I just got my new Celestron AVX and followed the information here. WOW!! I'm one very happy camper. I have a Skywatcher EQM-35 Pro that I could not make work. I don't know why and right now I don't care. With this video I managed to align the mount and actually found what I was looking for. The WO Zenithstar 61 is catching light right now. Thanks again
Just a tip. I use a red dot or Telrad finder to make searching for the alignment stars that are out of my cameras field of view. It saves a lot of time.
@@jonyoder2356 Lasers are handy. I've even placed one up to the eyepiece of my optical finder or refractor telescope. The beam projects into the sky and helps with rough alignment. It's not as accurate as having it mounted, though.
Take it from someone who observes in the Florida Everglades (basically a huge, humid swamp)... Thermacell for those mosquitos. It's almost as essential as the telescope.
A few months ago, my new Celestron 8" SCT on the AVX mount arrived. While I love the scope, AVX alignment left a bit to be desired. Even with a full 4 star alignment....it was close but no cigar. That said, still figured I was missing something. I had checked this vid before my scope arrived, but thought I still might have missed something. Uhhh, yeah....like the whole "polar alignment" part! Waiting on clear skies to have another crack at alignment AND polar alignment. Thanks a million!
Why not mention how you got the star-map on the compute, how does it connect (and to what), is it a software that came with the mount, is it a free 3rd party software, etc ?
Thank you for this brilliant video. Now I got no excuses of I don't know how to on my CGX mount. Great video especially for those in the Southern Hemisphere. Thank You, Sir!
I'm learning to polar align and found this video very helpful because you didn't skip over things and kept the camera rolling. It really is quite a process(to a newbie). I had quite a good sweat going by the end of polar aligning last night. It was really good to see you were a little warm at the end of the process too.:-) I have to carry my gear out each time, how good would it be to have automated, perfect alignment?
Thank you. I have been using Celestron mounts (ASGT, AVX, CGEM-DX) for years but did not know this option existed. I have a polar scope and align to that and hope for the best. I'll try this when it clears up again.
@@timtim4664 I tried it a couple weeks ago and got excellent results. I was shooting Jupiter at f/20 (5600mm fl) and it stayed in the little box I drew around it. Its not hard either.
I had not realised the significance of this feature on the handset. Thanks for a good explanation. I have a finder scope accurately aligned to the main scope so this should help. My only concern is my CGX scope's backlash - but that is another story!
I know this is an old video at this point, but this is great! I have the older celestron CG5 mount and I'm totally going to check and see if the hand controller has this feature on the next clear night. I'm one of those dorks who still uses my hand controller for the initial alignment, mostly because I have issues with the mount not knowing where it is when I first turn it on and try to use it with my computer.
If you have a ccd and filter wheel attached, here’s a trick I use to get an early alignment before the sun is down. First setup as close to north as possible, then with the hand control do a ‘quick’ alignment. After slew to a solar system object. With mount adjustments get the object centered. I find this gets me within less than a degree. Next go back to home position and start anew with the “two star’ alignment, but this time with ccd at shortest exposure and h-alpha or s-ii filter in place. With a bit of luck 1mag stars should be visible. Now are ready for the ASPA. I’ve achieved less than arcmin accuracy doing this.
Hi Dylan, I have the same mount and I was wondering if you have the same issue when you tighten the Altitude Lock Knobs that it moves the star a bit. The same thing happens when I tighten the Azimuth bolts too but to a lesser degree. I find myself doing a trial and error trying to compensate for the movement.
Great video Dylan. I used to do this on my back deck with an eyepiece and lighted reticle. It never worked very well for me as my guiding was always substandard. I finally figured out that as i stood next to the scope to adjust the alt/az knobs my weight was deflecting the wooded deck , ever so slightly, give me a false reading on my alignment....grrrr one of the many mistakes i have made in this hobby....lol
This helps! I thought that GoTo alignment mean the mount was polar aligned. Its only roughly. Needs the ASPA procedure to do photography. Does it make any difference what your mounts initial alt/az starting position is? That is, I assume you have the RA axis roughly pointed at the S celestial pole because I observed that the mounts first slew was to the correct general direction of your chosen star (Achernar)?
So here's how I set up modeling for my telescope (aka, T-Point for some, two-star align for others). 1) Let the hand control tell me what star it wants to center on. 2) Enter that star name in the Framing tab of N.I.N.A. 3) Let N.I.N.A. do the search and centering with the aid of plate solving using ASTAP. 4) Go back to the hand control and finish the model and align operation. 5) Repeat until modeling is done. Oh, so simple! By the way, I think this could also be done with SGP, MaximDL, TheSkyX, and others - any app that can perform search, plate solving, and centering. Throw away your Finder! Not needed anymore - unless you're doing visual astronomy.
Hi Dylan, excellent video. This verifies that what I was doing last night (with my new CGX) is exactly what you're doing. However, after I did, I still was getting star trails on even 2 min exposure on a F4.7 10" newtonian. My question is this: My 10" newt is mounted with mount rings and a dovetail plate, so there will be inherent physical differences in the optical axis of the OTA and the RA axis. I was assuming that the ASPA is not predicated on perfect physical coincidence of the OTA axis at the RA axis. I spent hours going back and forth, attempted ASPA three times, and finally called it a night. Looking forward to your response and thanks!
@@DylanODonnell Hi Dylan, thanks for getting back. I mean, if the OTA and the RA axis are not parallel for various reasons (such as cone error and the such) resulting in some relative pitch angle and yaw angle of the OTA with respect to the RA axis. Even collimation changes of a newtonian can result in a fraction of a degree difference. I am going out again tonight, and following your via, going to use stars in locations you've suggested, such as on the celestial equator and on the meridian away from the pole.
I got alignment done, the thing I picked up was to get good alignment, but iterate. So I did twice to get to zero error, and then placed camera on, and did again after rebalancing. It did take a while but I got there. Definitely your video helped!
This looks like a great feature - I hope I can find something like it on SynScan. Also... if it was NOT available on other slewing hardware, it would be really fantastic if it could be added as a feature to PHD. Right? I imagine it could be done? Same story with the "spiral search" feature - couldn't that be added to PHD? Thanks again for the video!
@sameera 271 sorry for the late reply, it works well, I do a 2 star alignment, add four cal stars then polar align with ASPA. Good enough to guide from.
This is completely opposite to how I polar align. I normally polar align first then calibrate the goto. It made me wonder if i have being doing this wrong since I started. I have the Celestron AVX mount so I believe it has this function built in to the mount.
That's fine to do that way if your mount doesn't move.. everytime you go through the processes it gets closer. But I believe the mount needs to know the star alignment first before it knows how far out the polar alignment star really is. And yeh I think your mount supports ASPA .. a most underrated feature!
