David's Astronomy Pages Notes - Session 745 (2020-01-25)

Notes (S744)

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Notes (S746)

	Session Aims & Highlights
	- Observing Result  - Night Summary Plot  - Session Event Log
	Operational Issues
	- Critical Issues (0),  Major Issues (0),  Minor Issues (2),  Continuous Improvement (1)
	Guiding Performance
	Secondary Scope Auto-Focusing
	Images from 2020-01-25  >>

Session Aims & Highlights (2020-01-25)

Main aims

1. Testing: Test new features in AstroMain 3.20.1 including new GuideSumm and  Seeing Charts
2. Targets: Acquire images of a number of deep sky objects

Equipment & Software

• 12" LX200 and ST-10XME
• 80mm APO and ZWO ASI 178MC
• CCDApp2, TheSky6, CCDSoft5, PHD2,  POTH Hub
• Pegasus UPB & Motor Focus, TCF-S
• SharpCap 3.2, PHD2  2.6.6dev3
   
• AstroMain 3.20.1 ,  Astroguard 1.2.11,   AstroPlan 1.14,  AstroShCap 1.2.15, AstroVOE 1.3.5, UPB 1.4.17  (AstroWeather 1.8.3, AstroAllSky 3.5.1)
  

Highlights

• T.

Lowlights

•   T.d

Summary Plots & Logs

Observing Plan

Observing Result

Dome & Scope Slewing Performance

Slew/Centering Performance

Sky Conditions (Locate Frames)

Night Sky Summary Plot Top axis: Sky Brightness at Zenith (in ADU/s) Lefthand axis: Local Time (hh LT). Righthand axis: Sun Altitude (degs)

Pre-Session Weather Forecast (API data from darksky.net) Forecast showed  moderately cloudy skies in first part of night (82-52% cloud cover) before improving after midnight to reach cloud cover levels of 11-19% between 02:00 and 04:00.  Windy (18-20 mph increasing later to 23-24 mph). In the event skies were clear between 21:00 and 23:30, but became cloudy after midnight.   Wind gusts caused problems during imaging/guiding Observatory automatically closed at 23:40 and apart from a brief attempt to reopen the observatory at 00:28 the observatory remained shut/suspended for the remainder of the night.

