trouble finding south celestial pole to align ioptron skytracker
Hey guys, I was in need of some help I was looking for the South Celestial Pole which is hard to find. It there any techniques or tips to make it easier. I was also wondering if maybe someone could add a photo up of what the scp looks like so I have an idea on what to align it on. Cheers
You need to set the elevation and azimuth of the polar axis.
If you have an iPhone or similar with the app "Clinometer" installed, use this to set the elevation of the polar axis to your current latitude, it will get it right with enough accuracy for your little mount.
To set the azimuth you will need to be able to identify the polar region from star charts and correlate that to what you see in the eyepiece, and vice versa. It will help if you learn some of the easy constellations to find your way. As a beginner it might be useful to acquire a planisphere and learn how to use it, this will help you work out what's where and which way you are facing.
If you know where you will be setting up (like the back yard), you can use the ruler tool in Google Earth or the marker thing in The Photographer's Ephemeris to find a landmark that is due south of you. Align your azimuth with that, lock it and then adjust the altitude as WavyTone describes.
I find that, with my ageing eyes, I can't see Sigma Octans, however there is an android app called Polar Finder which shows the position of Sigma Octans within the IOptron reticle circle, costs $2 from memory and if your eyesight is up to the task that should help together with the alingment scope.
I find that, with my ageing eyes, I can't see Sigma Octans, however there is an android app called Polar Finder which shows the position of Sigma Octans within the IOptron reticle circle, costs $2 from memory and if your eyesight is up to the task that should help together with the alingment scope.
It probably helps to get a sense of what the reticles you find on finder scopes actually shows. Ignore the Polaris (northern) info. The asterism you want is the squashed box shape. Compare that with the image uploaded earlier in this thread and see where those 4 stars actually are. That'll give you a sense of what you're looking for in an eyepiece.
wow thanks guys, I haven't had the time to try again as it has been a bit cloudy, but will do when it comes clear. So the clinometer app would be perfect if I could lay my phone flat on the ioptron skytracker to dial in the latitude to get it accurate. But because of the earth's tilt how much of the latitude will be affected, does this change?
Danny just get the clinometer app and learn what it does.
The altitude of the pole is measured with respect to horizontal, and this is what the app measures. If your tripod is tilted (ie not level) this makes no difference.
However, you can use the app to level the tripod, and this is useful because it means the next time you use the mount the altitude setting will be close to correct.
So, ultimately you either forget about the tripod and align the mount each time from scratch, or spend a few minutes to level the tripod to make aligning the mount easier. Either way the result is the same.
And you can use the app to level the pictures on your walls.
Danny
I hope this image will be of some use to you. If you want i can email you a higher resolution image which shows the individual stars much clearer. I took this of the 2nd Nov 2013 at 7:42pm and its a 30 second shot with my olympus OMD EM5 withy a full frame fish eye lens.
Ive marked the SCP for you and some other stars as well and this should get you orientated.
Hope it helps
Allan
Last edited by allan gould; 15-11-2013 at 01:02 PM.
I usually set the scope up to the south and my alt close to the local latitude.
Then I make sure my 9x50 finder scope is aligned to the scope and then just move the scope az and alt adjustments until the finder is centred on the attached star formation which I can see in the 9x50 from my suburban house in Perth looking over the city so it's reasonably easy to find especially once you know what you're looking for.
I find this works fine for visual work and is quick.