Thank you for this, Dylan! I'm new to telescopes and after three tries on my first night out I got polar alignment that was good enough for the scope to find Saturn, but not enough to be centered in the eyepiece. I look forward to trying this tonight!
Yes a rough start with a camera instead of eyepiece in focuser...I will use an eyepiece next time. I have also written customer support at Celestron. I am 26' (below) in altitude from NCP, and 1' 26" too far west in azimuth. I can't raise the altitude without the knob becoming loose. I rotated the pier very slightly to the west as I was at the extreme left of the slotted openings at the top of the (4) base plate...so out again tonight, if any breaks in the clouds, to make azimuth adjustments with Sharpcap.it will be very difficult to get very accurate positioning in azimuth as I don't have fine control or the range is extremely limited, unless my slight rotation happened to fall within the narrow azimuth adjustments...with the altitude, impossible until I get some advice from tech support....I want the PA in excellent alignment in PA before I start the ASPA although this could be redundant....however I have imaging as the goal.
I don't understand how you can do a star alignment first and then do a ASPA (all star polar alignment) next. With the initial alignment, you have aligned the mount with the star field and then you do an ASPA which requires you to adjust the mount knobs. It seems to me this mount knob adjustment would throw off the initial alignment because you are manually moving the mount with the knobs. How would the software know the mount has been moved?
Thank you Dylan. Us noobies do need basic info like this, I always wondered what the old pros were talking about when they mentioned 2+4 alignment. BTW, you got quite a setup. Kudos.
Is it possible to combine the All Star methodology into the initial Two Star Align procedure? When the scope slews to the first calibration star, instead of using the hand control, adjust alt/az on the mount, or even shift the tripod, to center it. Then press Enter/Align to continue with the Two Star (or more) Align. When the mount does the first slew, it's going to where the star would be if it were already PA, right? So wouldn't centering the star by adjusting the mount's alt/az, or moving the tripod, both accomplish the first star calibration and PA at the same time? And also eliminate the need for updating the star alignments after the All Star PA as the manual recommends?
That's if the mount is up to scratch. My CGX has been a piece of rubbish from day 1. Sent my PHD logs to Celestron, and "suggested" I do this and that - don't they think I have already tried it!
Hey Dylan, for the rough polar alignment I point my Cgx directly to the south and set my latitude to my location in Melbourne like 37. When I do the 2 star alignment and the scope finds the first 2 stars, the the mount is way off those stars it wants to align to. Is my rough polar alignment correct ?
Hey Dylan, great video! Quick question: the CGX is an equatorial mount, yet you adjust the screws for altitude & azimuth, is that right? I know you corrected yourself when you initially said RA and DEC. Also I take it you still physically align your mount as close as possible to the SCP to minimise your reliance on software-based polar alignment?
Yes that's right .. they are alt/az adjustments ... 0 degrees = horizon, unlike RA/DEC where 0 degrees / or hours is somewhere in the sky which changes based on where you are. The directions are the similar (left/right/up/down) which is why I lazily used the terms interchangeably. There are a few different methods for "rough" polar alignment .. I really should make a video about it!
Dylan O'Donnell Please do! I’m an absolute beginner, making up a wishlist of astrophotography gear to get started. I’ve got somewhat dark skies and a nice back yard (actually small acreage just out of town), but the SCP is blocked by a hill and trees. I’d love to know a “good enough” method of polar alignment, don’t know if I could be bothered doing drift alignment every single session though.
Thanks for another good video. I do have one question because I probably wasn't listening close enough and missed it. Before you do any alignment at all I am guessing that you have the mount physically facing in the general direction of the pole, am I right? It might seem like an obvious answer but I want to make sure I have EVERYTHING right. On my prior mount with a wedge I used SkySafari / SkyPortal and laid my IPhone on the mount to have it as close to being as polar aligned as I could prior to aligning through the handset.
That's a fair question :) i didn't cover the initial rough alignment at all. I have a few good tricks so I should probably make a video about this too! thanks!
Dylan...I have a question about aligning my telescope. I have an Orion 8 inch Newtonian mounted on a celestron advanced vx mount. I live near Wilmington, DE in the US and the light pollution around me makes it almost impossible to polar align to polaris. I can make out Cassiopia and the Big Dipper, but when I look through the polar alignment scope I can barely make them out and most times I cannot make them out enough to match them with the polar scope. So I was trying your All Star Alignment method and could not ever seem to find the stars it was trying to align to. When I was watching this video you made it seemed like when you found the star that you were trying to align to it looked very big on your screen (almost the size of the center circle...if not bigger). The biggest stars I was seeing on my Backyard EOS program screen were pinpoints. Are the alignment stars supposed to be much bigger or how do I tell which star is which when aligning? Any help you could provide would be greatly appreciated.
Nice video, Dylan. When you were at the last stage of Polar Alignment and you were using the Altitude knob and Azimuth knobs to center the star ( or same thing if I'm using the PoleMaster) the azimuth knobs don't always have enough play to move the star left or right into the center. So I find I have to loosen the four hex bolts on the base (CGX-L mount) in order to give the azimuth knobs enough play. Guess I'm not roughly Polar aligned close enough to begin with. Any suggestions? Because tightening up those hex bolts sometimes moves the star or Polaris off center again.
Hi Dylan, I have been watching your videos with interest. I use a Starsense on my CPC800. I was looking at a Hyperstar, but have decided against it, More that I am wary of purchasing a wedge. After considerable thought, I have decide to keep the CPC800 as a purely visual scope, and eventually invest in a RASA. My question is, would the Starsense be of value in initial alligment, and subsequent polar alignment of a RASA with much the same configuration as your ?
I had the same question. According to Rod Mollise’s book (Choosing and Using a New CAT), it is necessary to do the 2 star align again, after a polar align.
So if I point my mount roughly at Polaris, do my alignment stars and calib. stars, then use the polar alignment feature in the menus that will be just as good as doing a proper polar align before the alignment process?
Thank you for sharing! I was trying to figure out how to do this because the Celestron Crappy manual sucks! Loool Seriously thanks though for sharing! Nice observatory! :)
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Does that mount have limit switches so it won't run into itself? My reflector ran into itself and sheared off the bracket for the guide scope, broke a 350$ servo motor, and broke a 250$ worm gear.
I know this video is old but during the polar alignment process besides azimuth kbobs am I supposed to also play with the lattitude adjustment knobs? Becausse I have to adjust all 3 in order to get the star for polar aligment in place.
From memory (it’s been a while and I don’t have this mount anymore) .. it asks you to Only one axis at a time. Get the star as close as you can, doesn’t have to be dead Center. Then it will ask you to do the other axis next and it will be dead Center. If it’s not, run through the whole process again.
