David's Astronomy Pages
Notes - Session 859 (2021-02-16)

 
Bullet Session Aims & Highlights
 - Observing Result
 - Night Summary Plot
 - Session Event Log
 
Bullet Operational Issues
  - Critical Issues (0),  Major Issues (1),  Minor Issues (3),  Continuous Improvement (15)
Bullet Images from 2021-02-16 >>     [ Local Files >> ]
Bullet ObsCam - New Camera for monitoring interior of the Observatory
Bullet AstroObsCam - New Application for capturing WebCam pictures of the Observatory Interior
 

Session Aims & Highlights (2021-02-16)

Main aims

  1. AstroMain.  Test features and fixes added in AstroMain 3.36 software, and crucially test stability and absence of UI lockups
  2. ObsCam. Conduct first live test of new AstroObsCam software for capturing webcam pictures of the telescope & interior of the observatory during operation including AstroAllSky-AstroObsCam communication and picture upload & display on current session webpage.
  3. Targets. Acquire images of a selection of variable stars, nearby stars, comets & deep sky targets as allowed by conditions.

Equipment & Software

Highlights

Summary Plots & Logs

Observing Plan
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Observing Result
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Dome & Scope Slewing Performance
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Slew/Centering Performance
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Guiding Performance
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Sky Conditions (Locate Frames)
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Night Sky Summary Plot
Top axis: Sky Brightness at Zenith (in ADU/s)
Lefthand axis: Local Time (hh LT). Righthand axis: Sun Altitude (degs)
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Pre-Session Weather Forecast (API data from darksky.net)
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Session Event Log
Time     Event Detail
18:52:08 Session Monitoring AutoStart monitoring for Live Session opportunity starting between 18:51 & 05:36
18:52:10 Session AutoStarting Session autostarting (18:52)
18:52:40 Session Created Live Session Created (2021-02-16 S00859, ImageSaveNum: 859001)
18:52:42   Scope Switched On Telescope Power has been switched on via UPB Powerbox.
18:54:42   Services Started Observatory Services started
18:54:50 Observatory (Auto) Observatory placed in Fully-Automated Mode
18:54:55 Session Pending Session pending (2021-02-16)
18:54:57 Session Initiating Session initiating (2021-02-16)
18:54:59   Plan Requested Observing Plan requested from AstroPlan (1.20.5)
18:56:29   Plan Loaded Observing Plan loaded to queue (, Plan ID: 595)
18:56:42   Camera1 Connected SBIG Camera Connected (set point -15°C)
18:56:48   Telescope Connected Telescope Connected (TheSky6)
18:56:59 Session Equilibration Session ready for dome & camera equilibration
18:57:45   Dome Opened Dome opened (opening time 46s)
18:57:55 Session Running Session running
18:57:56   Queue Started Observing Queue started (34 targets selected)
18:59:12       Focusing Started-Foc1 Foc1 Focusing Started (TCF-S)
19:01:53       Focusing Completed Foc1 AutoFocus Completed (Profile No 1)
19:03:47       Focusing Completed Foc1 AutoFocus Completed (Profile No 1)
19:04:13       Focusing Started-Foc2 Foc2 Focusing Started (Secondary Scope, using ShCap)
19:06:37       Focusing Completed Foc2 AutoFocus Completed (Profile No 2, wide)
19:08:25       Focusing Completed Foc2 AutoFocus Completed (Profile No 2)
19:08:41       Focusing Checked Foc2 Focusing Check Succeeded
19:09:55     Target Started (1/34) Target started (1/34, M31 w/AT2021bfs)
19:13:38       Focusing Started-Foc1 Foc1 Focusing Started (TCF-S)
19:15:53       Focusing Completed Foc1 AutoFocus Completed (Profile No 3)
19:31:53     Target Completed Target completed (1/34, M31 w/AT2021bfs)
19:31:55     Target Started (2/34) Target started (2/34, UGC 2505 w/SN2021bge)
19:36:04       Focusing Started-Foc1 Foc1 Focusing Started (TCF-S)
19:38:16       Focusing Completed Foc1 AutoFocus Completed (Profile No 4)
19:53:56     Target Completed Target completed (2/34, UGC 2505 w/SN2021bge)
19:53:58     Target Started (3/34) Target started (3/34, NGC 684 w/SN2021ass)
19:56:46       Focusing Started-Foc1 Foc1 Focusing Started (TCF-S)
