1. This presentation is available on website :-
Ver. Issue 1.2
Stellarium
everything you wanted to know but were afraid to ask
This presentation is available on website :-

2. What is Stellarium ? Open Source night sky star ‘mapping’
‘a true simulation of the night sky’
GUI is ‘Mac like’, as PC users will discover !
Windows 32 bit (2000 / NT / XP / Vista / 7 / 8)
(ver will work on Win98se !)
Windows 64 bit (Vista / 7 / 8)
Mac OS X 10.3.x (or above)
Linux (source) & .exe (for Ubuntu)
(many distro’s include it as ‘standard’)
Smart phone versions exist, not Open Source

3. iPhone & iPad versions ‘Stellarium Mobile’ = £1.99
For alternatives, see :-
Note that free apps often contain ‘embedded’ advertising (some limit this to start-up)
One of the worst is “GoSkyWatch Planetarium”
(annoying advertisements ‘pop up’ in bright colours during use & ruin your night vision)

4. Android smart phones ‘Stellarium Mobile Sky Map’ = £1.69
id=com.noctuasoftware.stellarium&hl=en_GB
The (free) Open Source version is being ‘worked on’ :-
Some (free) alternatives include :-
‘The Night Sky Lite’
(Google) ‘Sky Map’

5. (PC) Graphics card drivers
Uses ‘OpenGL (2.1)’ for max. compatibility
OpenGL is slow compared to Direct X
(but only likely to be a problem on older kit
or those using ‘motherboard built in graphics’
or 10 yr. old laptops :-)
You should get > 15 fps, even on old kit
if < 1 fps you have a driver problem !
(i.e. you are using the ‘default’ Microsoft video driver)
If it’s slow, reduce your screen resolution :-)

6. Setting a custom resolution
Stellarium uses Windows screen res.
(to change, Right Click desktop for Properties, Settings tab ..)
To set a specific screen resolution :-
Start - Programs - Stellarium - config.ini
Click file to select & open it in Notepad
Modify the ‘screen_w’ & ‘screen_h’ values
Then save the file and (re)start Stellarium

7. The ‘Projection’ setting
Changes how Stellarium draws the sky
Default is the ‘Perspective’ view
Horizon is a straight line, max. FOV (field of view) 150º
(similar to how your eyes see the sky)
Others (in order of max FOV) are :-
FOV 180º, ‘Fisheye’ & ‘Orthographic’
FOV 233º, ‘Cylinder’ & ‘Mercator’
FOV 235º, ‘Stereographic’
FOV 360º, ‘Equal area’ & ‘Hammer-Aitoff’

8. Constallation Artwork
Specific to a ‘Sky Culture’
default is ‘Western’
If you don’t like any of them (I don’t) …
…why not create your own ?
Actually, it’s not quite that easy …
… look in /skycultures folder for examples
Better = download existing alternatives
eg. Hevelius Constellation Art from :-
(artwork source is from engravings at :-

9. Landscape settings Controls how Stellarium draws the ground
‘Show ground’ (default = on)
When off, you can ‘see through the earth’ :-)
‘Show fog’ (default = on)
Haze/fog = horizion ‘glow’ / ‘light pollution’
(there is a separate setting for sky ‘light pollution’)
‘Use associated planet and position’
Means a new Landscape also changes the observers location
‘Use this landscape as default’
Use curerent chosen Landscape at next start
You can load download pre-made alternatives
or create your own personal ‘landscape’

10. Adding a new Landscape (the easy way)
Download the landscape.zip you want eg. from :-
F4 for "Sky and viewing options" (or click icon)
In ‘Landscape’ tab, click “Add/remove landscapes”
In ‘Add/remove landscapes’ window,
click “Install a new landscape from a ZIP archive”
& ‘browse’ to where you saved the .zip in step 1.
Some you might like = Mars, Moon, Avebury, Stonehenge, & ‘Field’ (simple grass field - good for horizon check)

11. Create your own landscape
Adding a new Landscape (the hard way)
NB a guide to Stellaritum control files can be found at:

