• Seestar

  • Weird artifacts always appear on my image

My seestar images always show square artifacts on the image. The attached image has been brightened to make it easier to recognize. What is causing this problem? Is the sensor defective? I'm deeply impressed with your opinions.






We have received your feedback, please check if it is a reflection problem.

    ZWO-Yao
    Thankyou for you reply.
    How do I check the replection problem?
    Please give me a guide for the check.

        LovelyNights cover the scope lens or use the Dark filter. Take a shot and stretch it. If the banding is there, its not a reflection from the lens but the sensor.

            sensor
            If the problem is caused by reflecting How can I fix it?
            My master dark created for image enhancing looks doesn't have the banding.

                LovelyNights you’ll have to craft a dew shield that will block the sources of light causing the banding. Literally a piece of black construction paper can work with some scotch tape.

                    sensor
                    Thank you for your reply.

                    The problem is not noticeable for objects with sufficient brightness, but for objects with dim brightness, the problem seems to be highlighted by the strong application of autostretch. I bought, installed and tested a Dewshield, but it didn't have much effect.
                    In particular, when the effects of light pollution are evenly spread in the sky, they are more prominent.
                    I think it can be solved if flat frame is applicable, but I doubt that ZWO will upgrade to apply flat frame.

                      One possible solution worth trying: the Astroflat plugin for PhotoShop:
                      https://www.prodigitalsoftware.com/AstroFlatPro1.html

                      Also, try using Seestar from an alternative location to see if the issue resolves itself. Also, the images you posted are all very short enhancement times. Try longer enhancement times and see if the effect diminishes.

                        saguaro
                        Thank you for your reply
                        I tried relocating and shooting, but the results were consistent. All images, whether strongly noticeable or not, clearly exhibited variations in brightness for that specific shape. Perhaps the reflected light within the interior structure is affecting the sensor, possibly due to protective glass or reflective mirrors. Alternatively, the sensor itself may be faulty. I will conduct various experiments to address this issue because the process of exchanging the product is a cumbersome procedure for me.

                            a year later

                            LovelyNights I am having the very same issue with my images under Bortle 9 skies and as you say it is most prominent for dim targets (e.g. galaxies). I have tried a long light shield and it reduces the effect but it is still there. Have you found a solution in the meantime?

                                17 days later

                                Support@Seestar See an example below. I experimented with different light shields, aperture masks, different light sources, exposure times, directions and angles etc. No matter what, the banding shows up. This seems to be caused by an undesired response of the sensor to diffuse light, instead of showing a gradient like typically found under light pollution and stray light, it produces a fixed in place pattern of light and dark bands (i.e. the bands always appear at the same position). Also this is not an artefact of stacking, the banding is present on the individual frames. Many users have reported the same issue, so it is not a one off case. A key question is if this is something that can be corrected via a firmware update or not.

                                    oRX2hR4h
                                    Sorry for only getting back to you now, I fed back to the team yesterday but it needs to be verified now, please don't be in a hurry, I'll be in touch as soon as I hear something. I will keep following up.

                                      Support@Seestar oRX2hR4h, have you opened a formal ticket with ZWO on this issue? I believe my S50 is also experiencing this symptom.

                                          marvindj These cases are being reproduced and tested, and the results and solutions will be available soon, so please do not be anxious.

                                              Support@Seestar
                                              In fact, I've recently been experiencing this significant banding frequently (not always) - with and without a dew cap. In this respect, I am very interested in a quick solution.

                                                Hello, I too, have the same issue; I sent a few images to ZWO but have yet to hear back from them; in one of them, the edges are perfectly straight, which makes me believe that it could be a sensor issue rather than an internal/external reflection;