19:58:49       Focusing Completed Foc1 AutoFocus Completed (Profile No 5)
20:14:23     Target Completed Target completed (3/34, NGC 684 w/SN2021ass)
20:16:01     Target Started (4/34) Target started (4/34, GSC 1224:29)
20:20:51       Focusing Skipped Foc1 focusing skipped - star is lost (TCF-S)
20:26:24     Target Completed Target completed (4/34, GSC 1224:29)
20:26:43     Target Started (5/34) Target started (5/34, AT2021dbp (CV))
20:28:58       Focusing Started-Foc1 Foc1 Focusing Started (TCF-S)
20:30:52       Focusing Completed Foc1 AutoFocus Completed (Profile No 6)
20:36:25     Target Completed Target completed (5/34, AT2021dbp (CV))
20:38:35     Target Started (6/34) Target started (6/34, GCVS NV Ori)
20:41:47       Focusing Started-Foc1 Foc1 Focusing Started (TCF-S)
20:44:08       Focusing Completed Foc1 AutoFocus Completed (Profile No 7)
20:47:45     Target Completed Target completed (6/34, GCVS NV Ori)
20:47:48     Target Started (7/34) Target started (7/34, UGC 3502 w/AT2021cwc)
20:51:21       Focusing Skipped Foc1 focusing skipped - star is lost (TCF-S)
21:09:06     Target Completed Target completed (7/34, UGC 3502 w/AT2021cwc)
21:09:08     Target Started (8/34) Target started (8/34, Scholz's Star)
21:12:53       Focusing Skipped Foc1 focusing skipped - star is too dim (TCF-S)
21:29:45     Target Completed Target completed (8/34, Scholz's Star)
21:30:28     Target Started (9/34) Target started (9/34, GCVS FO Ori)
21:33:40       Focusing Started-Foc1 Foc1 Focusing Started (TCF-S)
21:35:24       Focusing Completed Foc1 AutoFocus Completed (Profile No 8)
21:39:16     Target Completed Target completed (9/34, GCVS FO Ori)
21:39:25     Target Started (10/34) Target started (10/34, AT2021ckv)
21:42:45       Focusing Started-Foc1 Foc1 Focusing Started (TCF-S)
21:44:47       Focusing Completed Foc1 AutoFocus Completed (Profile No 9)
22:00:43     Target Completed Target completed (10/34, AT2021ckv)
22:01:17     Target Started (11/34) Target started (11/34, M31 w/AT2021clj)
22:05:25       Focusing Started-Foc1 Foc1 Focusing Started (TCF-S)
22:07:40       Focusing Completed Foc1 AutoFocus Completed (Profile No 10)
22:23:39     Target Completed Target completed (11/34, M31 w/AT2021clj)
22:23:41     Target Started (12/34) Target started (12/34, SN 2021xn)
22:27:16       Focusing Started-Foc1 Foc1 Focusing Started (TCF-S)
22:29:31       Focusing Completed Foc1 AutoFocus Completed (Profile No 11)
22:43:20 Program Hung AstroMain UI, ObsMonitor & ObsWorker froze for 100s
22:45:07     Target Completed Target completed (12/34, SN 2021xn)
22:45:31     Target Started (13/34) Target started (13/34, Nova Per 2020 (CV))
22:48:10 Program Hung AstroMain UI, ObsMonitor & ObsWorker froze for 12 mins+
23:00:00 User Intervention User Intervention to kill AstroMain and restart observatory software
23:06:17 Session Resumed Live Session Resumed (2021-02-16 S00859, ImageSaveNum: 859117)
23:06:42   Obs.Manager Started Obs.Manager started
23:06:44   Obs.Overseer Started Obs.Overseer started
23:06:49   Services Started Observatory Services started
23:07:03   Scope Switched On Telescope Power has been switched on via UPB Powerbox.
23:08:47   Services Started Observatory Services started
23:09:29 Observatory (Auto) Observatory placed in Fully-Automated Mode
23:09:33 Session Pending Session pending (2021-02-16)
23:09:35 Session Initiating Session initiating (2021-02-16)
23:09:37   Plan Loaded Observing Plan loaded to queue (, Plan ID: 595)
23:09:41   Camera1 Connected SBIG Camera Connected (set point -20°C)
23:09:50   Telescope Connected Telescope Connected (TheSky6)
23:10:02 Session Equilibration Session ready for dome & camera equilibration
23:10:05 Session Running Session running
23:10:07   Queue Started Observing Queue started (21 targets selected)
23:10:09     Target Started (14/34) Target started (14/34, UGCA 174)
23:25:05     Target Completed Target partially completed (14/34, UGCA 174)
23:25:07     Target Started (15/35) Target started (15/35, C/2019 L3 (ATLAS), ToO)
23:28:45       Focusing Started-Foc1 Foc1 Focusing Started (TCF-S)
23:30:47       Focusing Completed Foc1 AutoFocus Completed (Profile No 14)
23:37:32     Target Completed Target completed (15/35, C/2019 L3 (ATLAS), ToO)
23:37:34     Target Started (16/35) Target started (16/35, UGC 5245)