12. i.e. 256, 512, 1024, 2048, 4096 etc. (guereins is 8 x 256=2048 wide)
Your own landscape
Landscape size MUST an exact power of 2
limitation imposed by (some) OpenGL drivers
i.e. 256, 512, 1024, 2048, 4096 etc. (guereins is 8 x 256=2048 wide)
The higher the resolution, the slower it ‘renders’
but the better it looks = so max 4096w (x 2048h) is suggested
You can save as a single ‘normal’ panorama
‘type = spherical’ ?! (eg ‘mars’, 2048x1024)
Or as a single ‘spherical projection’
‘type = fisheye’ (eg 512x512)
Or ‘chop it up’, into be 4, 8 or 16 tiles (+ a ground tile)
‘type = old_style’ (eg ‘guereins’, 256x256 + ground 512x512)

13. Landscape image making
You need a complete 360º width view
Image all everything around then take some ‘ground’ / ‘grass’ shots for ‘fill in’ use
Some cameras have a ‘panorama’ mode
Resolution is ‘adequate’, but most don’t do 360
so you may need 2 (or even 3) overlapping shots
and will still have to ‘stitch’ to get the complete 360 view

14. Landscape ‘how to’ - overview
Step 1) Take your photo’s at the observing location
eg. your backyard / Cookham Dean
Step 2) ‘Stitch’ to make a 360º ‘panorama’ photo
max 4096 pixels wide (x 2046 heigh)
Step 3) Make the sky ‘transparent’ (& save as PNG)
+ fill in extra ground as needed (& check the scale)
Step 4) Optional = chop into 8 or 16 ‘panels’ …
default, side1 = North (set ‘decor_angle_rotatez’ to adjust)
alternative = make a ‘spherical projection’ (type=fisheye)
Step 5) Generate Stellarium display parameters

15. How to - step 1, photo’s Take your photo’s
Set your tripod at your normal observing location
The tripod the height is important if you want accuracy
Set minimium zoom (eg on lens, set 18)
If using a 50mm lens, rotate camera to portrait mode
Take your photo’s
You need complete 360º, overlap ea. about 30%
You need from the near ground to the empty sky
If necessary, take 2 (or more) at each posn.
it’s not a bad idea to take a few extra ground for ‘fill in’
Top tips:
1) landscape photo’s are best taken on a clear day
It’s easier to cut out ‘all blue’ (or all grey :-) ) sky than mixed clouds & sky
2) take a compass and mark ‘North’ (it’s a lot hard to find later :-) )

16. How to - step 2, panorama ‘Stitch’ your images to make a panorama
Eg. use free Microsoft ICE (‘Image Composite Editor’)
An OpenSource alternative, but harder to use, is HUGIN
2. ‘Save As’ in a ‘reasonable’ resolution
The panorama ‘width’ is 360 degrees (eg pixels)
The ‘height’ is 180 degrees BUT unless you took 180 degrees of photo’s, you will have ‘fill in’ extra ground (& sky**) later
Note. ** you won’t need ‘empty sky’ (it’s just for sizing) however if you don’t add it, you will need to adjust the ‘decor_alt_angle’ parameter

18. How to - step 3, cut out sky
‘Transparent’ the sky using free** OpenSource software ‘The Gimp’
Open the panorama & note it’s width & horizon posn.
Create a new ‘full sized’ image
If the width is 4096 pixels, then you need a height of 2048
In the ‘advanced’ tab, set PNG background color = transparent
Copy panorama & paste ‘as new layer’ into the new
Make sure to align it so the horizon is in the ‘middle’
Cut out the sky to expose ‘checkerboard’ background
Use ‘select by color’ (DON’T set ‘feather edge’)
Export in ‘.png’ format to preserve the transparent sky
** non-free alternatives are Photoshop / PaintShop Pro

19. How to - fill in the ground
To avoid having to work out the ‘offset’ parameter settings, I suggest you ‘fill in’ the ground
I used GIMP to copy / clone existing ground
Don’t forget to export as PNG !
If the width is 4096 pixels, then the height is 2048 pixels
The horizon is ‘in the pixel position 1024
The ‘lower’ 1024 pixels (down from the horizon) = ground
The ‘upper’ 1024 pixels = (mainly) transparent sky

