How to Polar Align a Celestron Mount (All star polar alignment)

Рет қаралды 92,457

6 жыл бұрын

A live demonstration of an alignment and polar alignment of a Celestron mount (CGX). All Star Polar Align (ASPA) works on all equatorial Celestron mounts.
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Dylan's Telescopes, Cameras & Equipment
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Celestron RASA 8" Telescope
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Celestron NexYZ 3-Axis Smartphone Adapter
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Skywatcher EQ8Rh Pro Mount
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Celestron CGX Mount
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Celestron RASA F2 11" Telescope
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Celestron 11" Edge HD
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QHY268M Mono CMOS Camera
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Lunt40mm Solar Telescope
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Sky-Watcher Star Adventurer 2i Pro Pack
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ZWO ASI 174MM (Planetary / Solar Camera)
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ZWO ASI 120MM. (Guide Camera)
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ZWO ASI 1600MM (Deep Space Camera)
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Celestron 0.7x reducer for 11" Edge HD
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Celestron 0.7x reducer for 9.25” Edge HD
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Celestron 9.25” Edge HD
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Canon 6D mkII DSLR
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Tokina 16-28mm Lens
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Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L III USM Ultra Wide Angle Zoom Full Frame
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Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM Lens
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Intro Music - "Moving the Ocean (Aerologic Edit)" by Blastculture.

Пікірлер: 338

@MikeLikesChannel 3 жыл бұрын

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.

@robertdepaulis5188 Жыл бұрын

❤Thermacell do nothing here in Australia , our mozzies laugh at it

@steveh6632 4 жыл бұрын

Thanks very much Dylan. That told me exactly what I needed to know and made Polar Alignment so much easier.

@dankahraman354 4 жыл бұрын

Good tutorial for the CGX/CGX-L mounts. Thank you.

@FR3EKELITE 3 жыл бұрын

Great video as usual! I’m getting the Celestron AVX mount, this will help.

@Bridgestreetnursery 2 жыл бұрын

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

@Sakkie 3 жыл бұрын

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!

@davidschilling 4 жыл бұрын

Thanks, Dylan. This was perfectly explained. Greetings from Brazil.

@notlikethis9932 5 жыл бұрын

You video saved my first observing and eaa session with a Celestron AVX! Thank you so much!

@DylanODonnell 5 жыл бұрын

Oh great! Thanks Sebastian!

@notlikethis9932 5 жыл бұрын

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?

@hokep61 3 жыл бұрын

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!

@bitnbytes01 3 жыл бұрын

Thanks for showing this, nice video and well presented.

@mbaddah 6 жыл бұрын

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!

@DylanODonnell 6 жыл бұрын

Mohammed Ali Baddah no worries! Most underrated feature of the mounts really!

@ernestjoyner1553 6 жыл бұрын

Good job Dylan, It was about time for a Video like this one.

@DylanODonnell 6 жыл бұрын

Ernest Joyner hey thanks Ernest ! 🚀

@johngardner9052 5 жыл бұрын

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!

@DylanODonnell 5 жыл бұрын

Unless you have a multipoint model of the sky goto’s won’t be 100% accurate. That’s where plate solving helps.

@coltenquackenbush23 6 жыл бұрын

Thank you so much! you just answered like 50 of my questions ill sub (:

@DylanODonnell 6 жыл бұрын

Colten Q. That’s great news! Thanks for subscribing !

@deanmindock5020 6 жыл бұрын

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.

@DylanODonnell 6 жыл бұрын

Hey thanks Dean .. I'm glad it has helped!

@gettingpast4391 5 жыл бұрын

Good info. Thanks. I tried to do this once before and could not quite figure it out. Your video made it clear, thanks.

@DylanODonnell 4 жыл бұрын

Glad it helped !

@pinzyrat 4 жыл бұрын

Thank You Dylan!!!! You are very generous!

@nikrock7087 5 жыл бұрын

Thank you very much! I had so many questions you have answered.

@DylanODonnell 5 жыл бұрын

Good to hear .. thx!