Curious why, with the proximity of a PC to your mount, you still use the hand controller? Is it just personal preference and what you are familiar with? Why not use CPWI on the PC to control the mount? Is there some capability the hand controller offers that CPWI can't match? Just the convenience of not having to enter time and location each time you power on the mount should be motivation to use a PC for control.
@@DylanODonnell Thank you! I'm new to this, purchased my first telescope about 4 months ago. I have an EdgeHD 8" on the Evolution mount, and recently added a wedge. Now thinking about adding an OAG. I control the scope using CPWI on a laptop connected to the mount via Wi-Fi. Allows me to control the scope in the backyard from inside the house. The laptop stays outside because the camera is connected to it via USB, but I use Remote Desktop on my PC in the house to access CWPI and BackyardNikon running the the laptop. I assumed my guiding would use ASCOM to send correction signals to the mount through CPWI, but if that isn't reliable I'll have to rethink my approach.
As always, a very helpful video- thanks. Once you’ve aligned the OTA with the 2:4 star alignment completed ASPA, then you slew to another star (or even the sync star), the star will often not be centered. Is there a way to correct for this and show the mount where it should be? I’ve seen posts where people say you should adjust the screws until the star is centered but I’m not so sure about that. Any advice?
hello. thsnk you fot thisd video!!! verry verry helpful. pls, can u tell me what soft did u use there on the display? and is it is conect with the mount and scope? thanak you
Hello Dylan,Great video again.I just rewatched your PHD2 guiding video of 3 months ago.May I ask why you don't use the PHD polar alignment method.Thanks Greg
Thanks! I used to when I was using the EQ6 mount but the in built ASPA is so fast, easy and accurate I tend to just use that these days then save that alignment for several sessions afterwards.
Thank god finally someone with the same scope as mine AND in Australia! I had issues with getting mine properly aligned. How did you position your tripod prior to fitting mount, isn't it supposed to be facing south? Did you use a compass? Cheers
Yeh it’s a hassle without a good pole star like the northern hemisphere. I have a trick I’ll need a video to demonstrate. Stay tuned! And high five for having the same scope :)
Hey, I just bought a Celestron Advanced AVX. I plan on doing mostly visual astronomy. The manual suggests that there is a bubble level in the mount, but I couldn’t locate it. Should I remove the mount from the tripod head and place a level first? Is it really necessary if I follow the alignment procedure you outlined or would tracking and slewing be accurate enough? Thanks for the videos...I’m learning so much.
I have an AVX mount and I rarely if ever balance it out. The errors in the level of the mount will be factored out as you proceed with polar alignment.
Level the tripod first, assuming you're on very solid ground, like a concrete driveway, before putting on the mount head. I use an app called Bubble Level to put the phone atop the tripod to check it for levelness. Probably safer to use a real bubble level. If you note the positioning of the tripod legs and their extension and set it up in the same place each time, getting the mount level will take less than a minute.
If you use plate solving to center the star for you during your two star alignment, you wouldn’t need to bother with a finder scope at all. You might have to nudge the star a bit after plate solving, but if I’m wishing 5% of center, I don’t even bother with that. Plate solving takes all the drudgery out of finding and centering on objects.
Amazing explenation Dylan thank you! You wouldn't happen to know if this is possible with Skywatcher mounts? specifically NEQ6-pro... I couldnt find the Polar Align option in the controller and figured this mount doesnt support it (probably because it doesnt know the state of the gears?)
@@MichaelLevAstro I have a Skywatcher EQ6 Pro mount which supports my Skywatcher 250PDS scope. The hand controller on my mount supports ASPA. You have to do a 2 or 3 star alignment "first" then, if you go back into the alignment menu on your hand controller, you should see an option for Polar Alignment. I think my controller version number is 4.3 something. It's the latest hand controller firmware update, anyway.
What's powering your mount? I'm sorry if you've already covered that topic, but it would be interesting to analyze all the options an amateur astronomer has, from car's cigarette lighter to more expensive batteries...
A 12vc DC power supply plugged into an AC mains. It’s an observatory so no cigarette lighter cables :) Celestrons new range of lithium ion portable battery’s are really cool though.
These are the new ones I mean .. very portable : www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01G7J097Q/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B01G7J097Q&linkCode=as2&tag=dylodon-20&linkId=ebfd1e53e57e45ab1c444abdc43990f3
I just got a 4K Mavic Air. It's got a great camera on it. I've been just doing basic things with so as to get comfortable. My plan is to use my Rhino Slider or my Ioptron Sky Guider Pro to capture Milky Way shots over the swamp this summer and blend so aerial shots before and after. A lot to learn! Ha ha
I am quite new to star gazing and astral photography, and can't help but wonder- are there no mounts that allow you to enter your latitude and longitude with altitude to calibrate star/planet/nebula tracking? It just seems to me that these companies that charge thousands for these systems would have figured that out by now!
Well, i had a clear night to test my tiny setup a bit and this is the result - what do you think about it? abload.de/img/ngc7814ober7.jpg It's NGC 7814 and yes it was the only object to image from a tiny balcony. Not the best choice but hey ... better than nothing. The image was live-stacked with Sharpcap, 360x 5s, unguided. Using a Celestron C6 XLT + 0.63 reducer i am looking for a matching camera now. The ASI385MC is nice for lunar and planetary but DSO are not that great with it. Do yu know any source how to get a nearly perfect camera for a specific scope?
Ha. This fella could feel right at home here in North Central Texas, we have a mosquito population to rival his! That does still seem like a lot of star centering. I however have a CPC Alt/Az and I wish at times I could polar align and try small time astro imaging. The only thing the CPC has going for it is the built in GPS.
Thanks for the video, dude. It helps a lot. In my university here in Brazil we have a similar telescope model. It's a Celestron CGEM that came to us 5 months ago. We're getting so much trouble to calibrate it. We don't know how to make the telescope track the astro's movement.
Polar alignment is also a pain in the rear for us northerners who live close to the equator. During the summer Polaris is below the northern horizon. The closest star to the north pole I can see is Mizar.
Dylan, this is SO HELPFUL! Thanks very much. I just got a new 8" Edge HD and Polaris is behind a big building. Amazing help. Another question: I have two 6 year old twins that have less patience than me and I would like to show them the live picture of the scope as you did in the video? You mentioned you used a DSLR? I also have a Canon 70D, the T Ring etc. but what software did you use or would you recommend so I can get a "live feed" from the scope and can show my kids? Thank, Chris
@@DylanODonnell Thanks Dylan! Just out of curiosity, I saw in the comments below that you used Sequence Generator Pro in this video? Why do you recommend Backyard EOS over this? Cheers
hey there dylan. does the all star polar alignment method basically replace the need for the polar finder scope method for aligning your mount? granted youre oriented north and lat set? or should both be used in conjunction with each other?