20. How to - step 4, convert ‘Fisheye’ or Tiles is better than panorama
To make spherical (fisheye) use GIMP
Open the landscape and ‘distort’ it to ‘square’
In Image menu, Scale Image, set new ht = same as wdith
and ‘unlink’ the two (so it actualy distorts)
Convert to ‘fisheye’
In Filters –> Distorts –> Polar Coordinates
use ‘offset angle’ to get your NORTH (up) correct !
For tiles, ‘chop’ the panorama into 4,8 or 16
(Plus one ‘extra’ part for the ‘near’ ground)
Use an existing landscape.ini as a ‘template’ for your own
(see ‘trees’ for fisheye, ‘moon’ for a single panorama)

22. If you get it wrong, Stellarium can lock-up !
How to - step 5, settings
Create a folder in C:/Program Files/Stellarium/landscapes/
Eg. C:/Program Files/Stellarium/landscapes/ockwells
Place the panorama image(s) in this folder
Use simple name (no caps or spaces) eg ockwells.png
Create a ‘landscape.ini’ file
Start with a copy of existing & adjust the values …
eg. Ockwell’s Park, Lat: , Long: , Altitude: 31m
[location] (Ockwell’s Park), planet = Earth
latitude = +51d29’22”, longitude = -0d44’46”, altitude = 31
(Cookham Dean Common is Lat: , Long: , Alt: est. 50m)
If you get it wrong, Stellarium can lock-up !
A guide to Stellaritum control files can be found at :-

23. Changing your ‘viewpoint’
It’s as easy to visit Mars as Ockwell’s Park
F4 to open "Sky and viewing options" window
In the ‘Landscape’ tab, click ‘Mars’ & in Options box, note ‘Use associated planet and position’
If it’s (already) set, then you are now on Mars !
If not, set ‘Use associated..’ & click ‘Mars’ again
Your ‘viewpoint’ will then change to Mars !
(to confirm, use F3 & search for Earth)

24. Adding new Comets, Asteroids & planets

25. Adding Comet ISON etc.
Easy way = ‘import’ from Minor Planet Center (MPC)
F2 or click ‘Configuration’ icon
In ‘Plugins’ tab, select ‘Solar System Editor’
In ‘options’, click ‘Configure’ (if greyed out, set ‘Load at start up’ & restart)
In ‘Solar System’ tab, view the list of existing ‘objects’
To add, click ‘Import orbital elements in MPC format’
In ‘Import data’ / ‘Lists’ tab, set ‘Select the Type’ as ‘Comets’
Set ‘Select the source’ to ‘Download a list .. from the Internet’
In ‘Select a source from the list’ scroll to ‘MPC’s list of observable comets’
Then click ‘Get orbital elements’
In ‘Objects found’ list, scroll to “C/2012 S1 (ISON)” & select [‘x’] it
Then click ‘Add objects” & restart Stellarium
Note. The Comet data is added to :-
C:\Documents and Settings\seti3100\Application Data\Stellarium\data\ssystem.ini

29. Restart Stellarium

31. Adding Comets (the hard way)
Edit the ‘working’ .ini file at :-
C:\Documents and Settings\{your a/c}\Application Data\Stellarium\data\ssystem.ini
(the ‘default’ can be found in C:\Program Files\Stellarium\data\ssystem.ini)
Edit using Notepad etc. NOT Wordpad / MS Word !
& be careful = this file defines the Earth & all the planets !
Many asteroids etc are already defined, eg. [mcnaught] :-
[mcnaught]
Unique short name, lower case
name = C/2006 P1 (McNaught)
Text displayed to user
parent = Sun
it’s parent (i.e. what it orbits)
radius = 1000
in miles, determines relative ‘size’ displayed (Comets default to 5)

32. oblateness = 0.0
halo = true
Means draw with a ‘fuzzy edge’ i.e. ‘atmospheric’ effect
color = 1.0,1.0,1.0
white (r,g,b)
tex_halo = star16x16.png
The image file to use when adding atmospheric effect
Note: if halo = false , set ‘tex_halo = NULL’
tex_map = nomap.png
Image to show when ‘zooming in’ on the object
(default, ‘nomap’, is a ‘fuzzy ball’ = there is no provision for comet ‘tails’)
coord_func = comet_orbit
Algorithum used to calculate position in the sky
Whilst ‘halo’ etc. can make the comet ‘fuzzy’, there is no support for comet ‘tails’