@starwatcher 3 жыл бұрын

Thanks. Very helpful. Difficult for you. Appreciate all the work and answer and bug bites.

@tomwall8403 5 жыл бұрын

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 5 жыл бұрын

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.

@tomwall8403 5 жыл бұрын

@@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.

@scottbrown6021 6 жыл бұрын

That is a great looking rig you have looks like a lot of fun

@DylanODonnell 6 жыл бұрын

Thanks Scott! Im lucky to have such a good setup currently. It's all fairly recent tech.

@RichardKincade 3 жыл бұрын

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.

@Jeep2012 3 жыл бұрын

Fantastic video. I can see this really helping me.

@mode1charlie170 5 жыл бұрын

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

@DylanODonnell 5 жыл бұрын

Hehe happens to the best of us!

@HowardGambergrotowerkz 3 жыл бұрын

TY. Best vid i have found on this. will be testing this evening , weather allowing, with my rc. thanks again hg

@DylanODonnell 3 жыл бұрын

It’s quite good!

@astrospeedcuber Жыл бұрын

I've always had an issue with the tracking on my AVX mount, never knew you could do this, thank you!

@DylanODonnell Жыл бұрын

No worries! It’s weird how unpromoted it is that there’s a PA routine in all hand controllers.

@jamesdixon2085 5 жыл бұрын

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 5 жыл бұрын

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.

@jamesdixon2085 5 жыл бұрын

@@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.

@nancyricigliano19 5 жыл бұрын

Great video dylan

@MrGp3po 2 жыл бұрын

Fun to watch early videos. Your production quality is vastly improved!

@DylanODonnell 2 жыл бұрын

Haha I have finally switched from iMovie lol

@alissoncaetano8034 4 жыл бұрын

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.

@Flossin1987 3 жыл бұрын

Thanks for the clear instructions.

@Mobius3c273 3 жыл бұрын

Brilliant polar align video... I love you :-)

@bobmimiaga 6 жыл бұрын

Thanks Dylan for the helpful video. Sorry about the mosquitoes!

@DylanODonnell 6 жыл бұрын

bobmimiaga hehe thanks Bob!

@tonyboutle1315 4 жыл бұрын

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! 👍

@tonyboutle1315 3 жыл бұрын

@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.

@tonyboutle1315 3 жыл бұрын

@sameera 271 sure it should, will depend on the atmospherics as well of course.

@tonyboutle1315 3 жыл бұрын

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...

@anthonysacco2276 6 ай бұрын

Thank you. That was very helpful.

@davidheflin5847 4 жыл бұрын

I just found this video. Thanks, I have an older CGE but it has the same polar alignment.

@lawrenceharris1819 3 жыл бұрын

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!

@gpetheri Жыл бұрын

There are some good KZfaq videos on fixing CGX backlash, and some other issues with these poorly assembled mounts.

@lucasswart2987 2 жыл бұрын

Very helpful, thank you!

@kompakt34 2 жыл бұрын

Many thanks from France ! i will stop loosing my time with polar alignement !

@soulmuzings8844 5 жыл бұрын

Sending you good vibes 🙏🤗

@DylanODonnell 6 жыл бұрын

sounds awesome :)

@williamgorham7339 3 жыл бұрын

Hey Dylan if you want a good laugh while taking awesome pics look up Telescope by Starset. That song proves that if you just throw out a bunch of science terms against a wall eventually something will stick. I have been binge watching your content and looking into astrophotography as I have just been gifted with my first telescope a celestron nextstar 130 SLT. Keep up the great content and sense of humor!

@hifinphoto 3 жыл бұрын

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 ?

@xavierhernandez7787 3 жыл бұрын

I'm having exactly the same question!. Dylan, please help! :-)

@jomac2046 3 жыл бұрын

Sequence Generator Pro

@stratos9914 3 ай бұрын

Thx from Greece!

