David's Astronomy Pages Notes - Session 1340 (2025-07-10)

Notes (S1339)

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Notes (S1341)

	Session Aims & Highlights
	- Observing Result  - Night Summary Plot  - Session Event Log
	Operational Issues
	- Critical Issues (0),  Major Issues (0),  Minor Issues (3),  Small Defects (2),  Continuous Improvement (4)
	- Figures (0)
	Images from 2025-07-10  >>

Session Aims & Highlights (2025-07-10)

Main aims

1. CCD Camera. Test if major CCD Camera issues during Last Session have been resolved or not
2. Targets.  Acquire images of a selection of variable stars, nearby stars, comets & deep sky targets as allowed by sky conditions and the short summer night.

 Equipment & Software

• 12" LX200 and ST-10XME
• 80mm APO and ZWO ASI 178MC
• TheSky6, CCDSoft5, DeviceHub 7.0.3 RC3.4694, MeadeGeneric 1.3.12.522 , UPB 1.5,  Pulsar Dome Firmware 1.51 & Driver 6.3.10
• Pegasus UPB & Motor Focus, TCF-S 6.0.6
• SharpCap 3.2, PHD2  2.6.13, Siril 1.0.6, deCONZ 1.18.2, ASCOM 7.0.3 RC3
• [ DomeLink 1.0 / 1.1 - not used ]
   
• AstroMain 3.75.12,  AstroPlan 1.43.14, AstroShCap 1.3.15, AstroGuard 1.11  (any new items or versions in bold)
  AstroMag 1.5.6, AstroVOE 1.15.1,  AstroSN 1.14,  AstroProtect 1.10.6,  AstroMove 1.16.1
  AstroWeather 1.27.9, AstroAllSky 3.24.4,  AstroObsCam 1.11.4 (not 1.11.5), AstroNorthCam 1.5.3, AstroLaunch 1.13.1

Highlights

• Targets.  6/10 planned target swas completed with 2 targets partially completed.  Other planned targets failed due to late start/session suspension or were missed due to a ToO target.  One ToO target (NGC 5957 w/SN2025fvw) was successfully completed. 
• CCD Camera. There were a number of issues with the CCDSoft / CCDCamera during the first part of the session, but ok during the remainder of the session.
•  Dome. There was no issues opening/closing the shutter during the session. Dome closed and parked at end of session ok.

Notes

Summary Plots & Logs

Observing Plan

Observing Result

Dome & Scope Slewing Performance

Slew/Centering Performance

Guiding Performance

Sky Conditions (Locate Frames)

Night Sky Summary Plot Top axis: Sky Brightness at Zenith (in ADU/s) Lefthand axis: Local Time (hh LT). Righthand axis: Sun Altitude (degs) Note:  The NorthCam Star Count line is unreliable and should be ignored (The AstroNorthCam 'Find' Star method is producing many false positives from clouds)

