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Sky-Watcher Synscan Polar Alignment Routine
I’m probably going over old ground but I use either drift align or the Synscan PA routine together with BYEOS to polar align which has been working well for me ( yes I know plate solving is better but I’m happy using this method for the moment )
As there are currently no stars available near the meridian/equator between 8.00pm and midnight , I opt for the Synscan PA routine which has been giving me poor results the last 2 nights ( 2 to 3 arc minute errors ) Previously I’ve been getting down to less the 15 arc sec errors on a regular basis after 3 or 4 iterations
I’m currently using Achernar and Diphda ( alt 45deg az 60 deg apart ) as my 2 Star alignment stars with good goto alignment results and then I choose either of these stars as my Polar alignment Star but the Alt followed by the Az adjustments don’t get the star ending up really close to each other. I defocus so my stars are a small donut and fit into the cross hairs of the BYEOS drift alignment tool zoom box. And yes I always do a 2 Star alignment after each iteration ,I’m the same side of the meridian and always choose stars between 35 deg and 60 deg in Alt
Is it just seeing conditions, possible cone error, backlash etc that I’m getting poor results as previously I was getting good results time after time and I don’t think I’m doing anything different ( other than selection and location of alignment Stars ) Should I be using a completely different star for Polar alignment instead of one of the 2 Star alignment stars ?
Any ideas ?
Cheers
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