Polar alignment error increasing by itself at somewhat constant rate?: Page 5

Polar alignment error increasing by itself at somewhat constant rate?

lucasdanda

Not so fun fact: it seems like the problem persists as of today (2 years now). I was checking the thread so I could consider returning to ZWO's ASIAIR, but I might as well stick to other solutions.

@Tech@ZWO Please, give us some info on this matter, it has long past the time we know how/when this issue can be solved. Please just check what happened between App versions 1.9.1 and beyond, as it is clear that our problem started from there. It should not be so difficult, with all due respect...

Thanks in advance for the attention. All the best,

Mario851

@Tech@ZWO ???
The problem with this forum still persists after 2 years, please help.

Luxo

RKUzjEdJ
"’m feeling like i’ve bought into a lemon."
To be frank, I agree with you. But the alternatives aren't any better unless you switch to a PC, Windows, NINA and all the rest that goes with that.

"How do I get support for this stuff?"
There isn't any from ZWO. It is also why I wrote ASIAIr: The Missing Manual.
ZWO release updates - but they aren't focussed on fixing bugs, they're adding features and adding more (new) bugs in the process.

if you want your rig to actually work roll back to a version that works for you; instructions in the manual The last known good version was 2.3.3 and there are earlier ones that were good, too.

Corsair

Just checking - is this only happening for people using All Sky Polar Alignment (with or without New Plate Solve selected)?

I haven't noticed this behaviour but I don't use All Sky Polar Alignment nor do I use New Plate Solve (as outlined in my post in this thread here: https://bbs.zwoastro.com/d/15513-polar-alignment-error-increasing-by-itself-at-somewhat-constant-rate/80)

lucasdanda

Corsair

I had the issue with both All Sky and normal PA routines. I never turned the New Plate Solve Algorithmn on.

M9gQUa0x

I've been reading through all of the old messages, and happy to see others sharing the same problem as I am. Crazy to see this problem arise so long ago, and it is still relevant today in 2026. Hopefully a solution will come soon.

M9gQUa0x

bgastro Is 1.9.1 a significant downgrade? Or does it still have all of the necessary features.

bgastro

M9gQUa0x

v1.9.1 if you compare the features with the latest there's are indeed differences but for myself its ok, don't need those, is it a downgrade? Not to me, it serves me well for my purpose. its been 1 year since my last post and I'm still at v1.9.1 and its stable. Until this issue is officially fixed, I won't be upgrading.

o6Zn1p2H

I recently purchased the AM5N and ASIAIR pro, one of the large reasons was the ability to PA without facing polaris. I, too, am facing this issue, and now considering returning all the equipment as a result. Is anyone from @tech@zwo checking this thread? if so, please provide an update.

I do believe someone posted above, and was correct. when doing all sky PA, the FIRST minute/second error is correct....but the constant increasing error after that I believe is a false positive. If you make adjustments after the first PA error amount, and then re do the entire PA, you'll see it's closer. I'm going to use PHD2 with my PC in the next couple of nights to test the theory, but I'm thinking the ASIAIR either thinks it's tracking and it's not, or it's not tracking and it thinks it is after that initial PA number is presented.

lucasdanda

o6Zn1p2H

Dear friend,

You're absolutely correct on your reading of the situation. For sure, NINA and other programs will work. It has something to do with how the Asiair deals with tracking during PA routines in the Southern Hemisphere. Since All-Sky is a must for me, I'm stuck with the same problem for almost 2 years now.

I've been trying to generate a log of the procedure to assist ZWO Tech but have had no success submitting it (switching to home Wi-Fi/5g back and forth always loses the log...). If you can, please try to reproduce the problem and submit the logs to ZWO within the app.

Tech@ZWO

Please gives us a special attention to this issue. Reports of users have only increased during this time. The problem is solid, and you might have to reproduce it in Southern Hemisphere condition/simulation or something.

tj8r6Y8g

Hi, incredibly, the problem seems to persist. I bought the ASIAIR Plus two months ago and am having the same issue with version 3.0.0. I am in Montevideo (latitude -34º) and do not have a view of the celestial south pole. I haven't been able to successfully perform an ASPA yet, and consequently, I haven't been able to use the mount.

Corsair

RKUzjEdJ
tj8r6Y8g

I live in the Southern Hemisphere. The ASIAIR Plus 32GB model I have used for Unguided EAA has worked well for me for years now.

On 2.5.2 I did a Polar Alignment test with my setup:
C8 SCT with f/6.3 Focal Reducer
MLAstro SAL-33 Mount
ASI294MC Pro camera cooled to 0°C
No guide scope or guide camera

I did a normal Polar Alignment. Worked fine. Then launched it again. Alignment was still good. Did some manual refreshing every 10 seconds and there was minor fluctuations in arcseconds as expected. Totally fine. Didn't keep increasing or anything.

Repeated this immediately after for All Sky Polar Alignment (not using New Plate Solve). Polar Alignment was still good. Did manual refresh every 10 seconds again and once again only minor fluctuations in arcseconds as expected. Totally fine. Didn't keep increasing or anything.

Took screen recordings of the whole thing as well.

RKUzjEdJ

I thought I'd reply for others struggling with this. I became disillusioned with the whole thing, and I put it on a shelf for 8 months. A little while back, after watching a YouTube video on Nina, I gave it a try, and while it has a learning curve, I'm happy to report I haven't had a single problem using the 3-star polar alignment in Nina. So the ASIAir went back in the box, and I have not looked back. It's a shame, as I loved the simplicity concept, but it just doesn't work for us in the Southern Hemisphere. I guess we are not a big enough audience to worry about.

Wayne.

lucasdanda

I'm sad to report that after almost 1 year since my last post, I decided to unburrow my equipment and go for a new trial (AM3, ASIAir Plus 32gb, Askar 71f, 533MC) to find everything is the same: can't polar align. I first tried updating everything to the latest firmware/app version believing this issue could have been solved, but had no luck. Still the same: after the polar alignment routine, and before messing any adjustment knobs, the error keeps increasing/decreasing (depending on RA or DEC) indefinitely, in a constant, continuous way. If I try to adjust an axis, e.g., it feels like I'm fighting against the increasing error. Then, when I restart PA, the error starts at a completely different number.

Well, at this point, I believe I have documented this issue well and thoroughly enough for it to be solved by any means possible. Either ZWO doesn't have the knowledge or interest in doing so. Sorry for the rudeness, ZWO equipment is phenomenal, but once again ASIAir seems to be a no-go for me. That's unfortunate.

Corsair

lucasdanda
Wow. That sucks.

Did you happen to do a screen recording of your device running the ASIAIR App while you were doing this? Could you share the video?

It's odd that you would experience this when others haven't (such as myself in the post above yours https://bbs.zwoastro.com/d/15513-polar-alignment-error-increasing-by-itself-at-somewhat-constant-rate/94).

It's also possible the 3.1 Beta might help start resolving it as others have seen in this thread
https://bbs.zwoastro.com/d/27411-asiair-v31-public-beta-released/46

So maybe give the beta a shot?
https://bbs.zwoastro.com/d/27411-asiair-v31-public-beta-released

Of course, it is a Beta, so might have issues in other areas but your focus is the polar alignment algorithm.

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