Plate solving? What is it??

[Astroblagger]

As above, me not know?

[DougM43]

How strange, I've just been finding the answer to that very same question because I didn't know either

www.ccdware.com/help/ccdap5/hs670.htm

And I'm still not much better off.

[PhotoGav]

It's software that makes sure that your telescope is actually pointing at the target you sent it to. It does this by taking a picture through the telescope (using the already attached camera) and compares the star field to its database to determine where the scope is pointed. It then moves the mount if necessary and checks again until the scope is pointing at your target to within a specified degree of accuracy. There are various solutions out there, the one I use is Astrotortilla. It takes a bit of setting up and you have to specify various details about scope and camera combo, but there is a fantastic tutorial on line that will help you get it up and running.

I don't think I could image without plate solving. It is great for alignment to stars, especially at long focal length, is so easy to get you on target and, most importantly gets you back on to a target for multiple imaging sessions.

Hope that helps.

[steppenwolf]

What Gav said - plate solving confirms exactly where you are pointing so that later in the session or even another day you can return to exactly the same position - invaluable to imagers especially after a meridian flip.

[RichM63]

It is also very handy for 'automated detection and sky catalogue matching' of objects within an image.

Thus in something such as Unimap you can load an image and have the program identify and annotate the objects contained in the image. My most used parameter.

PS, Unimap is free and fun to use, just don't try it on Olly's 400 hr Orion. You'll have smoke pouring out of your PC.

[Astroblagger]

Do you just need a netbook or laptop to run it?

[NickK]

www.astrometry.net

[PhotoGav]

Do you just need a netbook or laptop to run it?

Yes, it runs on a computer that is connected to the camera and the mount. EQMod is the way to go with the HEQ5 that you have. Here are a few links:

EQMOD - http://eq-mod.sourceforge.net This takes a bit of setting up, but is so definitely worth doing. The majority can be done indoors on a cloudy evening!

Astrotortilla - http://sourceforge.net/p/astrotortilla/home/Home/

Tutorial to help install Astrotortilla - http://lightvortexastronomy.blogspot.co.uk/2013/08/tutorial-imaging-setting-up-and-using.html

Just a word of warning regarding the Astrotortilla install - the database of the sky is huuuuuuge, especially at small fields of view, so be prepared for it to take a veeeeeery long time to download the catalogues. I left mine running overnight and I have fairly decent, though not fibre, broadband! Well worth the wait though.

Good luck!