Session Event Log

Time     Event Detail 22:34:20   Camera1 Connected SBIG Camera Connected (set point -20°C) 22:34:22 Session Created Live Session Created (2020-01-25 S00745, ImageSaveNum: 745001) 22:34:34   Services Started Observatory Services started 22:38:43 Observatory (Auto) Observatory placed in Fully-Automated Mode 22:38:44 Session Pending Session pending (2020-01-25) 22:38:46 Session Initiating Session initiating (2020-01-25) 22:38:48   Plan Requested Observing Plan requested from AstroPlan (1.14) 22:39:14   Plan Loaded Observing Plan loaded to queue (2020-01-25 V1 BEST PLAN, Plan ID: 461) 22:39:18   Camera1 Connected SBIG Camera Connected (set point -20°C) 22:39:22   Telescope Connected Telescope Connected (TheSky6) 22:39:34 Session Equilibration Session ready for dome & camera equilibration 22:39:37   Equilibration Started Dome Equilibration started 22:39:39   Equilibration Skipped Dome Equilibration skipped by user 22:39:41 Session Running Session running 22:39:43   Queue Started Observing Queue started (27 targets selected) 22:44:44     Target Started (1/27) Target started (1/27, GCVS FO Ori) 22:47:19       Focusing Started-Foc1 Foc1 Focusing Started (TCF-S) 22:50:03       Focusing Completed Foc1 AutoFocus Completed (Profile No 1) 22:54:00     Target Completed Target completed (1/27, GCVS FO Ori) 22:54:02     Target Started (2/27) Target started (2/27, GCVS NV Ori) 22:56:49       Focusing Started-Foc1 Foc1 Focusing Started (TCF-S) 22:59:36       Focusing Completed Foc1 AutoFocus Completed (Profile No 2) 23:03:08     Target Completed Target completed (2/27, GCVS NV Ori) 23:03:10     Target Started (3/27) Target started (3/27, Basel 4) 23:06:01       Focusing Started-Foc1 Foc1 Focusing Started (TCF-S) 23:09:26       Focusing Completed Foc1 AutoFocus Completed (Profile No 3) 23:14:54     Target Completed Target completed (3/27, Basel 4) 23:14:57     Target Started (4/27) Target started (4/27, GCVS SU Tau) 23:16:47       Focusing Started-Foc1 Foc1 Focusing Started (TCF-S) 23:20:19       Focusing Completed Foc1 AutoFocus Completed (Profile No 4) 23:24:34     Target Completed Target completed (4/27, GCVS SU Tau) 23:24:36     Target Started (5/27) Target started (5/27, Biur 13) 23:28:32       Focusing Failed Foc1 Focusing Failed - unable to find a star (TCF-S) 23:35:54     Target Completed Target completed (5/27, Biur 13) 23:36:12     Target Started (6/27) Target started (6/27, Scholz's Star) 23:36:21   SoftSuspend Called Soft Suspend is called due to Deteriorating Conditions (too few stars) 23:39:16     Target Failed Target failed due to cloud (6/27, Scholz's Star) 23:39:18   Queue Paused Queue paused for SoftSuspend 23:39:22 Session Suspended Session suspended 23:40:11   Shutter Closed Shutter closed (closing time 49s) 23:49:22   Camera1 SetPoint SBIG Camera Set Point Temperature Updated (new set point -15°C) 00:09:08     Target Cancelled Target cancelled (7/27, Biur 11) due to cloud 00:28:41 Session Resuming Session resuming 00:29:00     Target Cancelled Target cancelled (8/27, NGC 2339) due to other condition 00:29:10 Critical Cloud Alert Critical Cloud Alert (Obs.Manager will close the Shutter) 00:29:45   Shutter Closed Shutter closed (closing time 35s) 00:30:26 Session Suspended Session suspended 00:30:28   Shutter Closed Shutter already closed (closed at 00:29, closing time 35s) 00:40:54     Target Cancelled Target cancelled (9/27, GCVS SY Cnc) due to cloud 01:01:01     Target Cancelled Target cancelled (10/27, Rose 6) due to cloud 01:23:23     Target Cancelled Target cancelled (11/27, Rose 11) due to cloud 01:45:45     Target Cancelled Target cancelled (12/27, IC 3608) due to cloud 02:08:17     Target Cancelled Target cancelled (13/27, Rose 30) due to cloud 02:30:39     Target Cancelled Target cancelled (14/27, Rose 1) due to cloud 02:53:01     Target Cancelled Target cancelled (15/27, Rose 2) due to cloud 03:15:23     Target Cancelled Target cancelled (16/27, Rose 32) due to cloud 03:37:45     Target Cancelled Target cancelled (17/27, IC 1007) due to cloud 03:53:37     Target Cancelled Target cancelled (18/27, GCVS CN Leo) due to cloud 04:13:19     Target Cancelled Target cancelled (19/27, Hickson 54) due to wind 04:35:41     Target Cancelled Target cancelled (20/27, NGC 4774) due to wind 04:58:13     Target Cancelled Target cancelled (21/27, Rose 31) due to wind 05:23:37     Target Cancelled Target cancelled (22/27, NGC 5468) due to wind 05:45:59     Target Cancelled Target cancelled (23/27, NGC 5994) due to cloud 06:08:21     Target Cancelled Target cancelled (24/27, IC 4461) due to cloud 06:30:43     Target Cancelled Target cancelled (25/27, SHK 219) due to cloud 06:42:09     Target Cancelled Target cancelled (26/27, GCVS R CrB) due to cloud 07:01:01     Target Cancelled Target cancelled (27/27, GCVS SS Her) due to cloud 07:01:06   Queue Completed Job Queue completed 07:01:11 Session Closing Session closing 07:01:16   Shutter Closed Shutter already closed (closed at 00:29, closing time 35s) 07:02:06   Dome Parked Dome parked (parking time 50s) 07:02:20   Telescope Parked Telescope parked (parking time 11s) 07:02:51   Scope Switched Off Telescope Power has been switched off via UPB Powerbox. 07:03:32   Services Stopped Night Services stopped 07:03:34 Session Housekeeping Housekeeping Started (Cleanup FITS, Create Fits Summary, Transfer Files) 07:03:40 Session Finished Session Finished

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Operational Issues (2020-01-25, S745)

• Critical Issues (0)
• Major Issues (0)
• Minor Issues (2)
• Continuous Improvement (1)

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Critical Issues

• None

Major Issues

• None

Minor Issues

• Foc2 focusing using new SharpCap AutoFocus routine failing as SharpCap capture folder not available for storing Pointing Folder
  Fixed 2020-01-26 (AstroMain 3.20.2)
   