Great video Dylan, when you "move the screws" for mechanical polar alignment, are you loosening the RA & Dec clutches and moving the OTA, or does the CGX mount have actual screws that you are adjusting instead? Thanks..
It's the mechanical adjustments of the mount, so the 4 big bolts and the altitude screw with the 2 clutches. Now I find that tightening back the bolts does move the polar alignment and so you have to do this delicately and keep checking that tightening back the mount doesn't throw off the alignment and compensate. It's more fiddly than you think, especially if you are pretty far apart.
What I am toying with, ie I've tried it once, is that on the first object, not align it with the arrows but mechanically first but aligning the mount on the assumption that for a new alignment the first star the mount assumes perfect polar alignment THEN align with the arrows. So after I've aligned my first star my polar alignment should be pretty good and subsequent stars should have little error in them. I later end up doing the polar alignment with the paddle with a given star. It makes sense but I am not sure if I am getting a better alignment in the end. Any ideas?
I see your logic and I have to admit .. I've done this too. I think your methodology is totally fine and I think that while it won't improve the PA overall (the difference would be negligible after 6 stars), it will improve the GOTO for the initial alignment stars :)
What I like about this, is that early on in the alignment process, you see if your mount is placed on the ground in a way that means that the horizontal adjustments will be sufficient to reach polar alignment. Vertical adjustment is almost endless but horizontal adjustment has a lot less wiggle room. It would be annoying after having adjusted 4 stars to notice that you have to start all over again because you don't have the mechanical movement needed to reach polar alignment.
Thanks heaps for the vid. I was having real trouble getting my mount to go to with any form of accuracy so many thanks for the tips. The only difficulty I continued to have was with polar alignment. I tried it twice and both times it was worse than when I calibrated 4 stars. Just wondering though, where did you get your dome and what are the benefits for having one? Cheers
Having the dome really helps in staying polar aligned over time, so you pretty much have a fixed setup. Once you align, you are good to go in perpetuity! I dont have one right now, but would love to get one of these at some point www.observatory.store/NexDome-Observatories_c_8.html
Great video Dylan your software you where using to do the alignment seem to have the star catalogue names how did you get that????? Is that plate solving
Sorry for not relying ! Yes it’s SGP but that’s not plate solving that’s just showing the focus HFR reading for each star which is how it gets its average reading. Would be amazing if plate solving was that fast 😆
Yep. Dylan is way way south of the Equator. The 2 + 4 method he described is for Celestron mounts, as far as I know. Celestron has an optional device called StarSense for easy star alignment which will also work for some SkyWatcher mounts. Maybe, don't know for sure. some Orion mounts too as they (SkyWatcher and Orion) both use SynScan hand controllers by a Chinese company called Synta.
Hi Dylan. I notice you have two cables coming out of your guide camera (which looks like a ZWO camera?). I only use the one cable plugged straight in to my PC for guiding (using PHD2) from my ZWO. Can you describe your guiding set up.
That's because you are using the ascom setup instead of the guide port one.. which is better! I really should make the jump. It means not having to recalibrate after changing targets. :) PHD2 video in the pipeline.
I had a feeling you were doing that. Just wanted to make sure I wasn't missing something possibly better :) I'm always looking for new and better ways to do things. Cheers
I just got my new Celestron AVX and followed the information here. WOW!! I'm one very happy camper. I have a Skywatcher EQM-35 Pro that I could not make work. I don't know why and right now I don't care. With this video I managed to align the mount and actually found what I was looking for. The WO Zenithstar 61 is catching light right now. Thanks again
Just a tip. I use a red dot or Telrad finder to make searching for the alignment stars that are out of my cameras field of view. It saves a lot of time.
I have a green laser pointer set up next to my finder scope and it has made all the difference when trying to find an object.
@@jonyoder2356 Lasers are handy. I've even placed one up to the eyepiece of my optical finder or refractor telescope. The beam projects into the sky and helps with rough alignment. It's not as accurate as having it mounted, though.
Take it from someone who observes in the Florida Everglades (basically a huge, humid swamp)... Thermacell for those mosquitos. It's almost as essential as the telescope.
❤Thermacell do nothing here in Australia , our mozzies laugh at it
A few months ago, my new Celestron 8" SCT on the AVX mount arrived. While I love the scope, AVX alignment left a bit to be desired. Even with a full 4 star alignment....it was close but no cigar. That said, still figured I was missing something. I had checked this vid before my scope arrived, but thought I still might have missed something. Uhhh, yeah....like the whole "polar alignment" part! Waiting on clear skies to have another crack at alignment AND polar alignment. Thanks a million!
Good tutorial for the CGX/CGX-L mounts. Thank you.
Can't believe how easy those Celestron mounts make it to polar align. I think you've sold me on one :) Thanks mate for taking the time to do this!
Mohammed Ali Baddah no worries! Most underrated feature of the mounts really!
Why not mention how you got the star-map on the compute, how does it connect (and to what), is it a software that came with the mount, is it a free 3rd party software, etc ?
I'm having exactly the same question!. Dylan, please help! :-)
Sequence Generator Pro
Thank you for this brilliant video. Now I got no excuses of I don't know how to on my CGX mount. Great video especially for those in the Southern Hemisphere. Thank You, Sir!
I'm learning to polar align and found this video very helpful because you didn't skip over things and kept the camera rolling. It really is quite a process(to a newbie). I had quite a good sweat going by the end of polar aligning last night. It was really good to see you were a little warm at the end of the process too.:-) I have to carry my gear out each time, how good would it be to have automated, perfect alignment?
I'm glad it helped! Yes someone needs to make the mount that aligns itself :)
Thank you. I have been using Celestron mounts (ASGT, AVX, CGEM-DX) for years but did not know this option existed. I have a polar scope and align to that and hope for the best. I'll try this when it clears up again.
I have the CGEM-DX, and didn't know it existed either. I always polar aligned by eye, and then did the 3 star alignment. Never got good results.
@@timtim4664 I tried it a couple weeks ago and got excellent results. I was shooting Jupiter at f/20 (5600mm fl) and it stayed in the little box I drew around it. Its not hard either.
I had not realised the significance of this feature on the handset. Thanks for a good explanation. I have a finder scope accurately aligned to the main scope so this should help. My only concern is my CGX scope's backlash - but that is another story!
There are some good UA-cam videos on fixing CGX backlash, and some other issues with these poorly assembled mounts.
Great video as usual! I’m getting the Celestron AVX mount, this will help.
I know this is an old video at this point, but this is great! I have the older celestron CG5 mount and I'm totally going to check and see if the hand controller has this feature on the next clear night. I'm one of those dorks who still uses my hand controller for the initial alignment, mostly because I have issues with the mount not knowing where it is when I first turn it on and try to use it with my computer.