Actual Weather vs Pre-Session Weather Forecast

Session Event Log

Time     Event Detail 22:34:19 Session Monitoring AutoStart monitoring for Live Session opportunity between 23:17 & 02:00 22:34:20   AutoStart Waiting AutoStart waiting till earliest start time at 23:17 23:17:55   AutoStart Delayed Session delayed due to cloud 23:50:14 Session AutoStarting Session autostarting (23:50) 23:50:27   CCDSoft Restarting CCDSoft being restarted (to set AutoSave No.) 23:50:55   Camera1 Connected SBIG Camera connected (Set point -5°C) 23:50:57 Session Created Session Created (Live, 2025-07-10 S01340, ImageSaveNum: 1340001) 23:51:02   Scope Switched On Telescope Power has been switched on via UPB Switch 23:52:50   Services Started Observatory Services started 23:53:00 Observatory (Auto) Observatory placed in Fully-Automated Mode 23:53:02   AutoStart Delayed Session delayed due to cloud 23:53:05 Session Pending Session pending (2025-07-10) 23:53:07 Session Initiating Session initiating (2025-07-10) 23:53:16   Camera1 Connected SBIG Camera connected (Set point -10°C) 23:53:23   Plan Requested Observing Plan requested from AstroPlan (1.43.14) 23:54:57   Plan Loaded Observing Plan loaded to queue (Plan ID: 1125) 23:55:40   Telescope Connected Telescope connected (TheSky6) 23:56:04 Session Equilibration Session ready to Open Dome 23:56:25   Wait On Weather Waiting for acceptable conditions 23:56:27 Session Suspending Session suspending 23:56:29   Dome Closed Dome already closed 23:56:31 Session Suspended Session suspended 23:56:57   Queue Started Observing Queue started (10 targets selected) 23:58:30 Session Resuming Session resuming 23:59:15   Dome Opened Dome opened (Opening time 45s, Zigbee 40s) 23:59:17 Session Running Session running 23:59:19   Queue Resumed Observing Queue resumed 23:59:22     Target Started (1/10) Target started (1/10, AT2024wys (CV)) 23:59:34       Dome Unparked Dome unparked 00:02:35       Focusing Started-Foc2 Foc2 Focusing Started (Secondary Scope, using ShCap) 00:04:49       Focusing Completed Foc2 AutoFocus Completed (Profile No 1, wide) 00:06:37       Focusing Failed Foc2 focusing failed (failed QC check - Quadratic) 00:08:09       Focusing Started-Foc1 Foc1 Focusing Started (TCF-S) 00:10:16         CcdCamera Frozen CcdCamera appears to be frozen at around 00:10 in section 'GetProperty / Status' 00:10:48         CCDSoft Restarting CCDSoft being restarted (attempt to fix frozen CcdCamera) 00:10:56         SBIG Camera Reset SBIG Camera being power-cycled 00:11:58         Camera1 Connected SBIG Camera connected (Set point -10°C) 00:12:17         SBIG Camera Take Image failed (Command timed-out) 00:12:19         CCDSoft Restarting CCDSoft being restarted (attempt to fix frozen CcdCamera) 00:12:27         SBIG Camera Reset SBIG Camera being power-cycled 00:13:29         Camera1 Connected SBIG Camera connected (Set point -10°C) 00:13:37         SBIG Camera Take Image successfully completed (earlier flags are reset) 00:15:47         SBIG Camera Take Image failed (Command timed-out) 00:15:49         CCDSoft Restarting CCDSoft being restarted (attempt to fix frozen CcdCamera) 00:15:57         SBIG Camera Reset SBIG Camera being power-cycled 00:16:59         Camera1 Connected SBIG Camera connected (Set point -10°C) 00:17:07         SBIG Camera Take Image successfully completed (earlier flags are reset) 00:17:30       Focusing Completed Foc1 AutoFocus Completed (Profile No 2, wide) 00:17:32       CCDSoft Restarting CCDSoft being restarted (attempt to fix frozen CcdCamera) 00:17:40       SBIG Camera Reset SBIG Camera being power-cycled 00:18:41       Camera1 Connected SBIG Camera connected (Set point -10°C) 00:19:39       SBIG Camera Take Image failed (Command timed-out) 00:19:41       CCDSoft Restarting CCDSoft being restarted (attempt to fix frozen CcdCamera) 00:19:49       SBIG Camera Reset SBIG Camera being power-cycled 00:20:51       Camera1 Connected SBIG Camera connected (Set point -10°C) 00:20:57       SBIG Camera Take Image successfully completed (earlier flags are reset) 00:23:03       Focusing Completed