• AstroMain Foc2 focusing routine 'hung' on one occasion waiting for ShCap response when ShCap and/or SharpCap weren't running or not connected.   The routine was aborted ok,  but there should be better checking / TimeOut.  Issue closed on 2021-01-04 following a review that showed that the AstroMain was essentially stable (following a series of improvements and fixes), with an absence of any unexplained program hangs or crashes during the 35 sessions between  2020-09-18 & 2021-01-03.
  Closed 2021-01-04 (AstroMain 3.33)
  

Continuous Improvement

• Remove comma (,)  from C Term display on Focus Profile graph
  Done 2020-01-26 (AstroMain 3.20.2)

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Secondary Scope Auto-Focusing

Focusing of TS 80mm GuideScope using SharpCap Multi-Star FWHM Measurement has not given sufficiently satisfactory results. When there is a good star field with a lot of stars the process works ok,   but it seems to rely on SharpCap being able to detect more than 10 stars even when stars are out of focus (which must envitably happen during focusing).   More often than not SharpCap doesn't find enough stars when starting the focus profile and give null  (20.0) FWHM results, and after 6 successive focus steps with null FWHM results  AstroMain's Automated Focusing Routine will abort or have insufficient data to determine a best focus position

A new routine has been developed to access SharpCap Single Star FWHM Measurement results in order to perform autofocusing. (See SharpCap Notes - Area Selection for FWHM Measurement )

Prior to the session S00475, the new routine was tested out on live star fields.  The process basically worked  but some of the Focus Profiles produced confusing and contradictory results, with results depending on the particular star field used and the brightness of the brightest star.   In the end it it was concluded that process needs to be run on bright stars (mag 2-3) in order to get a good reliable profile and that human overview is required until .   WIth some dimmer stars the profiles would clear suggest a best focus position (good profile) that lay some 300 steps outside the expected range, and in distinct contrast to the visual image indicating bloated / out of focus stars at the supposed position of best focus.    The same star would generate a profile showing lowest (most out of focus) score at the focuser position corresponding to actual best focus.

For a while it was thought the SharpCap was actually giving highest score for best focus, but this was overturned by later profiles on a brighter star and visual inspection of the full field frames.

With some dimmer field the focus star would give a profile that was very flat (with no clear peak).

Focus Profile 2. no indication of a FWHM peak at expected position of best focus (9150-9200)

Focus Profile 4. suggests a FWHM peak (ie 'best focus) towards 9400 or so

Focus Profile 5 appearing to support a FWHM peak ('best focus') around 9430 (but notice that point are flat beyond 9430 and don't turn down)

Focus Profile 8 confirming a very flat profile beyond 9400 (ignore rogue point at 9600 !)

Focus Profile 9. showing an apparent FWHM high ('best focus') at around 9500 but this is at a position that was clearly out of focus from visual insepction of full field frames Again note that the 4 right hand points are flat and don't turn down

Focus Profile 10. showing a FWHM low at around 9100 at a position that was close to the expected best focus / close to the finally established best focus (at this point it was thought that SharpCap might be calculating focus scores with opposite polarity in some way ! really confusing !)

Focus Profile 13 (from a dimmer star) shows a slight FWHM low at least a FWHM flat (ie no peak at around 9050  (in constrast profile 19 from a bright star shows a well forming FWHM profile)

Focus Profile 18 (from a brighter star) shows a well shaped FWHM profile  with a clear FWHM peak ('best focus') at 9088. Visual inspection of full field frames confirm this position is well focused.

Focus Profile from S746 (from a moderately bright star) shows a somewhat ambiguous FWHM profile which is slightly thrown off by one point at ~ 9225 steps.  FWHM peak was picked by software routine at 9037  (5.5 degC cooler than 2020-01-25 test session)

Focus Profile from S747 (from a brighter star) shows a well shaped FWHM profile  with a clear FWHM peak ('best focus') at 8933  (4.8 degC cooler than 2020-01-25 test session)

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Guiding Performance

Session saw first use of a new chart type that is designed to highlight the varying quality of guiding performance across different parts of the sky.

During the short (0.9 hour) session all 5 guided targets lay in one relatively small patch of sky. Consequently the plot was unable to show the suspected differences between the area west of Meridian (asserted to have worse guiding) and east of Meridian (asserted to have better guiding).  

Target guiding was badly affected by wind gusts.  
Best guide run (no.3) has average RMS of 1.4", compared to 3.4 - 4.1 for guide runs 1,2 & 4. 
Guide run no. 5 (RMS 145") failed  completely due to cloud (star lost in 85% of guide frames)

Notes:
- points show the quality of individual guide runs relative to their sky position
- left-hand plot shows Average RMS for all frames, right-hand plots show Average RMS for the Worst Frame or FrameSet

Example of Guiding Performance from Session S745

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