Hello from another hand controller dork!
Thankyou for the great video! very helpful as im a beginner - also, What software were you using on the PC?
Many thanks from France ! i will stop loosing my time with polar alignement !
I've always had an issue with the tracking on my AVX mount, never knew you could do this, thank you!
No worries! It’s weird how unpromoted it is that there’s a PA routine in all hand controllers.
If you have a ccd and filter wheel attached, here’s a trick I use to get an early alignment before the sun is down. First setup as close to north as possible, then with the hand control do a ‘quick’ alignment. After slew to a solar system object. With mount adjustments get the object centered. I find this gets me within less than a degree. Next go back to home position and start anew with the “two star’ alignment, but this time with ccd at shortest exposure and h-alpha or s-ii filter in place. With a bit of luck 1mag stars should be visible. Now are ready for the ASPA. I’ve achieved less than arcmin accuracy doing this.
Fun to watch early videos. Your production quality is vastly improved!
Haha I have finally switched from iMovie lol
Hi Dylan, I have the same mount and I was wondering if you have the same issue when you tighten the Altitude Lock Knobs that it moves the star a bit. The same thing happens when I tighten the Azimuth bolts too but to a lesser degree. I find myself doing a trial and error trying to compensate for the movement.
Great video Dylan. I used to do this on my back deck with an eyepiece and lighted reticle. It never worked very well for me as my guiding was always substandard. I finally figured out that as i stood next to the scope to adjust the alt/az knobs my weight was deflecting the wooded deck , ever so slightly, give me a false reading on my alignment....grrrr one of the many mistakes i have made in this hobby....lol
Hehe happens to the best of us!
This helps! I thought that GoTo alignment mean the mount was polar aligned. Its only roughly. Needs the ASPA procedure to do photography.
Does it make any difference what your mounts initial alt/az starting position is? That is, I assume you have the RA axis roughly pointed at the S celestial pole because I observed that the mounts first slew was to the correct general direction of your chosen star (Achernar)?
Yeh the starting position must be at the celestial pole. Before you even turn it on.
So here's how I set up modeling for my telescope (aka, T-Point for some, two-star align for others). 1) Let the hand control tell me what star it wants to center on. 2) Enter that star name in the Framing tab of N.I.N.A. 3) Let N.I.N.A. do the search and centering with the aid of plate solving using ASTAP. 4) Go back to the hand control and finish the model and align operation. 5) Repeat until modeling is done. Oh, so simple! By the way, I think this could also be done with SGP, MaximDL, TheSkyX, and others - any app that can perform search, plate solving, and centering. Throw away your Finder! Not needed anymore - unless you're doing visual astronomy.
Hi Dylan, excellent video. This verifies that what I was doing last night (with my new CGX) is exactly what you're doing. However, after I did, I still was getting star trails on even 2 min exposure on a F4.7 10" newtonian. My question is this: My 10" newt is mounted with mount rings and a dovetail plate, so there will be inherent physical differences in the optical axis of the OTA and the RA axis. I was assuming that the ASPA is not predicated on perfect physical coincidence of the OTA axis at the RA axis. I spent hours going back and forth, attempted ASPA three times, and finally called it a night. Looking forward to your response and thanks!
Weird, it shouldn’t matter how far off the scope is height wise.
@@DylanODonnell Hi Dylan, thanks for getting back. I mean, if the OTA and the RA axis are not parallel for various reasons (such as cone error and the such) resulting in some relative pitch angle and yaw angle of the OTA with respect to the RA axis. Even collimation changes of a newtonian can result in a fraction of a degree difference. I am going out again tonight, and following your via, going to use stars in locations you've suggested, such as on the celestial equator and on the meridian away from the pole.
I got alignment done, the thing I picked up was to get good alignment, but iterate. So I did twice to get to zero error, and then placed camera on, and did again after rebalancing.
It did take a while but I got there.
Definitely your video helped!
Robert Welsh you got it!
This looks like a great feature - I hope I can find something like it on SynScan.
Also... if it was NOT available on other slewing hardware, it would be really fantastic if it could be added as a feature to PHD. Right? I imagine it could be done? Same story with the "spiral search" feature - couldn't that be added to PHD?
Thanks again for the video!
Cool, Dylan just bought an AVX and position prevents a view of Polaris. This is a great help and seeing it live is so useful! 👍
@sameera 271 sorry for the late reply, it works well, I do a 2 star alignment, add four cal stars then polar align with ASPA. Good enough to guide from.
@sameera 271 sure it should, will depend on the atmospherics as well of course.
The question is do you need to capture that long dependent on the camera, shorter subs are less prone to changes, cloud, Star link etc...
Thanks very much Dylan. That told me exactly what I needed to know and made Polar Alignment so much easier.
Hi Dylan, thanks for the ASPA video. Which software are you using during the star and polar alignment? Is it Celestron-specific?
This is completely opposite to how I polar align. I normally polar align first then calibrate the goto. It made me wonder if i have being doing this wrong since I started. I have the Celestron AVX mount so I believe it has this function built in to the mount.
That's fine to do that way if your mount doesn't move.. everytime you go through the processes it gets closer. But I believe the mount needs to know the star alignment first before it knows how far out the polar alignment star really is. And yeh I think your mount supports ASPA .. a most underrated feature!
My peeps, afaik, do polar alignment first. Celestron mounts and their align methods seem to work though.
Thank you for this, Dylan! I'm new to telescopes and after three tries on my first night out I got polar alignment that was good enough for the scope to find Saturn, but not enough to be centered in the eyepiece. I look forward to trying this tonight!
Unless you have a multipoint model of the sky goto’s won’t be 100% accurate. That’s where plate solving helps.
Yes a rough start with a camera instead of eyepiece in focuser...I will use an eyepiece next time. I have also written customer support at Celestron. I am 26' (below) in altitude from NCP, and 1' 26" too far west in azimuth. I can't raise the altitude without the knob becoming loose. I rotated the pier very slightly to the west as I was at the extreme left of the slotted openings at the top of the (4) base plate...so out again tonight, if any breaks in the clouds, to make azimuth adjustments with Sharpcap.it will be very difficult to get very accurate positioning in azimuth as I don't have fine control or the range is extremely limited, unless my slight rotation happened to fall within the narrow azimuth adjustments...with the altitude, impossible until I get some advice from tech support....I want the PA in excellent alignment in PA before I start the ASPA although this could be redundant....however I have imaging as the goal.
Thank You Dylan!!!! You are very generous!
I think Celestron wants you to do another two star alignment after you finish the ASPA.
I don't understand how you can do a star alignment first and then do a ASPA (all star polar alignment) next. With the initial alignment, you have aligned the mount with the star field and then you do an ASPA which requires you to adjust the mount knobs. It seems to me this mount knob adjustment would throw off the initial alignment because you are manually moving the mount with the knobs. How would the software know the mount has been moved?