Foc1 AutoFocus Completed (Profile No 2) 00:26:15     Target Failed (1/10) Target failed due to other condition - ExceededTimeSlot (1/10, AT2024wys (CV)) 00:26:19     Target Started (2/10) Target started (2/10, AT2024wzq (CV)) 00:36:21     Target Completed Target partially completed (2/10, AT2024wzq (CV)) 00:36:26     Target Started (3/10) Target started (3/10, T CrB) 00:44:51     Target Completed Target completed (3/10, T CrB) 00:44:56     Target Started (4/11) Target started (4/11, NGC 5957 w/SN2025fvw, ToO) 00:46:10   Critical Cloud Alert Critical Cloud Alert (Obs.Manager will close the Dome) 00:46:12   HardSuspend Called Hard Suspend called due to Critical Conditions (cloud) 00:46:14     Target Aborted (4/11) Target aborted (4/11, NGC 5957 w/SN2025fvw, ToO) due to cloud 00:46:16   Queue Paused Queue paused for Session Suspension 00:46:18 Session Suspending Session suspending 00:47:00   Dome Closed Dome closed (Closing time 45s, Zigbee 43s) 00:47:03 Session Suspended Session suspended 00:49:05 Session Resuming Session resuming 00:49:51   Dome Opened Dome opened (Opening time 45s, Zigbee 40s) 00:49:53 Session Running Session running 00:49:55   Queue Resumed Observing Queue resumed 00:49:56     Target Started (4/11) Target started (4/11, NGC 5957 w/SN2025fvw, ToO) 01:10:30     Target Completed Target completed (4/11, NGC 5957 w/SN2025fvw, ToO) 01:10:32     Target Missed (5/11) Target's time slot was missed (5/11, AT2025kej (CV)) 01:10:34     Target Started (6/11) Target started (6/11, AT2024xpy) 01:23:37     Target Completed Target partially completed (6/11, AT2024xpy) 01:23:41     Target Started (7/11) Target started (7/11, GCVS CY Lyr) 01:27:16       Focusing Started-Foc1 Foc1 Focusing Started (TCF-S) 01:29:52       Focusing Completed Foc1 AutoFocus Completed (Profile No 3) 01:33:53     Target Completed Target completed (7/11, GCVS CY Lyr) 01:33:57     Target Started (8/11) Target started (8/11, GCVS BL Lac) 01:37:28       Focusing Started-Foc1 Foc1 Focusing Started (TCF-S) 01:40:00       Focusing Completed Foc1 AutoFocus Completed (Profile No 4) 01:43:31       SoftSuspend Called Soft Suspend called due to Deteriorating Conditions (reducing clarity) 01:44:01     Target Completed Target completed (8/11, GCVS BL Lac) 01:44:03   Queue Paused Queue paused for Session Suspension 01:44:05 Session Suspending Session suspending 01:44:47   Dome Closed Dome closed (Closing time 45s, Zigbee 43s) 01:44:49 Session Suspended Session suspended 01:46:52 Session Resuming Session resuming 01:47:37   Dome Opened Dome opened (Opening time 45s, Zigbee 40s) 01:47:40 Session Running Session running 01:47:42   Queue Resumed Observing Queue resumed 01:47:44     Target Started (9/11) Target started (9/11, AT2024wqf) 02:07:46     Target Completed Target completed (9/11, AT2024wqf) 02:07:50     Target Started (10/11) Target started (10/11, GCVS CI Cyg) 02:15:39     Target Completed Target completed (10/11, GCVS CI Cyg) 02:15:44     Target Started (11/11) Target started (11/11, AT2024eh (CV)) 02:19:01       Focusing Started-Foc1 Foc1 Focusing Started (TCF-S) 02:21:35       Focusing Completed Foc1 AutoFocus Completed (Profile No 5) 02:27:54     Target Completed Target completed (11/11, AT2024eh (CV)) 02:27:56   Queue Completed Job Queue completed 02:27:58 Session Closing Session closing 02:28:46   Dome Closed Dome closed (Closing time 45s, Zigbee 43s) 02:29:40   Dome Parked Dome parked (parking time 46s), Az: 90.0 deg 02:30:21   Telescope Parked Telescope parked (parking time 38s total) 02:30:50   Telescope State Handbox reads 'Scope parked Turn scope off.' 02:31:12   Telescope Switched Off Telescope Power has been switched off via UPB Switch. 02:32:39   Services Stopped Night Services stopped 02:32:42 Session Finishing Session Finishing started (Create Fits Summary, Transfer Files) 02:32:54     Dome (Find Park) Find Park started (Search Az 88.0 to 92.0°, Step 0.2°, Narrow) 02:33:38     Dome Find Park found (Best Park Az 90.0°) 02:35:47   Dome Charging Dome is parked and re-charging Ok (52mA) 02:35:49 Session Finished Session Finished

