:48,392 - astrotortilla - INFO - Field: /cygdrive/c/users/akeogh/appdata/local/temp/camgd445t/Capture.fit

2015-03-08 20:20:48,403 - astrotortilla - INFO - Field 1: solved with index index-4108.fits.

2015-03-08 20:20:48,411 - astrotortilla - INFO -   Hit/miss: +--+-++--+---+----+------+----+-+(best)---------------------------------------------------------------++++

2015-03-08 20:20:48,418 - astrotortilla - INFO -   RA,Dec = (56.856,24.1211), pixel scale 4.21721 arcsec/pix.

2015-03-08 20:20:48,427 - astrotortilla - INFO -   log-odds ratio 34.9821 (1.55782e+15), 10 match, 0 conflict, 23 distractors, 22 index

but at the end of the log states

2015-03-08 20:20:49,765 - astrotortilla - INFO - No solution in 9.0s

My log file is attached

AT_fail_1.txt

[themos]

Have you given astrometry.net an option that turns off the creation of the ".solved" file? I think that's "-S none"

[Thalestris24]

Hi

Looks like it solved... Did you have it set to sync scope and re-slew to target? If you don't, it doesn't do anything! 

Louise

[libraryman]

How do you get AT to solve a raw sub from a previous session, i tried it last but no joy, AT either stopped working or failed the solve!!

Ray

[Thalestris24]

Hi

I do it by setting StellariumScope to use the simulator. Likewis AT. If you know roghly where the target is you can slew the simulated scope to nearby otherwise it might be outside the search radius (which you can increase). I've had mixed results from trying to solve saved images - don't know why!

Louise

[AndyKeogh]

Have you given astrometry.net an option that turns off the creation of the ".solved" file? I think that's "-S none"

How psychic of you      I removed that option and it now solves for stored images.   Will try tonight with a real camera and mount   Thanks

[AndyKeogh]

Hi

Looks like it solved... Did you have it set to sync scope and re-slew to target? If you don't, it doesn't do anything! 

Louise

I had it set to sync the scope but nothing happened. Looks like Themos was on the right track.

Thanks

Andy

[themos]

How psychic of you      I removed that option and it now solves for stored images.   Will try tonight with a real camera and mount   Thanks

it's just that I've made the same mistake, by copying options from my PhotoPolarAlign back to AT without thinking.

[AndyKeogh]

it's just that I've made the same mistake, by copying options from my PhotoPolarAlign back to AT without thinking.

Which is what I had done.

Well last night was very successful  and AT synced on about 30 targets on both sides of the meridian.

Towards the end I was trying to sync on Capella  But CdC said that the sync was out by 29 arc minutes and refused to sync.  That can wait for another day.