With many of the COVID restrictions being relaxed, partly due to vaccinations, I have been putting my imaging rig through the ringer to make sure everything still works.
I guess the big question is why the need?
Firstly, nearly all the software and drivers have been updated, plus the intent is to move away from SGP Pro to N.I.N.A for sequencing. It’s better to make sure everything works in the comfort of ones home rather than out in the field!
In addition to the software changes, I have decided to add a new fine focusing ring to the guide camera:
The reason for the collar is that previous attempts at autoguiding can best be described as fraught – with focusing being one of the main issues. In fact, things were so bad on the last imaging run (M81 & M82), that I actually turned off guiding completely as I was getting better results that way!
Hopefully this addition plus some mount backlash adjustments should go some way toward making reliable auto-guiding a reality.
It turns out that there is a lot to test on an imaging system! To ensure that everything is tested properly I first compiled a list of things to check. Then it was a case of following said list and carrying out the relevant tests.
So far I have proven the following in conjunction with N.I.N.A:
- Manual electrical focus of the main camera
- Auto focus of the main camera on actual stars
- Focused auto-guider on a real star and locked (remarkably easy with new collar!)
- Took multiple shots
- Manually moved the scope via the EQ Mod panel and X-Box Controller
- Attempted to plate solve – code ran well but failed to resolve (being indoors does not help).
- Calibrated the focuser
- Filter selection is now populated
- Filter changes were then proven to ensure that the correct filter was rotated in place for a given selection.
Not bad considering this was all done indoors through a window š
I still have a few more tests to do and I still need to get additional familiarisation with N.I.N.A, but I think I’m almost there. With a little luck, I should soon be out under the stars doing some imaging!
Clear Skies!
RobP
Uk Astro-Imager 