@brendanmanning1959 Жыл бұрын

Thanks. Great help for newby

@danieltobosi1592 6 жыл бұрын

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

@patventuro3383 4 жыл бұрын

Good job ! Thanks

@michaelm5149 4 жыл бұрын

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?

@ezza2fly 4 жыл бұрын

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?

@DylanODonnell 4 жыл бұрын

I'm glad it helped! Yes someone needs to make the mount that aligns itself :)

@SteveHomer 3 жыл бұрын

Thankyou for the great video! very helpful as im a beginner - also, What software were you using on the PC?

@iamjessieray Жыл бұрын

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.

@robertsipes7391 Жыл бұрын

Hello from another hand controller dork!

@stephenlast6945 4 жыл бұрын

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?

@zirconzircon8861 3 жыл бұрын

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.

@benjamindbaker69 4 жыл бұрын

Hi Dylan, thanks for the ASPA video. Which software are you using during the star and polar alignment? Is it Celestron-specific?

@michaelbrennan2936 3 жыл бұрын

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.

@MrSpychecker 3 жыл бұрын

ASPA even works perfectly with my wedged Alt-Az!

@frankbraker 3 жыл бұрын

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!

@2badger2 5 жыл бұрын

Now this is nice! I thought you had to polar align first and then star align.

@DylanODonnell 5 жыл бұрын

I hope it helps!

@SkuppyVincenzo Жыл бұрын

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 ?

@tedwilliams3875 6 жыл бұрын

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! :)

@DylanODonnell 6 жыл бұрын

Ted Williams haha good to hear it helped ! And thanks!

@jacquechanny945 6 жыл бұрын

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@jerrybarr7606 4 жыл бұрын

Hey Dylan good video/what part austtralia you from/have a few ham friends there/

@DunkNat 6 жыл бұрын

Thank you :)

@scottbadger4107 3 жыл бұрын

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?

@JohnDoe-pm9cg 4 жыл бұрын

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?

@geromcclellan4762 3 жыл бұрын

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.

@midnightlightning1 4 жыл бұрын

Interesting video. Looks like you are using SGPro, if so cant you just use "Solve and Sync" to get aligned?

@jcinaz 3 жыл бұрын

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.

@LebSista 5 жыл бұрын

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

@DylanODonnell 5 жыл бұрын

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 :)

@199greg0 6 жыл бұрын

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

@DylanODonnell 6 жыл бұрын

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.

@Kaylie.Dunstan 4 жыл бұрын

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

@anandpvijayan 4 жыл бұрын

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

@Zero_Point_Energy1 5 жыл бұрын

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?

@DylanODonnell 4 жыл бұрын

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 :)

@seangross5663 4 жыл бұрын

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.

@HiwaymanKS 6 жыл бұрын

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.

@DylanODonnell 6 жыл бұрын

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!

@clemenskemper6833 6 жыл бұрын

What software are you using on your mac there? Awesome Video, thanks so much! Gonna try my first alignment tonight!

@DylanODonnell 6 жыл бұрын

Heya! I'm using Sequence Generator Pro frame and focus to view the "real time" feed from the telescope. Hope this helps!

@jbreezy3146 Жыл бұрын

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.

@DylanODonnell Жыл бұрын

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.

@Brossel 6 жыл бұрын

Thank you Dylan, regards from Brazil, where we dont have a north star at all.

@DylanODonnell 6 жыл бұрын

Hi Andre! 🇦🇺🇧🇷

@ebenezergarbrah5255 6 жыл бұрын

Hello, will this still work when you can't see the North Star or even ocean for those of us in the south

@deanmindock5020 6 жыл бұрын

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.

@selwol2 6 жыл бұрын

Hi, how do you get the live view in SGP, including the crosshairs? thanks in advance Dylan

@Gerry0843 5 жыл бұрын

Another good video, and I watch just about all yours since I'm new at this hobby. I'm having difficulty getting a good star alignment and was wondering if you would share what the software you are using to get good star alignment. Keep the videos coming because I get a lot of good information from them. Thanks. Gerry D

@DylanODonnell 5 жыл бұрын

Hi Gerry.. welcome to the club :) This video *is* the software I use for polar alignment. The capture software on the screen is sequence generator pro, but anything capture software would do. Or even an eyepiece.