23:49:19     Target Completed Target partially completed (16/35, UGC 5245)
23:49:21     Target Started (17/35) Target started (17/35, GCVS RZ LMi)
23:52:38       Focusing Started-Foc1 Foc1 Focusing Started (TCF-S)
23:54:33       Focusing Completed Foc1 AutoFocus Completed (Profile No 15)
23:59:44     Target Completed Target completed (17/35, GCVS RZ LMi)
23:59:46     Target Started (18/35) Target started (18/35, GCVS DX Cnc)
00:02:30       Focusing Started-Foc1 Foc1 Focusing Started (TCF-S)
00:04:43       Focusing Completed Foc1 AutoFocus Completed (Profile No 16)
00:09:05     Target Completed Target completed (18/35, GCVS DX Cnc)
00:09:07     Target Started (19/35) Target started (19/35, UGCA 200)
00:11:57       Focusing Started-Foc1 Foc1 Focusing Started (TCF-S)
00:14:09       Focusing Completed Foc1 AutoFocus Completed (Profile No 17)
00:29:50     Target Completed Target completed (19/35, UGCA 200)
00:29:59     Target Started (20/35) Target started (20/35, UGC 5164)
00:32:53       Focusing Started-Foc1 Foc1 Focusing Started (TCF-S)
00:34:43       Focusing Completed Foc1 AutoFocus Completed (Profile No 18)
00:50:23     Target Completed Target completed (20/35, UGC 5164)
00:52:21     Target Started (21/35) Target started (21/35, GCVS CN Leo)
00:55:27       Focusing Skipped Foc1 focusing skipped - star is lost (TCF-S)
01:04:16     Target Completed Target completed (21/35, GCVS CN Leo)
01:05:33     Target Started (22/35) Target started (22/35, IC 2740)
01:07:59       Focusing Skipped Foc1 focusing skipped - star is too dim (TCF-S)
01:25:20     Target Completed Target completed (22/35, IC 2740)
01:27:55     Target Started (23/35) Target started (23/35, AT2021rl)
01:32:02       Focusing Started-Foc1 Foc1 Focusing Started (TCF-S)
01:34:05       Focusing Completed Foc1 AutoFocus Completed (Profile No 19)
01:49:45     Target Completed Target completed (23/35, AT2021rl)
01:50:17     Target Started (24/35) Target started (24/35, CGCG 264-017 w/AT2021bjy)
01:53:53       Focusing Skipped Foc1 focusing skipped - star is too dim (TCF-S)
02:10:46     Target Completed Target completed (24/35, CGCG 264-017 w/AT2021bjy)
02:12:09     Target Started (25/35) Target started (25/35, NGC 3266)
02:15:59       Focusing Started-Foc1 Foc1 Focusing Started (TCF-S)
02:17:56       Focusing Completed Foc1 AutoFocus Completed (Profile No 20)
02:33:28     Target Completed Target completed (25/35, NGC 3266)
02:34:31     Target Started (26/35) Target started (26/35, UGCA 242)
02:38:47   SoftSuspend Called Soft Suspend is called due to Deteriorating Conditions (too few stars)
02:39:29       Focusing Skipped Foc1 focusing skipped - unable to find a star (TCF-S)
02:55:13     Target Completed Target completed (26/35, UGCA 242)
02:55:16   Queue Paused Queue paused for Session Suspension
02:55:19 Session Suspended Session suspended
02:56:09   Dome Closed Dome closed (closing time 50s)
03:16:15     Target Cancelled Target cancelled (27/35, NGC 3818) due to cloud
03:38:07     Target Cancelled Target cancelled (28/35, NGC 4631 w/AT2021biy) due to cloud
03:56:29     Target Cancelled Target cancelled (29/35, UGC 6930 w/SN2020rcq) due to cloud
04:17:21     Target Cancelled Target cancelled (30/35, NGC 4041 w/AT2021cek) due to cloud
04:39:13     Target Cancelled Target cancelled (31/35, NGC 4227 w/SN2021biz) due to cloud
04:50:39     Target Cancelled Target cancelled (32/35, GCVS R CrB) due to cloud
05:09:46     Target Cancelled Target cancelled (33/35, AT2021cyg) due to cloud
05:38:12     Target Cancelled Target cancelled (34/35, UGC 10310) due to cloud
06:06:42     Target Cancelled Target cancelled (35/35, C/2018 N2 (ASASSN)) due to wind
06:06:48   Queue Completed Job Queue completed
06:06:51 Session Closing Session closing
06:06:56   Dome Closed Dome already closed (closed at 02:56, closing time 50s)
06:07:55   Dome Parked Dome parked (parking time 50s), Az: 90.0 deg
06:08:26   Telescope Parked Telescope parked (parking time 28s)
06:08:56   Telescope Switched Off Telescope Power has been switched off via UPB Switch.
06:09:43   Services Stopped Night Services stopped
06:09:45 Session Housekeeping Housekeeping Started (Cleanup FITS, Create Fits Summary, Transfer Files)
06:10:06 Session Finished Session Finished
 