TY. Best vid i have found on this. will be testing this evening , weather allowing, with my rc. thanks again hg
It’s quite good!
Thank you Dylan. Us noobies do need basic info like this, I always wondered what the old pros were talking about when they mentioned 2+4 alignment. BTW, you got quite a setup. Kudos.
Hey thanks Dean .. I'm glad it has helped!
Is it possible to combine the All Star methodology into the initial Two Star Align procedure? When the scope slews to the first calibration star, instead of using the hand control, adjust alt/az on the mount, or even shift the tripod, to center it. Then press Enter/Align to continue with the Two Star (or more) Align. When the mount does the first slew, it's going to where the star would be if it were already PA, right? So wouldn't centering the star by adjusting the mount's alt/az, or moving the tripod, both accomplish the first star calibration and PA at the same time? And also eliminate the need for updating the star alignments after the All Star PA as the manual recommends?
That's if the mount is up to scratch. My CGX has been a piece of rubbish from day 1. Sent my PHD logs to Celestron, and "suggested" I do this and that - don't they think I have already tried it!
Hey Dylan, for the rough polar alignment I point my Cgx directly to the south and set my latitude to my location in Melbourne like 37. When I do the 2 star alignment and the scope finds the first 2 stars, the the mount is way off those stars it wants to align to. Is my rough polar alignment correct ?
ASPA even works perfectly with my wedged Alt-Az!
Hey Dylan, great video! Quick question: the CGX is an equatorial mount, yet you adjust the screws for altitude & azimuth, is that right? I know you corrected yourself when you initially said RA and DEC. Also I take it you still physically align your mount as close as possible to the SCP to minimise your reliance on software-based polar alignment?
Yes that's right .. they are alt/az adjustments ... 0 degrees = horizon, unlike RA/DEC where 0 degrees / or hours is somewhere in the sky which changes based on where you are. The directions are the similar (left/right/up/down) which is why I lazily used the terms interchangeably. There are a few different methods for "rough" polar alignment .. I really should make a video about it!
Dylan O'Donnell Please do! I’m an absolute beginner, making up a wishlist of astrophotography gear to get started. I’ve got somewhat dark skies and a nice back yard (actually small acreage just out of town), but the SCP is blocked by a hill and trees. I’d love to know a “good enough” method of polar alignment, don’t know if I could be bothered doing drift alignment every single session though.
Thanks for another good video. I do have one question because I probably wasn't listening close enough and missed it. Before you do any alignment at all I am guessing that you have the mount physically facing in the general direction of the pole, am I right? It might seem like an obvious answer but I want to make sure I have EVERYTHING right. On my prior mount with a wedge I used SkySafari / SkyPortal and laid my IPhone on the mount to have it as close to being as polar aligned as I could prior to aligning through the handset.
That's a fair question :) i didn't cover the initial rough alignment at all. I have a few good tricks so I should probably make a video about this too! thanks!
Dylan...I have a question about aligning my telescope. I have an Orion 8 inch Newtonian mounted on a celestron advanced vx mount. I live near Wilmington, DE in the US and the light pollution around me makes it almost impossible to polar align to polaris. I can make out Cassiopia and the Big Dipper, but when I look through the polar alignment scope I can barely make them out and most times I cannot make them out enough to match them with the polar scope. So I was trying your All Star Alignment method and could not ever seem to find the stars it was trying to align to. When I was watching this video you made it seemed like when you found the star that you were trying to align to it looked very big on your screen (almost the size of the center circle...if not bigger). The biggest stars I was seeing on my Backyard EOS program screen were pinpoints. Are the alignment stars supposed to be much bigger or how do I tell which star is which when aligning? Any help you could provide would be greatly appreciated.
Nice video, Dylan. When you were at the last stage of Polar Alignment and you were using the Altitude knob and Azimuth knobs to center the star ( or same thing if I'm using the PoleMaster) the azimuth knobs don't always have enough play to move the star left or right into the center. So I find I have to loosen the four hex bolts on the base (CGX-L mount) in order to give the azimuth knobs enough play. Guess I'm not roughly Polar aligned close enough to begin with. Any suggestions? Because tightening up those hex bolts sometimes moves the star or Polaris off center again.
Hi Dylan, I have been watching your videos with interest. I use a Starsense on my CPC800. I was looking at a Hyperstar, but have decided against it, More that I am wary of purchasing a wedge. After considerable thought, I have decide to keep the CPC800 as a purely visual scope, and eventually invest in a RASA. My question is, would the Starsense be of value in initial alligment, and subsequent polar alignment of a RASA with much the same configuration as your ?
Did you ever try starsense with your RASA? I was wondering the same as you.......
Dylan, what software are you using? It looked like the stars were labeled. Was it plate solving? Also, the reticle for centering would be useful.
Sequence Generator Pro .. but that was focus data, not plate solving :)
Thoughts on playing around with the AZ ALT screws with a full load on the mount?
As long as it’s under it’s specified payload limit that’s what it’s meant to handle and adjusting the screws are necessary for alignment :)
@@DylanODonnell thanks buddy
I just found this video. Thanks, I have an older CGE but it has the same polar alignment.
Hy Dylan, thank you for this great tutorial. I always wonder if its not necessary to align after ASAP again because i moved the mount?
I had the same question. According to Rod Mollise’s book (Choosing and Using a New CAT), it is necessary to do the 2 star align again, after a polar align.
Brilliant polar align video... I love you :-)
Brilliant! Does Sky Watcher's Synscan have the same functionality?
It does :) video soon !
@@DylanODonnell As a rank amateur that would be handy.
Do you have the telescope pointing north? Hopefully setting up my new cgx tomorrow night. Great video! Thanks!
I’m in the Southern Hemisphere so we point to the south celestial pole, but yes you point to the pole (not the magnetic pole though).
Thanks, Dylan. This was perfectly explained. Greetings from Brazil.
So if I point my mount roughly at Polaris, do my alignment stars and calib. stars, then use the polar alignment feature in the menus that will be just as good as doing a proper polar align before the alignment process?
Thank you for sharing! I was trying to figure out how to do this because the Celestron Crappy manual sucks! Loool Seriously thanks though for sharing! Nice observatory! :)
Ted Williams haha good to hear it helped ! And thanks!
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Hey Dylan good video/what part austtralia you from/have a few ham friends there/
Interesting video. Looks like you are using SGPro, if so cant you just use "Solve and Sync" to get aligned?
Does that mount have limit switches so it won't run into itself? My reflector ran into itself and sheared off the bracket for the guide scope, broke a 350$ servo motor, and broke a 250$ worm gear.
What software are you using on your mac there? Awesome Video, thanks so much! Gonna try my first alignment tonight!