33. orbit_TimeAtPericenter = 2454112.7968
orbit_PericenterDistance =
orbit_Eccentricity =
orbit_ArgOfPericenter =
orbit_AscendingNode =
orbit_Inclination =
lighting = false
‘false’’ means don’t show ‘phases’ (so Moon = true)
albedo = 1
orbit_visualization_period =
landscape = {name of folder containing the landscape image}
In order to ‘visit’ a planet/moon/asteroid/comet you must have a landscape to ‘stand on’

34. How to ‘stand on a Comet’
All you need is some ‘landscape’ to stand on
You can create a landscape (.png) ‘as normal’
or just copy the /moon landscape :-)
& set ‘planet’ = your Comet, eg C/2012 S1 (ISON)
add the ‘landscape =’ to the comets entry in the working ssystem.ini found in:-
C:\Documents and Settings\{your a/c}\Application Data\Stellarium\data
Use F4 to open "Sky and viewing options"
In the ‘Landscape’ tab, click your just added landscape
In ‘options’, set ‘Use associated..’
Then click on the just added landscape again :-)
You are now ‘standing on a comet’ !

35. Telescope Control

36. Enable the built-in control
In config.ini, enable ‘light travel time compensation’
If you don’t Jupiters Moons won’t be exactly ‘centered’
Launch Stellarium …
F2 or click icon for ‘Configuration Window’
In Plugins tab, Telescope Control, Configure
If ‘Configure’ is greyed out, set ‘Load at Startup’ & Restart Stellarium
(the ‘select it again’ trick doesn’t work for Telescope Control)
In ‘Telescopes’ tab, click ‘Add’
Leave default (Stellarium, direct … serial port)
In Properties, scroll down for ‘Device Settings’
Select your mount from the pull-down list
eg mine is ‘Meade Autostar compatible’

37. Stellarium can control as many mounts as you have serial ports
Mounts supported
Stellarium direct, via a serial port, supports :-
Celestron NexStar (compatible)
Sky-Watcher SynScan ‘V3+’ and ‘AZ GOTO’ mount
(includes EQ6, HEQ5-Pro ?)
Meade Autostar compatible
(= ETX and DS, Autostar 1 #495 and (my) #497/old controller)
ETX-70 with #494 Autostar 1 (extra features)
Meade LX200 (compatible)
Wildcard Innovations Argo Navis (in Meade mode)
Losmandy G11
Mount must ‘polar align’ before Stellarium control
Stellarium can control as many mounts as you have serial ports
Well, up to 9 .. Ctrl n = mount ‘n’ GoTo (& track) selected target on screen

38. Controlling other telescopes
Use the ‘Stellarium scope’ plug-in to drive
ASCOM / EQMOD compatible mounts, see :
Note: when using Stellariumscope + ASCOM
Ctrl 1 = GoTo center of Stellarium screen display
Ctrl 2 = GoTo and ‘sync’ (track) ‘target’ shown on screen
Ctrl 3 = abort move
Latest StellariumScope ( ) & ASCOM known to work with Stellarium and
(as of Oct. 2013, Stellarium ver = ‘untested’)

39. Using ASCOM with Stellarium
Install ‘Stellarium scope’ locally from :-
(Stellarium v12.x is intended to work w/o this step)
If your PC is Windows XP, then :-
You must have Windows XP Service Pack 3 installed
You must have MS .NET Framework 3.5 SP1
3. Install the latest ASCOM Platform 6 = ‘sp3’
Download & install the drivers for your mount
4. Restart your P.C. & launch Stellarium scope
Select the driver for you scope and tick ‘connect’
5. Launch Stellarium … & select ‘local driver’

40. Controlling the HEQ5 / EQ6 etc.
Use StellariumScope + ASCOM + EQMOD, see :-
The ‘known working’ HEQ5/EQ6 version set is :-
Stellarium version
StellariumScope version ( )
ASCOM Platform 5 with the update
EQMOD version v121d ( )
Note - the following is not unusual with OpenSource s/w :-)
“This version of Stellarium scope is designed to work with Stellarium version and later. Your version appears to be: ”