@mohammadranjbaran1897 3 жыл бұрын

Thank you.

@wadeprunty 5 жыл бұрын

Hey Dylan, have you tried using the Celestron PWI telescope control software instead of the hand controller?

@DylanODonnell 5 жыл бұрын

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 :)

@Themakersoutpostbonus 5 жыл бұрын

Do you have the telescope pointing north? Hopefully setting up my new cgx tomorrow night. Great video! Thanks!

@DylanODonnell 5 жыл бұрын

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).

@karcoms 3 жыл бұрын

Dylan, what's that software you are using that looks is showing plate solved names of the stars in there?

@corsair438 5 жыл бұрын

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.

@ziasiddiqui5711 Жыл бұрын

Does anyone know what software is being used here on the computer screen which is showing the stars with their names?

@profeluisegarcia Жыл бұрын

¡¡THANKS FROM COLOMBIA¡¡

@tmrdarkstar85 5 жыл бұрын

why dont you use the cpwi console since you have a pc setup right there?

@gianniformica8235 4 жыл бұрын

What camera is it using here... Guide scope or the one in the image train?

@alberthamfeldt2637 4 жыл бұрын

What computer software are you using to help you align your system?

@seanmolony-redstickastro238 6 жыл бұрын

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

@OzzMazz 3 жыл бұрын

Hi, is there a similar technique using a skywatcher mount and hand controller? The hand controller I have does not have an 'Align' button.

@DylanODonnell 3 жыл бұрын

Yep! It’s in the manual.. I’ll do a video on it eventually.

@zxwmabcdef5439 4 жыл бұрын

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.

@aamir122a 5 жыл бұрын

Would the same apply for Celestron Alt-Auzmith mount with the wedge?

@DylanODonnell 5 жыл бұрын

I can't be sure.. but in theory, yes. You just make adjustments to the wedge when it comes time to align the star at the last step. But I dunno!

@lancewilliams8732 4 жыл бұрын

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 ?

@HollomanUFOLanding 2 жыл бұрын

Did you ever try starsense with your RASA? I was wondering the same as you.......

@MichaelLevAstro 5 жыл бұрын

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?)

@DylanODonnell 5 жыл бұрын

Mickey Lev thanks! I’m afraid the ASPA method is Celestron only :/ phd2 has a new polar alignment tool that might help though!

@MichaelLevAstro 5 жыл бұрын

@@DylanODonnell Oooh thats interesting, i'll look into that Thanks! :)

@johnbarnett804 5 жыл бұрын

@@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.

@cjwetzel22 3 жыл бұрын

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?

@stonedjedi87012 6 жыл бұрын

Hey i have gotten a nexstar 4se from bintel. Do you work for bin tel

@DylanODonnell 6 жыл бұрын

GRANT HARRIS congratulations! That was my first scope and I loved it. I don’t work for them directly but I do work with them a lot. Great team.

@John_Hudson_922 4 жыл бұрын

is the autofocus on the 6Dmk2 really that bad??

@BritishBeachcomber 3 жыл бұрын

Strewth! How do you ever find the time to do astronomy down under!

@captbuscemi 6 жыл бұрын

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?

@DylanODonnell 6 жыл бұрын

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!

@captbuscemi 6 жыл бұрын

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.

@oldschooldiy3240 5 жыл бұрын

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!

@MattWatsonAus 6 жыл бұрын

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.

@DylanODonnell 6 жыл бұрын

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.

@MattWatsonAus 6 жыл бұрын

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

@templecave9507 5 жыл бұрын

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.

@DylanODonnell 4 жыл бұрын

Sequence Generator Pro .. but that was focus data, not plate solving :)

@Ronbo765 4 жыл бұрын

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)?

@DylanODonnell 4 жыл бұрын

Yeh the starting position must be at the celestial pole. Before you even turn it on.