Heya! I'm using Sequence Generator Pro frame and focus to view the "real time" feed from the telescope. Hope this helps!
Hi, is there a similar technique using a skywatcher mount and hand controller? The hand controller I have does not have an 'Align' button.
Yep! It’s in the manual.. I’ll do a video on it eventually.
I know this video is old but during the polar alignment process besides azimuth kbobs am I supposed to also play with the lattitude adjustment knobs? Becausse I have to adjust all 3 in order to get the star for polar aligment in place.
From memory (it’s been a while and I don’t have this mount anymore) .. it asks you to Only one axis at a time. Get the star as close as you can, doesn’t have to be dead Center. Then it will ask you to do the other axis next and it will be dead Center. If it’s not, run through the whole process again.
Good info. Thanks. I tried to do this once before and could not quite figure it out. Your video made it clear, thanks.
Glad it helped !
Curious why, with the proximity of a PC to your mount, you still use the hand controller? Is it just personal preference and what you are familiar with? Why not use CPWI on the PC to control the mount? Is there some capability the hand controller offers that CPWI can't match? Just the convenience of not having to enter time and location each time you power on the mount should be motivation to use a PC for control.
CPWI doesn't handover to ASCOM nicely so other programs (and dome) can all interface nicely together.
@@DylanODonnell Thank you! I'm new to this, purchased my first telescope about 4 months ago. I have an EdgeHD 8" on the Evolution mount, and recently added a wedge. Now thinking about adding an OAG. I control the scope using CPWI on a laptop connected to the mount via Wi-Fi. Allows me to control the scope in the backyard from inside the house. The laptop stays outside because the camera is connected to it via USB, but I use Remote Desktop on my PC in the house to access CWPI and BackyardNikon running the the laptop. I assumed my guiding would use ASCOM to send correction signals to the mount through CPWI, but if that isn't reliable I'll have to rethink my approach.
As always, a very helpful video- thanks. Once you’ve aligned the OTA with the 2:4 star alignment completed ASPA, then you slew to another star (or even the sync star), the star will often not be centered. Is there a way to correct for this and show the mount where it should be? I’ve seen posts where people say you should adjust the screws until the star is centered but I’m not so sure about that. Any advice?
So the "right" way to do this is to create a multi point model of the sky with LOTS of stars (not just 2:4) .. but that takes a little more effort :)
Thanks. Very helpful. Difficult for you. Appreciate all the work and answer and bug bites.
Strewth! How do you ever find the time to do astronomy down under!
Dylan, what's that software you are using that looks is showing plate solved names of the stars in there?
hello. thsnk you fot thisd video!!! verry verry helpful. pls, can u tell me what soft did u use there on the display? and is it is conect with the mount and scope? thanak you
Hello Dylan,Great video again.I just rewatched your PHD2 guiding video of 3 months ago.May I ask why you don't use the PHD polar alignment method.Thanks Greg
Thanks! I used to when I was using the EQ6 mount but the in built ASPA is so fast, easy and accurate I tend to just use that these days then save that alignment for several sessions afterwards.
Thank god finally someone with the same scope as mine AND in Australia! I had issues with getting mine properly aligned. How did you position your tripod prior to fitting mount, isn't it supposed to be facing south? Did you use a compass? Cheers
Yeh it’s a hassle without a good pole star like the northern hemisphere. I have a trick I’ll need a video to demonstrate. Stay tuned! And high five for having the same scope :)
Does anyone know what software is being used here on the computer screen which is showing the stars with their names?
Hey, I just bought a Celestron Advanced AVX. I plan on doing mostly visual astronomy. The manual suggests that there is a bubble level in the mount, but I couldn’t locate it. Should I remove the mount from the tripod head and place a level first? Is it really necessary if I follow the alignment procedure you outlined or would tracking and slewing be accurate enough? Thanks for the videos...I’m learning so much.
I have an AVX mount and I rarely if ever balance it out. The errors in the level of the mount will be factored out as you proceed with polar alignment.
Level the tripod first, assuming you're on very solid ground, like a concrete driveway, before putting on the mount head. I use an app called Bubble Level to put the phone atop the tripod to check it for levelness. Probably safer to use a real bubble level. If you note the positioning of the tripod legs and their extension and set it up in the same place each time, getting the mount level will take less than a minute.
If you use plate solving to center the star for you during your two star alignment, you wouldn’t need to bother with a finder scope at all. You might have to nudge the star a bit after plate solving, but if I’m wishing 5% of center, I don’t even bother with that. Plate solving takes all the drudgery out of finding and centering on objects.
Amazing explenation Dylan thank you!
You wouldn't happen to know if this is possible with Skywatcher mounts? specifically NEQ6-pro...
I couldnt find the Polar Align option in the controller and figured this mount doesnt support it (probably because it doesnt know the state of the gears?)
Mickey Lev thanks! I’m afraid the ASPA method is Celestron only :/ phd2 has a new polar alignment tool that might help though!
@@DylanODonnell Oooh thats interesting, i'll look into that Thanks! :)
@@MichaelLevAstro I have a Skywatcher EQ6 Pro mount which supports my Skywatcher 250PDS scope. The hand controller on my mount supports ASPA. You have to do a 2 or 3 star alignment "first" then, if you go back into the alignment menu on your hand controller, you should see an option for Polar Alignment. I think my controller version number is 4.3 something. It's the latest hand controller firmware update, anyway.
Thanks for the clear instructions.
What's powering your mount? I'm sorry if you've already covered that topic, but it would be interesting to analyze all the options an amateur astronomer has, from car's cigarette lighter to more expensive batteries...
A 12vc DC power supply plugged into an AC mains. It’s an observatory so no cigarette lighter cables :) Celestrons new range of lithium ion portable battery’s are really cool though.
These are the new ones I mean .. very portable : www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01G7J097Q/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B01G7J097Q&linkCode=as2&tag=dylodon-20&linkId=ebfd1e53e57e45ab1c444abdc43990f3
@@DylanODonnell Thank you very much for your prompt answers!
I just got a 4K Mavic Air. It's got a great camera on it. I've been just doing basic things with so as to get comfortable. My plan is to use my Rhino Slider or my Ioptron Sky Guider Pro to capture Milky Way shots over the swamp this summer and blend so aerial shots before and after.
A lot to learn! Ha ha
Just found this video and am totally new. Brought an EQ6 Pro is this something available on the EQ6 Pro or should I have brought the CGX
Yep .. you can polar align with the EQ6 pro hand controller routine .. similar process :)
@@DylanODonnell thats great, thanks
Only Celestron has this alignment feature? Does any other brand have this?
I am quite new to star gazing and astral photography, and can't help but wonder- are there no mounts that allow you to enter your latitude and longitude with altitude to calibrate star/planet/nebula tracking? It just seems to me that these companies that charge thousands for these systems would have figured that out by now!