 
Session Alerts
Time     Alert Detail
22:51:11 LAN LAN Ping Checks have stopped for more than 3 mins
22:55:57 Dome Dome has been stationary for more than 10 mins
02:13:25 Dome Discrepency Difference between Telescope Az and Dome Az is > 8 deg (NGC 3266)
 
 

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Operational Issues (2021-02-16 S859)

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Critical Issues

Major Issues

Minor Issues

Continuous Improvement

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ObsCam - New Camera for monitoring interior of the Observatory

A webcam camera has been purchased for capturing IR pictures of the telescope and general observatory interior during operations.
This has been a long overdue purchase, and will provide much needed support for remote operation and monitoring of the Observatory.  Intention is that the camera will resolve ambiguities that might arise concerning the telescopes true position and to check and potentially identify issue regarding cable behaviour during operation and help diagnose other issues arising in the observatory.   The camera also provides a security function. 

Camera
The camera is :

ELP 1080P Night Vision Web Camera with IR LED, 2  Megapixel Full HD CMOS OV2710 Sensor UVC Webcam
compatible for Windows/Linux/Raspberry pi, 2MP Outdoor

ELP Product Page
Amazon Product page

Image

Features

  1. Use highly advanced 1/2.7 OV2710 CMOS Sensor
  2. Low light performance , 0.05 Lux
  3. Equiped with 1/2.7" 3.6mm 1080P high defination lens ,other lens optinal
  4. High speed camera with high frame rate 640X480@120fps, 1280X720@60fps,1920X1080@30fps
  5. Mainly used for advertising, video conferencing, high-definition monitoring ,Video doorbell, video intercom and other fields .
  6. Support USB2.0 OTG protocal, can connect with OTG equipements
  7. Full HD Night Vision Function, Excellent colour effect.
  8. High compatibility , support Android, Linux, Windows, MAC OS

    See camera specifications below.