Session Alerts & Alarms

Time     Type       Name Detail 00:10:46 Red Alert CcdCamera CcdCamera appears to be frozen (last cycle at 00:10:16) in section 'GetProperty / Status' 00:11:58 Green Clear CcdCamera SBIG Camera has been successfully restarted 00:12:17 Red Alert SBIG Camera Alert Take Image failed (Command timed-out) 00:13:37 Green Clear SBIG Camera Take Image successfully completed (earlier flags are reset) 00:15:47 Red Alert SBIG Camera Alert Take Image failed (Command timed-out) 00:17:07 Green Clear SBIG Camera Take Image successfully completed (earlier flags are reset) 00:19:39 Red Alert SBIG Camera Alert Take Image failed (Command timed-out) 00:20:57 Green Clear SBIG Camera Take Image successfully completed (earlier flags are reset) 02:35:47 Green Clear Dome Charging Dome is parked and re-charging Ok (52mA)

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Operational Issues (2025-07-10, S1340)

• Critical Issues (0)
• Major Issues (0)
• Minor Issues (3)
• Small Defects (2)
• Continuous Improvement (4)
• Figures (0)
  

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Critical Issues

• None

Major Issues

• None

Minor Issues

• Near Zenith Focusing was skipped at start of session ( ). At start of session Near Zenith Focus was skipped and operations went directly to Target 1/10. This seems to be due to poor conditions (low clarity values) at start of session such that the session went directly to 'Suspended' without opening the shutter, and went session resumed it begun with Target 1/10.
   Issue understood 2025-07-11 (Session, CloudSensor) 
   
• Several failures preparing for or taking CCD Images using SBIG Camera/CcdCamera (00:10 to 00:19). CcdCamera reported frozen at 00:10:46. Focus frames reported to have failed at 00:12:57, 00:15:47 & 00:19:39
   Known onngoing issue  2025-07-11 (AstroMain) 
   
• Clarity levels from CloudSensor were unusually low. Even though sky was mostly clear of cloud, the clarity values from the CloudSensor were unexpectedly low (24-26) , and were causing issue with session starting.  The values were unexpectedly low during part of the day. as well.  Next day and next night the clarity scores were around 30. CloudSensor was checked if there was anything on the sensor such as bird poo but there wasn't anything to explain the low values.   The low values are considered to be a combination of high cloud cover and seasonal factor (warm summer atmosphere). A separate Continuous Improvement ticket has been raised to understand the use of the Clarity Trim setting.
   Closed after review 2025-07-12 (Session, CloudSensor) 

Small Defects

• Anomalous shifts in Y and Z axis magnetometer readings (17:00 & 23:00). Just after 2025-07-10 17:00 UT) there was a shift in Y & Z readings. (+26 nT & -23 mT respectively). This was followed by a shift of +38 nT in Y readings at 23:00 UT and an anomalous  in Z readings thereafter. These occurred at a point 11.2 days after the SAM III system was restarted with Remedial Fix2b in operation. Repaired grass turf above the cable runs was watered at around the tiime of first incident (17:00 UT) but may just be a coincidence. There was no anomalies with reading from the X (shallowest) sensor.  (see Remedial Fix 2 / 2b Update 2025-07-10 ).
   To Monitor 2025-07-11 (SAM III)
   
• There was no Session Starting event recorded. Why is there no Session Starting' event. but jumps from 'Initiating' to Equilibrating.
   To investigate 2025-07-11 (AstroMain)

Continuous Improvement

• Add a 'Result' subtitle at end of RestartCCDSoft operation.
   Done 2025-07-12 (AstroMain 3.75.13) 
   
• How should be Clarity Trim setting be used.   The value of the Clarity Trim can be adjusted from its normal value of 0.0 to a value between 0.0 and 5.0 in 0.5 steps using the the fields Numeric Up/Down buttons.  The trim value is added to the incoming Clarity value in the routine CloudSensor.ParseCloudSensorRecord() routine.  So if Clarity value coming from the Cloud Sensor is 26 and AstroMain is required to behave as if Clarity value was 29, a trim setting of 3.0 would be used.  If AllSkyStar was <= 5 and Clarity from CloudSensor is  23  this would cause MustClose() to be True and the session would be suspended (as the threshold to set MustClose=True is <24) . But if we dind't want to force Closure due to user's perception of the sky environment a trim setting of 3 could be used ti give an adjusted Clarity value of 26.   Since Clarity < 20 is the threshold to force MustClose() to return True, regardless of the AllSkyCount, user must know that the trim setting of 3, wouldn't trip a session suspension/shutter closure until the raw Clarity value fell to < 17. It should be noted that regardless of the trim setting, the CloudSensor will raise Relay signal when Clarity reaches 20.
   Done 2025-07-13 (AstroMain, User Awareness) 
   
• Reason why Near Zenith Focusing is skipped should be reported.  In the event that Near Zenith Focusing is skipped at start of session due to poor conditions/session suspension, the reason should be clearly reported.
   To check 2025-07-11 (AstroMain 3.75.13) 
   
• Reporting of Target Failure can be improved.   For target 1/10 the Target was reported as 'Failed due to other condition - ExceededTimeslot. This should be shortened to 'Failed due to ExceededTimeslot'.
   To do 2025-07-11+ (AstroMain 3.75.13) 

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