Poll: GOTO / Push To or Find it yourself ?

[saac]

My name is James and I use GOTO.  

Jim 

[carastro]

37 minutes ago, Sunshine said:

Starsense Starsense Starsense! that is the balance I have always wanted, a push to dob with an accurate no fuss no adding electronics or digital circles or any other bits and bobs. Starsense is revolutionary, a system which allows me to push to while the app on the phone flawlessly guides my hand to the target. Time and time again over the last few months it has worked, even when stars are just coming out and barely visible, it finds its position and plate solves accurately. Do I work for Celestron? no, I just know a revolutionary pointing system when I see one, I also know at least 6 people who have put the phone module on their larger dobs with equal success and satisfaction. This past summer at  large star party I found myself doing more starsense demonstrations than looking through it myself. Every time I would show one person, they would end up coming back with two more people eager to see, I heard comments like "this is amazing" time and again. There isn't a more perfect combination of a traditional push to dob with a state of the art assistance.

Wow, as primarily an imager I had heard the name banded about but not had this system explained before, what a good idea.   

I should say, that I can become very familiar with star patterns even using my goto, as some targets are dim and not discernable until after you have perhaps taken images and stacked them.  Since I don't use Platesolving, I frequently study images of the target I want to image and then check all the star patterns match.  Sometimes I have to move the mount to get the target central even though I can't see it.  

Carole 

Edited February 28, 2023 by carastro

[Sunshine]

12 minutes ago, carastro said:

Wow, as primarily an imager I had heard the name banded about but not had this system explained before, what a good idea.   

Carole 

Yes it isn’t a new name, but what is fairly new is the phone module which does away with cables and the need for a computer and such. Just put your cellphone on the module which sits on your dob, the module reflects the sky onto your phone camera which allows the software to plate solve on the go. The starsense app shows you the sky with objects highlighted just like Stellarium for example, then you can either tap on an object or selected from catalogue and the arrows on the screen then tell you exactly where to push your dob to. Arrows literally bring you right to the object as you push your dob, once on target the target reticle on the screen turns green and you look in the eyepiece. So far I haven’t had to realign the module which is done just like aligning a finder scope, what I like is the audio, while viewing one of the more popular objects I can tap the audio tab and listen to fascinating facts about the object while I’m looking at it.  I’ll stop gushing 😂
 

BRILLIANT!

Edited February 28, 2023 by Sunshine

[StarDuke82]

Depends on what I’m observing but I usually Go-to

[AstroKeith]

I suspect that 'StarSense' technology will become almost standard fit within 5 years even for visual only equipment. Similar to integrated sat nav in cars and phones.

I'm currently using my own version on my Dob and the benefits are many. As has been said, in push to mode it can really get you on target easily and quickly.

In GoTo or tracking systems it can improve accuracy down to arc seconds, and eliminate the need for accurate mounts and initial alignments. For instance with my own Dob, I can just turn it on, point it at an object, and it immediately tracks perfectly without any need for set up or alignments. 

The cost of the 'star sense' could (should!) be less than the cost of accurate encoders, and certainly reduces the cost and weight of making an accurate mount. Much easier to install too.

Whilst attaching phones to scopes is OK for many, I believe it will be the integrated version that breaks into the market. I think there are two obvious methods. First, the easy one, is put the plate solver into the mount drive (this is what I did and required no extra processing power). The second is that pretty soon I think we will see astro cameras with built in solvers, which output RA&Dec on their USB or (hopefuly) ethernet ports.

Both of these really require standardisation of interfaces. I have found that the well used LX200 communication protocol includes enough commands to work.

[John]

11 hours ago, AstroKeith said:

I suspect that 'StarSense' technology will become almost standard fit within 5 years even for visual only equipment. Similar to integrated sat nav in cars and phones...

 

Interesting thoughts 🙂

I wonder if this poll was re-run in, say, 5 years time, the 70:30 split would be more like 90:10 ?

 

[JAC51]

Starsense?

Goto?

I’ve only just mastered setting circles and porter slip rings on my digital Losmandy for the 5” refractor.

For the little Tak star hopping and wide field eyepieces to start with at least.

[Whistlin Bob]

On 27/02/2023 at 15:24, carastro said:

on how ethical it is to present images where all you did was  buy the downloaded data from a hosted site  in the dessert somewhere and all you did was process it. 

I do a bit of this- it's good fun. I ventured that opinion on a Facebook group and it didn't go too well! I do find it less satisfying than images I've acquired from my own kit, but there's the compensation that it winds judgemental people up 🤣🤣🤣

It's strange to me that folks can get so animated about how other people choose to enjoy themselves- so long as it doesn't harm others I really can't see the problem- it's comforting that lots of others on here seem to be similarly relaxed.

[Marvin Jenkins]

I don’t know why everyone isn’t using goto without a scope!

60” 4k tv, internet connection and a scrolling image run of the Hubble archive.

Nice and warm. No need to learn any silly constellations as you will be indoors. Combine it with wiki for info gathering and your done.

No weather issues, light pollution, or satellite constellations to moan about. 
You can even observe deep sky objects in the day.

Now that’s a future worth gunning for. 🤣

Marv