Arrival and Installation
The camera arrived 2021-01-15 and after indoor testing was loosely installed in observatory and connected to the powered USB Hub that is attached to the AllSky/Weather Computer. 

View Point
The Camera is currently loosely positioned so that it looks due south and towards the rear of the LX200 Main telescope (when parked ) with a view that is elevated to see as much of the telescope and dome interior as possible.  

The camera is designed to be mounted on a ceiling or on a high wall looking down,  but instead it is loosely mounted on a shelf and looks up. This means that raw frames from the camera are orientated upside down and have to be rotated 180 deg for normal display purposes.

The camera's viewing angle is 90 deg.   Whilst a slightly wider angle would have allowed a wider view of the observatory the 90 deg angle seems to be ok.   For this specific application it would have been handy if the camera had greater vertical viewing angle in order to see more of the dome north of zenith and see more of the pier.  A shame that the camera's FOV (aspect ratio 1920/1080 = 1.78) wasn't more square than it is.

Once optimal placement position is determined the camera may be fixed in a more permanent fashion.

Daytime view of the observatory as seen by the Camera (with IR)
Picture shown with a Gamma setting of 1.5.  Picture shows outside light filtering through the white fibreglass walls. No light filters through the dome roof  (which is painted matt black on inside), apart from some light evident around the margins of the shutter.
Telescope is in its normal park position (pointing due south with the OTA horizontal)

Image

The viewing angle is 90 deg x 51 deg. The vertical view seen by the camera is illustrated on the observatory engineering cross-section.
The drawing and the camera picture both show that when the scope is parked, the view is almost face on to the fork arms and shows the bottom surface of the telescope (with counterweight bar & weights) and the bottom side of the imaging train/camera. are seen.

Image 

IR
The camera is provided with an IR Led Board. The IR lights are automatically always on when the camera is connected to USB Hub and it is dark (observatory closed without lights or nightime with observatory open at nighttime).   The power of IR lights is probably low to provide the camera's claimed night vision up to 10m, but are adequate for the 2.2m diameter observatory.

At the moment I haven't found a way of turning the IR lights off if/when required.  There is a concern that the IR lights might compromise light frames captured through the ST-10 camera on Main Scope or through the ASI ZWO 178MC camera on the Secondary Scope.    Initial indications suggest that this is not a problem, but detail tests need to be conducted in order to definitively confirm this.

Night-time raw pictures from the camera are too dark in the image's shadow areas, suggesting that image's gamma parameter need to be changed to bring out detail in dark areas.  Athough Brightness/Contrast/Color saturation /Definition/Gamma/WB are stated in the camera's specification to be adjustable parameters I haven't found a way to programatically adjust them yet.   Until this can be resolved images will instead be adjusted when after capturing them through bitmap adjustment.

NightTime view of the observatory as seen by the Camera (with IR)
Picture shown with a Gamma setting of 1.5. 
Telescope is in its normal park position (pointing due south with the OTA horizontal)Telescope is in park position.

Image

Software
A custom built application AstroObsCam will be used to operate the camera.

Issues
Issues that have surfaced during first 6-9 months of operation :



Specification
Element  Description 
Optional models  ELP-USBFHD01M-DL36 
Sensor  1/2.7" CMOS OV2710 
Lens size  200W, 2.0megapixel, 1920(H) x 1080(V) pixels 
Max. Resolution  1920X1080 
Picture format  MJPEG 
USB Protocol  USB2.0 HS/FS, USB1.1 FS 
Support free driver  USB Video Class(UVC)1.1 
Auto exposure AEC   Support 
Auto white balance  Support  
Frame rate 1920 (H) x 1080 (V) pixels MJPEG 30fps YUY2 6fps
1280 (H) x 1024 (V) pixels MJPEG 30fps YUY2 6fps
1280 (H) x 720 (V) pixels MJPEG 60fps YUY2 9fps
1024 (H) x 768 (V) pixels MJPEG 30fps YUY2 9fps
800 (H) x 600 (V) pixels MJPEG 60fps YUY2 21fps
640 (H) x 480 (V) pixels MJPEG 120fps YUY2 30fps
352(H) x 288 (V) pixels MJPEG 120fps YUY2 30fps
320 (H) x 240 (V) pixels MJPEG 120fps YUY2 30fps
 