41. Serial link mount drive
Your PC ‘COM1’ ports will default to :-
9600 baud, 8 data, 1 stop, No parity, No flow control
= which is exactly what Meade Autostar handset requires !
To change the COM settings :-
Launch ‘Device Manager’
Expand ‘Ports’, adjust ‘Communications Port (COM1)’
If, instead, you are using a USB<>Serial adaptor,
in Device Manager, open the USB adapter settings

42. Remote (wireless) Control
Use Stellarium in ‘direct’ serial port mode
Serial link is transmitted via :-
a) Bluetooth (USB<>Bluetooth adaptor)
b) WiFi (using ‘serial port divert’ s/w)
At the mount use adapter/PC to connect to serial again
Use Stellarium in ‘remote’ (network) mode
The remote PC must be running ‘client’ software
At the mount, fit Ethernet / WiFi <>serial module
Use some (free) ‘remote control’ software, eg:-
If you want multiple USB<>serial (or USB<>bluetooth) links, use DIFFERENT manufacturers ..
Same Mfg devices will all use the same driver and will get VERY confused about ‘COMM port’ numbers …
(this is due to XP re-assigning USB port numbers at every power-on - OK if only one mfg device so only one possible driver.
Bit issue if multiple devices from a single Mfg siince all same driver so no telling which (COM) is chosen)

43. 1a. Bluetooth mount connection
Best for iPad & Android
tablets & smart phones
& laptops with built-in Bluetooth
(non-bluetooth PC’s can use a USB Bluetooth dongle)
At the mount, Bluetooth to serial adapter
These are available ‘off the shelf’
Most are battery powered
Must support ‘bluetooth serial port profiles (spp)’
Typical <£10 on eBay (or >£30 from Amazon etc)

44. A typical £10 stand-alone bluetooth<>serial adapter
Reset
Bluetooth
module
Power (usb 5v or
2 wire skt 6v)
Mode =
master / off / slave

45. 1b. Serial via WiFi In theory**, the simplist to ‘get working’
If it runs ‘local’, it (should) run remote
Remote mount driver can be simple device
Eg Raspberry Pi SBC (Single Board Computer)
**dozens of apps. ‘claim’ to provide ‘Serial <> WiFi <> Serial’ functionality, however I only found one actually worked :-

46. What’s wrong with Open Source ?
Many ‘claim’ to be ‘Windows compatible’
= but the only download available is ‘source’ (eg ‘SerServ’)
Windows .exe ‘afterthought’ & often ‘command line’
= so it just ‘falls over silently’ when something (anything) goes wrong (some create a ‘log’ file = most don’t)
No installer ? then assume it’s not going to work :-)
but don’t count on it .. eg TCPCOM32 .msi installs OK but then fails at ‘launch’ every time with an ‘Error opening socket’ message
Documentation ? = typically, none
= eg IPCom runs OK but ‘Unable to open COM1’ (why?)
‘Dependencies of the unknown kind’ …
eg ‘combytcp’ = throws MS.net ‘exception’ on main (& can ‘continue’ ok) but always aborts with ‘failed to initialise’ on the remote PC ?

47. What’s wrong with commercial s/w ?
Salesmen are not Software Engineers
Product comes with ‘exagerated’ claims
If not outright lies, it reflects sales limited understanding of s/w
‘Free’ s/w is time and/or feature ‘limited’
The limitations are typically not advertised
and it’s often impossible to tell a bug from a limitation
Reviewers frequently DON’T ACTUALLY USE the s/w
They base their articles on the vendors own advertisments
EXAMPLE:
You will find ‘HW VSP’ (free) ‘advertsied’ as a ‘serial2serial WIFi link’
It’s not = it’s a virtual COM port driver for HW’s WiFi hardware
(it can’t actually direct WIFI to a physical port = if it could, you might not need to pay for any of HW’s hardwear :-) )

48. + the mount uses the ‘SkyFi’ adapter, $160
2. WiFi to mount ‘Server’
Best for ASCOM / EQMOD users
Eg non-Bluetooth laptop, or for extended range
Stellarium WiFi to remote ‘Stellarium scope’
The remote PC then links to the mount using a standard serial cable
This is much more complex than ‘Serial via WiFi’ and I never managed to get it working
Non-stelarium alternative for Macs, iPads etc.
Use the commercial ‘SkySafari’ (non-free ed.)
+ the mount uses the ‘SkyFi’ adapter, $160

