When using SkySafari pro 6 and StarSense, how can I set limits as to where StarSense can slew?
My view is blocked on one side and when I align with SkySafari, it will slew my scope into areas where the view is blocked. Is there a parameter that needs to be set in SkySafari which will limit the slew?
Thanks
I think what you're asking for is called a Manual StarSense alignment. This is where instead of SS starting and completing the alignment on its own, you start at the start position, and then using the SS HC's move buttons point the scope to an area in the sky that's clear and press a button -- I think it's ENTER. When SS has taken its image the SS HC tells you to move to another position and you move the scope to another position and press ENTER. And you keep doing this until the SS HC reads that it has a solution. Then I think you press the ALIGN button on the SS HC and you're ready to go. As I recall, SS needs to take alignment images over around 1/4 to 1/3 of the sky before it has enough data points to complete an alignment.
I've only used this feature a few times, but it works well when the sky is partially obscured by trees, buildings or clouds. In my case it's almost always clouds that are preventing a completely automatic SS alignment. And so long as either there's a large enough clear area in the sky -- or the clouds are moving fast enough and leaving clear areas that you can go back and take data points that were previously obscured -- you should get a good alignment.
I don't know if there's a way of saving a custom alignment procedure such as this or not. But there might be.
Woody,
Thanks...there is a manual SS description in the SS manual. My question was.... using SkySafari Pro to align (Connect and Align command) , the scope slews to obstructed views of the sky. It doesn't know what is stored in the hand controller. Most times, it will solve 3 plates, then slew to the obstructed area and 'time out'.
So...how can I instruct SkySafari Pro to slew to the open sky only?
So far I've only done it from the SS HC -- not through the phone. Then after the alignment is done, I connect to SkySafari on the phone.
When I do it through the SS HC, I don't accept the default Auto-Algin, but change to Manual SS Align.
Give me a couple of hours and I should be able to see if I can do it using my phone only and the mount's built-in WiFi.
OK, here's what I've discovered using my Celestron Evolution mount and its built-in Celestron WiFi connected to SkySafari-6 Pro on my Android phone. So far as I know, using SkyPortal WiFi should work the same. And SkySafari on an iPhone should also work the same. You will NOT find these instructions in the Celestron StarSense manual because you're using SkySafari instead of the StarSense HC. I haven't looked in SkySafari's HELP section, but hopefully it has better instructions than what I just tried and will list here.
1) Connect your StarSense camera to the mount.
2) Turn your mount ON.
3) On your phone, go to your WiFi Network settings and connect to your mount. In my case that's "Celestron-EBA." Your WiFi network setting for your mount will be slightly different.
4) Launch SkySafari on your phone.
5) Tap SCOPE in SkySafari.
6) Your phone's display will show two buttons: "Connect and Align" and "Connect." Tap CONNECT.
7) Your phone will ding and you'll get the mount control buttons and at the bottom you'll see an Orange Celestron logo. Tap the orange Celestron logo.
8) This will take you to a SkySafari mount "Setup and Control" menu. Look down to "ALIGNMENT" and change the radio button from "Align Using StarSense Auto" to "Align Using StarSense Manual."
9) Close this menu -- back up to the main SkySafari window.
10) Tap "Align."
11) This will take you to the "Align Telescope?" window. Now this is where I'm guessing because it's daytime and I'm inside the house simulating this. But I "think" you use the mount move buttons on the SkySafari screen to point the scope at a clear part of the sky. And once there, tap the "Align" button. And StarSense will take an image and try to get a plate-solve. And once it has the first point solved, you use the move buttons again to slew to another clear spot in the sky and tap "Align" again. And you keep doing this until your phone says you have an alignment. And then you're good-to-go.
As I mentioned, I'm just simulating this in the house right now. But I think I'm probably 75% correct. Where I'm not clear is at which point you move the scope from it's reference or start position to a clear spot in the sky. But I think you'll catch on quickly.
But at least, you now know how to get to the StarSense Manual Align mode.
I also strongly recommend that you use SkySafari's HELP feature to get more and better information on the exact manual SS alignment procedure.
Hope that helps and gets you at least in the proper mode to accomplish what you need to do.
Woody!
Thanks a million for the detailed instructions. It is raining here (what else in new!) but I will try the set-up tonight indoors.
Lou
Woody,
So far your instructions are spot on!
- I've been using SkySafari for a year and would never have spotted the Celestron logo if you didn't point it out! Amazing!
- Set the menu for Manual align. Hit Align...then Align Scope.
That is as far as I could go indoor. And more rain is forecasted. I have little doubt your info is correct!
Fantastic! I will let you know how I make out when I actually get to sky align.
Lou
Lou,
Sounds good. Even if my instructions skipped something, I think you'll figure it out. It's worked for me in the past using just the SS HC. So I'm sure there's a way to do it using SkySafari on your phone too.
Woody...finally got clear skies and attempted a manual alignment...here is what I experienced.
When I hit align, the SkySense took a 'look' and compared it to a plate. I would occasionally get a solved plate but most often not. In approximately 10 attempts, I got 2 solutions. In all attempts, the scope was pointed at diverse, unobstructed areas of the sky.
Getting frustrated, I switched to Auto Align and let it do its thing. It slewed to open and obstructed targets and found an alignment! I tried this again by rebooting the AVX and the program and again it found a solution. Tried again and it failed!
I switched back to manual and could not get multiple solved plates. Gave up!
Playing the odds, automatic alignment seems to be working better than manual..
I am at a loss....
Lou
Lou,
Have you updated ALL your firmware and software?
When you use Celestron's CFM updating file, it checks each Celestron component and then updates all as necessary. This includes the mount main board and both mount motors, the StarSense camera, the SkyPortal WiFi device if you're using one and it's the latest Gen-3 that has updatable firmware, and the StarSense hand-control if it's plugged in at the time. If you're using SkySafari in your phone to align, you don't need to have the SS HC plugged in or have the latest firmware in it. And you need the latest SkySafari software also. But as far as I know, SkySafari updates itself so you "should" already have the latest version of SkySafari running. But it doesn't hurt to check.
If all your firmware and software is up-to-date and matched (internal mount firmware has to be matched so it all runs together smoothly -- for example you can't run an old version of firmware on the mount's main board and a newer version on the motors), then I don't have a clue what's going on.
So long as it's dark enough and there are no clouds or other obstructions, I almost always get plate solves the first time -- either in auto-align mode or SS Manual align mode.
How about bright lights? Is there any chance your SS camera is getting lens flare or something like that from a bright light (light in the house or a street light)?
The last time I got flakey results as you describe was last year -- before Celestron and SkySafari worked out all the StarSense database errors when SkySafari switched to a higher bit OS -- and we all discovered that nothing worked anymore. It took the two companies over a year to solve that problem, but so far as I know, those problems were solved in May of last year.
The only last thing I can think of is the OS of your phone. All my devices are Android and have worked great since the final Celestron firmware "fix" and SkySafari fix last May. And Apple iOS devices worked then too. HOWEVER, apparently something changed in iOS-14 (I think that's right) and suddenly things went bad for iOS users with the first couple of versions of iOS-14. But from what I've read, Apple has fixed that problem too. At least I think so. But as I don't use iOS devices, I don't know that for certain.