You video saved my first observing and eaa session with a Celestron AVX!
Thank you so much!
Oh great! Thanks Sebastian!
Well, i had a clear night to test my tiny setup a bit and this is the result - what do you think about it?
abload.de/img/ngc7814ober7.jpg
It's NGC 7814 and yes it was the only object to image from a tiny balcony. Not the best choice but hey ... better than nothing. The image was live-stacked with Sharpcap, 360x 5s, unguided.
Using a Celestron C6 XLT + 0.63 reducer i am looking for a matching camera now. The ASI385MC is nice for lunar and planetary but DSO are not that great with it. Do yu know any source how to get a nearly perfect camera for a specific scope?
Thanks Dylan for the helpful video. Sorry about the mosquitoes!
bobmimiaga hehe thanks Bob!
Hey Dylan, have you tried using the Celestron PWI telescope control software instead of the hand controller?
I have but I tend not to bother really until it has some functionality I can’t get with the HC. Would be good for multi point syncing though :)
Ha. This fella could feel right at home here in North Central Texas, we have a mosquito population to rival his!
That does still seem like a lot of star centering. I however have a CPC Alt/Az and I wish at times I could polar align and try small time astro imaging. The only thing the CPC has going for it is the built in GPS.
Thanks for the video, dude. It helps a lot. In my university here in Brazil we have a similar telescope model. It's a Celestron CGEM that came to us 5 months ago. We're getting so much trouble to calibrate it. We don't know how to make the telescope track the astro's movement.
Thx from Greece!
Polar alignment is also a pain in the rear for us northerners who live close to the equator. During the summer Polaris is below the northern horizon. The closest star to the north pole I can see is Mizar.
Dylan, this is SO HELPFUL! Thanks very much. I just got a new 8" Edge HD and Polaris is behind a big building. Amazing help. Another question: I have two 6 year old twins that have less patience than me and I would like to show them the live picture of the scope as you did in the video? You mentioned you used a DSLR? I also have a Canon 70D, the T Ring etc. but what software did you use or would you recommend so I can get a "live feed" from the scope and can show my kids? Thank, Chris
Thx! Try backyard Eos :)
@@DylanODonnell Thanks Dylan! Just out of curiosity, I saw in the comments below that you used Sequence Generator Pro in this video? Why do you recommend Backyard EOS over this? Cheers
Fantastic video. I can see this really helping me.
Thanks for showing this, nice video and well presented.
hey there dylan. does the all star polar alignment method basically replace the need for the polar finder scope method for aligning your mount? granted youre oriented north and lat set? or should both be used in conjunction with each other?
Great video Dylan, when you "move the screws" for mechanical polar alignment, are you loosening the RA & Dec clutches and moving the OTA, or does the CGX mount have actual screws that you are adjusting instead? Thanks..
Not loosening any clutches, they have big adjustment screw threads with nice handles to turn.
It's the mechanical adjustments of the mount, so the 4 big bolts and the altitude screw with the 2 clutches. Now I find that tightening back the bolts does move the polar alignment and so you have to do this delicately and keep checking that tightening back the mount doesn't throw off the alignment and compensate. It's more fiddly than you think, especially if you are pretty far apart.
What I am toying with, ie I've tried it once, is that on the first object, not align it with the arrows but mechanically first but aligning the mount on the assumption that for a new alignment the first star the mount assumes perfect polar alignment THEN align with the arrows. So after I've aligned my first star my polar alignment should be pretty good and subsequent stars should have little error in them.
I later end up doing the polar alignment with the paddle with a given star. It makes sense but I am not sure if I am getting a better alignment in the end. Any ideas?
I see your logic and I have to admit .. I've done this too. I think your methodology is totally fine and I think that while it won't improve the PA overall (the difference would be negligible after 6 stars), it will improve the GOTO for the initial alignment stars :)
What I like about this, is that early on in the alignment process, you see if your mount is placed on the ground in a way that means that the horizontal adjustments will be sufficient to reach polar alignment. Vertical adjustment is almost endless but horizontal adjustment has a lot less wiggle room. It would be annoying after having adjusted 4 stars to notice that you have to start all over again because you don't have the mechanical movement needed to reach polar alignment.
What camera is it using here...
Guide scope or the one in the image train?
Thanks heaps for the vid. I was having real trouble getting my mount to go to with any form of accuracy so many thanks for the tips. The only difficulty I continued to have was with polar alignment. I tried it twice and both times it was worse than when I calibrated 4 stars. Just wondering though, where did you get your dome and what are the benefits for having one? Cheers
Having the dome really helps in staying polar aligned over time, so you pretty much have a fixed setup. Once you align, you are good to go in perpetuity! I dont have one right now, but would love to get one of these at some point www.observatory.store/NexDome-Observatories_c_8.html
Great video Dylan your software you where using to do the alignment seem to have the star catalogue names how did you get that????? Is that plate solving
Was wondering the same, having the star catalog would be terribly handy.
Looks like mainsequencesoftware.com/Products/SGPro ?
Sorry for not relying ! Yes it’s SGP but that’s not plate solving that’s just showing the focus HFR reading for each star which is how it gets its average reading. Would be amazing if plate solving was that fast 😆
Does it keeps it settings when you turn the scope off .???????
Thank you. That was very helpful.
Thank you Dylan, regards from Brazil, where we dont have a north star at all.
Hi Andre! 🇦🇺🇧🇷
Hello, will this still work when you can't see the North Star or even ocean for those of us in the south
Yep. Dylan is way way south of the Equator. The 2 + 4 method he described is for Celestron mounts, as far as I know. Celestron has an optional device called StarSense for easy star alignment which will also work for some SkyWatcher mounts. Maybe, don't know for sure. some Orion mounts too as they (SkyWatcher and Orion) both use SynScan hand controllers by a Chinese company called Synta.
Hi Dylan. I notice you have two cables coming out of your guide camera (which looks like a ZWO camera?). I only use the one cable plugged straight in to my PC for guiding (using PHD2) from my ZWO. Can you describe your guiding set up.
That's because you are using the ascom setup instead of the guide port one.. which is better! I really should make the jump. It means not having to recalibrate after changing targets. :) PHD2 video in the pipeline.
I had a feeling you were doing that. Just wanted to make sure I wasn't missing something possibly better :) I'm always looking for new and better ways to do things. Cheers
This is excellent thank you. I’ve been using the D.A.R.V (Drift Alignment by Robert Vice ) method but the seems way easier and quicker.
That is a great looking rig you have looks like a lot of fun
Thanks Scott! Im lucky to have such a good setup currently. It's all fairly recent tech.
Now this is nice! I thought you had to polar align first and then star align.
I hope it helps!