49. Mount ‘Server’ s/w Stellarium scope (ASCOM EQMOD mounts)
option=com_content&view=category&layout=blog
&id=31&Itemid=39
I gave up after reading the description …
Use old Stellarium generic ‘client/server’
eg: C:\>TelescopeServerLx COM1:
Simpler, but didn’t work for me at all, you may have better luck, see:-
#Telescope_Servers
a) TCDummy works’ just fine, TCLX200 falls over ‘immediately’, no reason given in log, assumed due to COM1 fail …..

50. 3. Remote control s/w (‘vnc’)
Best for ‘observatory’ users
You ‘remote control’ the PC at the mount
eg.
Not limited to controlling Stellarium
The remote PC is totally controlled by local PC
You can control a camera, activate auto-guiding etc.
Same as ‘Remote Desktop’ / ‘Remote help’
Supports higher data rates than Internet connection
(actually, controling Stellarium isn’t practical ..)

51. Tiger VNC Claims to be ‘video game speed’
Actual speed with Stellarium = totally unusable
The only way to regain control, after using VNC to launch Stellarium on the remote PC, was to force power-off !
The ‘problem’ seems to be that OpenGL screen updates are ‘poorly implemented’
Even when ‘nothing’ is happening, Stellarium redraws at 30-40fps (and VNC copies at 1 fps)
VNC works just fine with other apps. (just don’t try to run Stellarium :-) )

52. TV is SLOW, but usable, on 600x800 display
TeamViewer
TV is SLOW, but usable, on 600x800 display
(and 256 colours)
On the ‘target’ PC, install TeamViwer Host
On ‘controller’ install TV full (‘all in one’)
TV is designed to control remote PC’s via the Internet !
To activate the local LAN mode:
In the menu click on ‘Extras’ and then on ‘Options’
On the General tab activate ‘Accept incoming LAN connections’
To cut down on text changes, in Stellarium, Config, Main, ‘Selected object info …’ set ‘Short’ (& Save Settings)

53. Mac. as the mount controller ?
Not easy / not possible (& why bother ?)
‘Stellarium scope’ is Windows only ..
Mac. remote Telescope Server ‘StellLXTSRB’
see
It only ever supported Meade ETX-80 & LX-90
The ‘source’ page no longer exists (
Neither Google nor Yahoo search can find the .zip file
Mac. Serial2serial via WiFi s/w may exist
NB. To drive a serial cable from the Mac. :-
Buy any generic USB to Serial (eg Maplins) & use the ‘PL2303 Driver for Mac.’ from Prolific.com
StellLXTSRB apparently ’evaporated’ after 1st issue March 2009

54. Practical Telescope Control

55. How to make it work in the field
Main PC is set up as ‘Ad-hoc’ WiFi ‘Router’
= WinXP, so uses ICS (Internet Connection Sharing)
The remote PC connects to WiFi ‘as normal’
Main PC runs Stellarium in ‘local mode’
+ with serial via WiFi connection to remote PC
VNC on main PC controls s/w on remote PC
DSLR Shutter = uses parallel port to take phot’s
Canon s/w = uses USB to fetch photo’s

56. Setting up WiFi in the field
Use your (main) PC as a WiFi ‘Router’
on Windows XP (& Vista & Windows 7?)
Use ICS (Internet Connection Sharing) + ‘Ad-Hoc’ WiFi
Your PC is now a ‘Router’ (but only with WEP**)
on Windows 7 (& Windows Server 2008)
Use ‘Virtual WiFi’ (which is much easier to setup)
Only WPA** is available
Your remote PC connects ‘as normal’
assuming Windows Firewall lets it …
(use ‘ping’ to check each PC can see the other)
** WPA is more secure, but some smart phones only do WEP

