How do I add more data ?

[Coriorda]

Hi Everyone,

I have a question about additional data. It seems data is everything when it comes to imaging and the fabulous professional images we see often quote 10 + hours of integration time. It seems unlikely that all of this data can be captured in one “sitting” so how do you add data to an ongoing project? Do you have to ensure all the settings ( ISO, exposure etc) are all identical ? And would you have to restack the entire collection of subs again or can you stack the stacked images from each session ? 
many thanks 

[smashing]

Now that I've got plate solving in APT running and plans established that work best for my kit this becomes a doddle.

I keep my ISO the same and Deep Sky Stacker will happily stack multiple nights of imaging together.

[alacant]

3 hours ago, Coriorda said:

Do you have to ensure all the settings ( ISO, exposure etc) are all identical ?

Hi

Not necessarily, but much easier if you do. Leave the camera attached to the telescope at the very least and +1 for @smashing's recommendation of plate solving to get you back to the same place. If (unlike us!) you have the patience, you could do e.g. 2 hours before and 2 hours after the meridian for 3 sessions; 12 hours whilst you sleep:)

Cheers and HTH

Edited January 24, 2021 by alacant

[steppenwolf]

You should ideally use the same camera settings although temperature on a DSLR camera is obviously dependent on ambient. Aim for the closest matching camera orientation that you can obtain and, again, ideally you should plate solve to the exact same point in the sky but unless the object fully fills the sensor, this is not that critical. I would recommend that you re-align and stack ALL the images from the various sessions for the final image.

[Coriorda]

Thanks for the advice guys, am not yet at the point of plate solving so will have to let DSS handle the alignment of the new data - hopefully not too big an issue 😁