Going to bed during an imaging session

[AlistairW]

Hello,

So the weather reports around my area are good for 1am to 4am in the morning. Now I have to go to work the next day, so I could easily set up and start tracking at 10pm, then set a 3 hour delay and let the scope do its thing. Then wake up at 6am, before I go to work, and bring it all back in. Is this what people do that need to get to work but have good weather reports in the middle of the night ? (Of course on the off chance it does rain then I am going to be in trouble - but it looks very unlikly at the moment).

Thanks

Alistair.

[Stargazer33]

Personally I don't think I would risk my kit on a weather forecast. Not unless my rig was in an observatory with a rain sensor and automatically closing roof.

[miafey]

Hello,

So the weather reports around my area are good for 1am to 4am in the morning. Now I have to go to work the next day, so I could easily set up and start tracking at 10pm, then set a 3 hour delay and let the scope do its thing. Then wake up at 6am, before I go to work, and bring it all back in. Is this what people do that need to get to work but have good weather reports in the middle of the night ? (Of course on the off chance it does rain then I am going to be in trouble - but it looks very unlikly at the moment).

Thanks

Alistair.

Your risks will be:

1) weather change, even if it does not rain, may reduce the percentage of the data usable or the quality of the data;

2) anything happens with the set up will not be corrected in time so may accumulate

3) as temperature changes during the night your focus might slightly change as well so by the time it starts imaging your scope may be already out focus

4) Mmmm....personally, I wouldn't feel very comfortable leaving my entire set up at the back of the garden unattended (theft, damage by cats/birds/other animals etc)

You might have concerns at the subconscious level which might affect the quality of your night sleep anyway. So maybe it's not worth it. As they always say, the starts will always be there

[carastro]

I used to do this, but I found waking up and getting going very difficult, so I just stay up now.  

It is a bit of a risk of rain, but if you are absolutely sure it's not going to rain you could leave it running.

Carole 

[Dr_Ju_ju]

I'm in the same boat as you as I have to get up early for work (04:00  ), so after checking out Clear Outside, Forecast etc., I set up before I retire and then take in the OTA\cameras before I start  the commute.

It does help that I have a concrete pier, that has my mount bolted down & aligned.....

[redfox1971]

As we all no the weather is not always correct half mile down the road could have a shower while you are dry or other way about,I have only been caught out a couple times early in the evening by a  cloud spitting at my telescope whilst in the house warming up,i dash out close roof on observatory then cloud moves on and i don't bother opening back up and guess what clear for rest off the night,anyway if theirs any chance of rain don't leave unattended and also if theirs a slight wind as a shower could come over quicker.I do leave my telescope imaging after going to bed and set my alarm a couple of times to check all ok but boy it takes some getting back to sleep,no way can i stay up all night when got work next day so its a risk i choose to take.we don't get enough clear nights to just do nothing.

[steppenwolf]

I have heard of lots of people who do this but that rain risk would be too high for me which is why I have a domed observatory.

A part solution would be to have a rain detector/alarm so that if it does actually rain you will get an early warning to obviate the worst of the effects. Lost frames due to cloud coverage are not really a biggie, a shame but not 'destructive'. Focus change due to temperature changes could be easily resolved using an autofocus system and forcing a re-focus every 30 minutes or so or by calibrating the built in temperature compensation that some products have.

[almcl]

For me (also having to get up and go to work) it's not rain that's the issue, but dew. These windless, settled nights have been horrific lately. Camera, scope, laptop, covers &c have all been running with water after an hour or so's imaging and I haven't worked out how to keep the coma corrector dew free yet, either.

So tonight I will polar align the mount, then cover it and get everything else ready inside, before setting the alarm for the wee small hours and hope to see stars when it goes off!

[StargeezerTim]

I do sometimes give myself permission to sleep on the sofa... but rarely feel comfortable enough to drop off.

Sky box sets and pre-recorded programmes help while away the hours!

[Uranium235]

A word of warning, if youre going to leave it unattended you have to take into account the meridian flip (if starting on the Eastern side). Becuase if you leave it to go past the meridian for too long, you will be greeted by the lovely sound of a telescope and/or camera colliding with the mount or tripod legs... not good (and very broken).

[Pompey Monkey]

A word of warning, if youre going to leave it unattended you have to take into account the meridian flip (if starting on the Eastern side). Becuase if you leave it to go past the meridian for too long, you will be greeted by the lovely sound of a telescope and/or camera colliding with the mount or tripod legs... not good (and very broken).

This is where a pier is super-dooper! For objects below about 45 deg declination, the scope does not clash with the mount/pier and I can dispense with the meridian flip altogether

Also, I believe that APT can automatically force a flip about the meridian, re-align the telescope with plate solving and continue the imaging run, but I'm not quite that advanced yet!

I also have left my kit out al night capturing away, but only if I'm absolutely certain that it won't rain. I'm planning on doing some long integrations this winter (10 hrs plus) and this is the only way to do it.