57. Serial <> WiFi (using ‘com0com’)
On the Stellarium (‘client’) PC :-
Run (com0com) ‘setup.exe’ to create CNCA0<>CNCB0
In CNCA0 set ‘use Ports class’ & ‘emulate baud rate’
in Virtual pair 0, COMn should now be linked to CNCB0
Copy the hub4com files into the ‘root’ of c:
com2tcp-rfc2217.bat connects CNCB0 to mount PC IP
C:\>com2tcp-rfc2217 \\.\CNCB nnn 7000
Select COMn in Stellarium Telescope Control
On the mount (‘server’) PC :-
link TCP/IP port 7000 to the COM1 serial link cable
C:\>com2tcp-rfc2217 COM1 7000

58. In com0com, setting ‘use Ports class’ automatically changed virtual
port ‘CNCA0’ to
‘real’ port ‘COM10’.
[ Stellarium is then
set to Port COM10
& com2tcp-rfc2217
then links CNCB0
to mount PC
TCP/IP address ]

59. Telescope Control Demo

60. … make ‘System Restore Point’ on every PC !!!
Steve’s Top Tips
Finding an OpenSource app. to do the job..
..will cost you more in lost time than paying for one
If 10 Open Source apps claim to do the job
.. 9 out of 10 won’t / can’t … and you will try the 10th last
Very few OpenSoure apps come with un-installers
.. the ones that do still won’t restore your system
Uninstalling will have unwanted ‘side-effects’
.. uninstalling a virtual COM port will disable the real one
.. uninstalling your Firewall will activate the Windows one
So THE INSTANCE you get it all working …
… make ‘System Restore Point’ on every PC !!!

61. Stellarium ‘goto’ for your Dobson
You outfit your Dob. with ‘position sensors’
Eg. ‘potentiometer’ + measuring controller
(there’s nothing better than the Raspberry Pi for this :-) )
Manual movement is ‘fed back’ to Stellarium
& Stellarium shows the ‘target’ on screen
(i.e. shows what the Dob is ‘pointing at’)
Yes, it’s actualy been done = see demo at :-

62. Raspberry Pi as a telescope ‘controller’
Extra’s
Raspberry Pi as a telescope ‘controller’

63. Stellarium with Raspberry Pi
For Stellarium Telescope Control via com0com
‘sudo apt-get install socat’ (=WiFi 2 serial port for the Pi)
For Nexstar controllers (Celestron)
Compile ‘Telescope Control Server’ driver for the Pi
see
Autostar support is ‘TBA’ …..
For physical serial cable (Pi to the mount controller)
see
(wire the MAX3232 to 3.3v supply from pads on cap. side)
WARNING - raw serial +/-12v WILL kill your Pi !
Note: the Raspberry Pi needs 1A
(a typical sealed 6v Lead Acid battery is 4.5Ahr i.e 4.5 hr)

64. SkySafari with Raspberry Pi
= a Stellarium alternative for iPhone/iPad & Android
You need the (paid for) Plus or Pro version :-(
this supports GoTo control using the ‘SkyFi’ adapter
= a ‘‘WiFi to Serial cable’ $160
To avoid paying $$$ for ‘SkyFi’, use the Pi !
get the “serial to (& from) network” app. or ‘socat’ app
sudo apt-get install ser2net / sudo apt-get install socat
for ser2net, set TCP/IP port (eg 4000) in ./etc/ser2net.conf
4000:raw:0:/dev/ttyUSB0:9600 NONE 1STOPBIT 8DATABITS
to set same in socat, launch it with params
socat tcp-l:1234,reuseaddr,fork /dev/ttyAMA0,raw,b9600,echo=0,ocrnl=1
NOTE: set your Firewall to ‘allow’ the chosen Port !
remote-control-your-goto-telescope-mount-using-a-raspberry-pi-and-skysafari/

65. Kstars with Raspberry Pi
= a Stellarium alternative for GNU\Linux
Also available for Windows
Uses the ‘INDI’ driver set for remote GoTo
so you need a ‘controller’ at the mount
e.g. a Raspberry Pi :-)

66. PHD / lin_guider auto-guiding
A 5mp camera is available for the Pi
this means ‘auto-guiding’ could be added !
(has been done usin a USB web-cam but is very, very slow)
A ‘NoIR’ camera (w/o IR filter) is ‘coming soon’
aim is same price ($25) as the ‘standard’ camera
this means astro-photography by Pi !
(for more see:

67. But all that’s for another day !
This presentation is available as a .PPT on my website :-
Movies_and_presentations/