Modify Manual Focus Targets to add optional plate solving to ease mount sky map modeling

[Rob B]

As a long term user of APT I have come to rely on APT’s goto++ feature along with the preselected navigational stars list to build a sky map model for my mount. NINA it seems has the framework and functionality already in place to achieve a similar functionality as APT’s goto++. Use an exposure taken using the star coordinates from the Manual Focus Tool, solving the image and applying corrections to center the star in the frame.

I think such an option would be welcome simple solution over the much more complicated Sky Atlas solution.

I must admit I have only minimal experience with NINA so perhaps this functionality already exists. If this is the case I would be pleased to hear about it.

Thanks

Rob

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[Steve Lang]

So this is possible, but it isn’t immediately intuitive. As I understand it, you slew to the star. Then, go to the platesolve menu, and from there you can check the options to solve and reslew until the star is centred.

It has been suggested (informally) that there be a ‘centre’ button as well as a slew button in places like this (which would automate this), but it hasn’t had any traction yet. There is a lot to do and only so many developers…

[Dale Ghent]

I’m curious what the real utility of such functionality is in the end? NINA already performs platesolve-based centering of the sequence target, and having a manual focus star exactly centered isn’t at all necessary for the purposes of manually focusing.

[Rob B]

Thank you Steve I will try your method as soon as the current weather passes. Dale, My intent was to use a combination existing tools (MFT & platesolve) to aid in constructing a sky model points in the mount’s software, focus was not the intended objective. The MFT tool has a convenient list of navigation stars which are easily accessed rather than drill down through the sky atlas. So although it appears I am misusing MFT it is simply the best method to pick a series of stars that I have found inside NINA. Currently my practice is to slew a navigation star using the mounts modeling software. Call up Goto++ from within APT to the same star. Goto++ will make it’s own slew near to the star, make an exposure, platesolve and repeat until the star is within the specified tolerance. At this point I tell the mount modeling software the star is centered and move onto another star. Once enough points have been accumulated, the model is saved for subsequent sessions allowing a single sync point to have the telescope accurately aligned and pointing accurately. Numerous mount drivers have sky modeling available for example EQmod, CPWI which together probably account for 75% of the mounts out there. Hopefully I have now completely explained the reason for the feature request.

Thanks

Rob

[Steve Lang]

Dale - I agree completely. However, the solution is not intuitive to new users (irrespective of their experience).

If all your gear is stable, not changed and you’re shooting sequences then it makes no sense to have a ‘centre’ button on manual focus (or other) UI areas.

If you’re new to NINA, and/or have new gear that you’re working through issues with (testing focuser/focus motor, FF spacing, Filter offset focus testing and one other case I can’t recall), then there are reasons to do things like ‘centre on a single manual focus star’, and take some ‘single exposures’ and measure HFR etc. etc.

I would have found it useful on more than one occasion, but the functionality exists elsewhere, so I adjusted the way I was working. Coming from an APT background like Rob, I can appreciate where he is coming from.

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[Stefan B]

Yes i agree to have a centering Option for slew Buttons. Will think about a good way to present this in the ui and put it in the backlog for 1.11