Adjustable parameters  Brightness/Contrast/Color saturation /Definition/Gamma/WB 
Night vision  With IR LED Board, support night vision  
View angle  Standard 3.6mm lens, FOV 90degree  
Voltage DC 5V  
Current 150mA  
Work temperature -20 to +70 Degrees
USB Cable length  3m USB Cable 
Support OS  WinXP/Vista/WIN7/WIN8
Linux with UVC
Mac-OS X 10.4.8 or later
Wince with UVC
Android 4.0 or above 

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AstroObsCam - New Application for capturing WebCam pictures of the Observatory Interior

AstroObsCam is a new AstroSuite application for capturing IR webcam pictures of the telescope and general observatory interior during operations with associated facilities for uploading and display of pictures on current session web page.  Intention is that the camera's pictures will resolve ambiguities that might arise concerning the telescope's true position vs reported position, to check & potentially identify issues regarding cable behaviour during operations and help diagnose any other issues concerning the observatory. The software will also provide a security function. 

Software
The application is a VB.Net program based on a sample program by IronRazerz (on social.msdn.microsoft.com) program and makes use of the .NET c# directshow library file DirectShowLib-2005.dll from DirectShow.Net V2.1 (2010-02-20)  (from directshownet.sourceforge.net).  Prototype and the first release version of AstroObsCam was produced with 24 hours.  The first release version (1.0) and was installed on the AllSky/Weather Computer for live testing during session S859 (2021-02-16).

In additional to general monitoring and remote viewing of the AllSky/Weather Computer screen the application takes requests from AstroAllSky/AstroMain to Capture Images at specific points during operation.   AstroAllSky manages the regular upload of ObsCam.jpg pictures to the Astro-RichWeb website for convenient remote monitoring.

AstroMove has been updated to support easy backup of AstroObsCam software project,  transfer of new versions of AstroObsCam program to the AllSky/Weather Computer and the download of ObsCam pictures from the observatory for a given observing session.

WebCam
The application is setup to use 'HD USB Camera'  by default, in order to access a ELP WebCam camera (ELP 1080P Night Vision Web Camera with IR) that has been recently purchased (see above)

This camera is designed to be mounted on a ceiling or high wall looking down,  but instead it is loosely mounted on a shelf and looks up. This means that raw pictures from the camera are upside down and have to be rotated 180 deg for normal display..

During the first live testing of the WebCam/AstroObsCam it was found that night-time pictures from the camera are too dark in shadow and distant areas. This requirs that image's gamma parameter needs to be changed to bring out detail in dark/distant areas.  Although Brightness/Contrast/Color saturation /Definition/Gamma/WB are stated in the camera's specification to be adjustable parameters I haven't found a way to programatically adjust them.   Until this can be resolved images will instead be adjusted when either capturing them (through bitmap adjustment) or when saving them to file (through ImageMagicK).

Further Development (1)
Although the first live test of the AstroObsCam in session S859 (2021-02-16) was a success further improvements are needed and/or desired

Further Development (2)

A screen capture of the new application (v1.4.3, 2021-02-20) is shown below.

Application now uses a TCP/IP connection to the main Observatory Control Program (AstroMain) for accessing Session, Environment, Dome & Telescope information.  Annotation modified to use a sky blue colour instead of white and display a wider set of data. (this is ok at night but is too light during daytime when the observatory walls are paler during to filtering of sunlight from outside.

Image

Link to latest ObsCam image.

Timing Stats
A number of operations were timed to see which operations take a particular long time and reduce the number of processed frames per second.

Rotate Full-Frame by 180 deg  : 18 ms
Apply Gamma : 370 ms    ** Little opportunity to reduce
Add Annotation : 1 ms

Create 1/10th Size Bitmap : 20ms  (same time including copy to Pic Box)
Motion Detection 400ms   ** Opportunity to reduce
Copy Half-Sized JpPicture to Secure Server Location : 500ms  ** Opportunity to offload to a separate thread

Current Issues

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