Any thoughts on the SeeStar?

[wavelandscott (Scott)]

Appreciate any thoughts on the SeeStar…https://www.seestar.com/

For the price of an eyepiece it might be fun to play with…I was thinking about using it as a supplement in outreach.

Cheers!

[AstroViking (Steve)]

I've never really looked at these auto-telescopes because I feel them to be 'cheating' when it comes to taking astro images. (Something about artists suffering for their art... )

When you think of using them for outreach and introducing people to what's out there in the night skies, then they become a lot more interesting.

Everyone has their phone with them now, so having a visitor able to see what the scope is seeing, in real-time, could be a great step forward. Rather than queuing and waiting to peer through an eyepiece and see a fuzzy grey blob (if they're lucky), they can see a colour image straight away.

That's assuming that the SeeStar doesn't require an app on the phone/tablet to see it's output. If it's output could be streamed to a large-screen TV, that might be really interesting to see. (I'll leave the logistics of using a large TV at a star party as an exercise to the reader. )

Cheers,
V.

[bojan]

Some of my astro-friends are using Dwarf-2.. very happy with that.

This thing has 50 mm aperture and 250 mm FL (vs Dwarf 24mm 100 mm FL).. so it must be better as far as resolution is concerned.
And it is cheaper that Dwarf2 (in EU..). It seems the sensor can be upgraded by user...

Must be great for patrolling the sky (for transients..).. but not really wide FOV..

[wavelandscott (Scott)]

I did “pre-order” one…I figure it is worth a punt. If it helps with outreach I will be happy with it.

I have wasted more money on dumber things before…and likely will again.

I do struggle with the idea of “cheating” however, if this technology helps get young folks connected to the night sky, I think I can get past my struggle

[Nikolas (Nik)]

It would be great for outreach and.... um outreach?

[ChrisV (Chris)]

While I'm not interested in this unit, I agree with and am a bit over comments about 'cheating' and others like 'lazy astronomy' (the latter being comment about EAA a while ago). As far as I'm concerned, if it works and you get enjoyment out of it, GREAT!!

Edit: I'm just grumpy today ...

Originally Posted by wavelandscott

I did “pre-order” one…I figure it is worth a punt. If it helps with outreach I will be happy with it.

I have wasted more money on dumber things before…and likely will again.

I do struggle with the idea of “cheating” however, if this technology helps get young folks connected to the night sky, I think I can get past my struggle

[toc (Tim)]

Sounds like fun. Give it a go and report back to us

[The_bluester (Paul)]

Personally I think that if they make astronomy accessible to more people, they are probably a good thing, as commented above, outreach probably being their real forte. But if they are simple enough to set up and use that people with zero experience really can get them going and use them then that is a plus.

Like Scott, I have certainly wasted more money on less useful things in the past.

[sharkbite]

Originally Posted by ChrisV

I agree with and am a bit over comments about 'cheating' and others like 'lazy astronomy'

Yep - if every technological advance was considered 'Lazy' we'd still be living in caves eating a Paleo diet the 'hard way'....

The seastar has the same sensor and focal length that i would typically use for astrophotography, and would spare me the hassle of setting up.
(which is the only thing stopping me from being out there more often)

I dont know what kind of quality i can expect - its cheaper to
buy than just my current lens is on the 2nd hand market,
let alone the camera and mount....

I'm going to wait and see what the images look like from the early adopters, and then you might see my current stuff in the classifieds!

[JA]

What a clever all in one device. It even performs its own polar alignment, sky alignment / plate solving and calibration. It also is listed as incorporating a built in (software controllable ???> On or Off) Dual band filter, albeit not super narrow at 20 to 30nm.

It would be good if it had a front filter thread as it might tolerate an auxiliary tele lens. Not sure that it does, even though there's also a front mounted solar filter (looks like a clip in).

Oh .... AND Autofocus of some sort!

Best
JA

[AvalonDunk (Duncan)]

I think it would be a fun device to take camping - or have in the car on a road trip.

ZWO are going to sell loads of them...

[seeker372011 (Narayan)]

I have ordered one - ostensibly for my wife so
She can sit in the car and image away with the minimum of effort… while I
muck around outside in the cold at club observing nights and star parties

It’s altaz and as of now limited to 10 sec subs.. you can save individual subs as FITS as well as the live stack. There is no limit to the number of subs you can take


There are images available taken by beta testers on line
from different Bortle locations

To my eye it’s a tad noisy but if one could be bothered to run NoiseXterminator on the stack it may clean up really well. In practice I doubt there will be much post processing- can’t see my wife wanting to do any of that- she does
like the idea of watching an image slowly appear as you watch as it live stacks

Comes with a dark, Uv/IR and not terribly narrowband duo filter (20 nm Ha and 30 nm OIII) and an external solar filter. Moon and sun images look
quite respectable

It’s an apochromat. Built in dew heaters. The app for iOS was released yesterday still waiting for the Android app

The Zwo people have said it’s been a massive success and they are swamped by preorders

Expect lengthy delay in order fulfilment …
Shipping to start end August for preorders
-been delayed a couple of months but in that time features have been added in response to customer feedback so it probably made the wait worthwhile

Will be interesting to see what it does in real life!

[wavelandscott (Scott)]

I also have one on order…hopefully the wait is not too long. I will give it a whirl and am hopeful that at least solar and or moon shots will be respectable.

I might even give some solar imaging a go with the upcoming eclipse’s…

At worst I have done my part to keep the Astro economy moving along and at best will capture a few images that inspire and enthuse

[entr0py (Dan)]

Keen to see some examples of the capability this device has and not the promo shots. Are there any shots being shared already on IIS?

As for 'lazy astronomy' - this hobby is complex, time intensive and has a huge learning curve. IMO, Anything that helps people bridge/shorten this gap and/or innovate in this space is an improvement.

[kris85au]

It looks like a Tesla of AP. It does not even have any door handles. But if one wants to go from point A to point B while browsing social media, then it will do. Different priorities for different people, I guess.

[AvalonDunk (Duncan)]

Cuiv just posted a review: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nt29_kHV1Fg

[Nikolas (Nik)]

It will be an expensive paperweight if the electronics fizzle out. In three years the next latest and greatest comes around, better optics, better stability, better imagery then you fork out more, much like an iphone.
Great concept but if it's not upgradeable and modular it's not a good investment.

[wavelandscott (Scott)]

Originally Posted by AvalonDunk

Cuiv just posted a review: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nt29_kHV1Fg

Thanks for posting this, it was very informative! I am more optimistic now with this product.

[JA]

^ I have to agree Scott (and thanks Duncan for the link) - great video outlining the features of this incredible product. It really makes you want to go out and get one.

Best
JA

[AstroViking (Steve)]

I watched Cuiv's video as well. It looks like a very user-friendly setup, aimed at people who (for whatever reason) don't want a full astrophotography setup.

It will never replace a full astro-rig, the same as the camera in a phone will never replace a DSLR/Mirrorless setup, and for exactly the same reasoning. Those of us with full astro-rigs (and/or DSLRs) want the modularity, expandability and flexibility these systems provide.

If you could somehow transmit the output from the SeeStar or the phone app to a large screen, it would be a winner for out-reach sessions.

Cheers,
V.

(I see that ZL4PLM here has just posted a video about the SeeStar, too.)