Zero dropped frames!!!

starnet59

Support@Seestar My S50 sits on a stone pillar, you can see it in my last post about EQ mode. There is no vibration at all, the S50 sits outside in -10C while I sit inside, trying not to fall asleep. Vibrations are definitely not the issue here.

Support@Seestar

starnet59 So what do you think is the problem?

Support@Seestar

wvreeven Okay, we'll check the logs and keep you posted on the engineer's response.

Support@Seestar

wvreeven If it's convenient please log ID me so I can look it up.

wvreeven

Support@Seestar I tagged you in a comment in the bug report. Many thanks for following up on this!

Sonixx

I Experience the same, the number of stack d frames usually get lower the longer you are on one object. Stopping and restarting helped in a lot of cases. Not sure what is the reson behind this, maybe objets altitude?

Support@Seestar

Sonixx
The team should have been aware of the problem, but the exact reason never seemed to be determined.

wvreeven

Support@Seestar It would help if all frames get stored as FITS files instead of only the ones that the SeeStar software identifies as good. That way we can help you look into the problem either by analyzing the frames ourselves or by making them available to you.

Daemon42

The fact that it gets worse with time (even when external conditions are not changing), suggests that it's a problem with star alignment as the sky rotates, especially if you're shooting near an urban area (as most of us do), and depending on the density of stars in frame.

Support@Seestar

wvreeven Allow me to explain: in star-gazing mode, the images are in FITS format and can only be viewed within Seestar.

In star-gazing mode, you need to manually enable single-frame saving in the advanced mode. The single frames in stacking will be saved in FITS format to the Seestar album. If you need the FITS format, you must directly connect the device to a computer to manually export from Seestar storage. If you download the images through the app's Saved section, they will be converted to JPG format and saved to your local album.
Completed stacked images will be saved as FITS files in the Seestar storage album and as JPG files in your phone's album. To export, the process is the same as above. In solar system mode, images are only saved in JPG format in the local album.
Videos (raw) are saved in AVI format in the Seestar album and can be directly exported to a computer, where they will be saved as MP4 files. Non-raw videos are only saved in MP4 format.
In star-gazing mode, images are only saved in JPG format to the phone's album. Videos are also only saved in MP4 format.
The JPEG format is used to provide a quick viewing experience for users within the Seestar app. As you know, these files are small in size and don't take up much space, but they significantly enhance the user experience. We appreciate your understanding, and at this moment, we do not have plans to make any changes.

wvreeven

I got a reply from customer support indicating that I should update to version 2.3 of the SeeStar app. I already did that today (I am on iOS) and will test it out tonight. To be continued!

Sonixx

wvreeven
Just sounds lile the standard first Level Support answer…
We will drink tea and see.

Rgards,

Stephan

curtismacc

The apparent sky rotation rate goes ~ cosine (Azimuth) /cosine (altitude). So as time goes on, if you start the imaging session before the object reaches zenith and rising in the east, very likely for most of us, then you will experience more opportunity for star trailing and drops. As everyone knows the apparent rotation rate experiences a delta function as it goes to infinity at 90 degree altitude. But what most forget is that it also experiences a maximum when pointing due south (180degrees) or due north (0, 360 degrees) at any altitude. So the stacking success rate will fall off during this time. Now, don't get me wrong, I am not saying that all of the aforementioned issues are simply due to field rotation getting worse, but should be a major contributor.

Sonixx

curtismacc
Might be a big contributing factor. When I am using the seestar in the unofficial EQ mode the success rates are a lot higher.
I thought this was due to steady load on the gears… but this makes also sense.

Support@Seestar

@"wvreeven"#p87898Okay, I will check it. Thank you!

wvreeven

Support@Seestar Thanks for the explanation.

Regarding 1, I have single frame saving enabled and always download the FITS files from the SeeStar to my MacBook to process them offline. If a frame gets dropped by the SeeStar during enhancement, it is not saved and I cannot inspect it later. That is why I suggested to always store all frames on the SeeStar hard disk, no matter what.

Regarding 2, I never use the image stacked by SeeStar nor the JPEG files. I do always take videos in RAW format and am still waiting for an option to always shoot videos in RAW format instead of having to enable that every time I go to video mode.

Regarding 3, I have no use for JPEG images or MP4 videos.

Support@Seestar

wvreeven So,do you have any ideas?

wvreeven

Support@Seestar Unfortunately not. SeeStar doesn't show the images it discards so it is impossible for me to see why. I hoped that the logs would have info for you guys to see what's going on.

My plan is to make sure that the SeeStar is properly leveled. Then I will use v2.3 to do enhanced imaging while saving the FITS files, just as I always do but with the new firmware. Hopefully that will show the improvement that the new firmware promises. If not I will send logs again.

starnet59

Support@Seestar

Have an option to save every 10/20/30-second FIT file, even when not successfully stacked. This would make it easier to debug stacking problems, eliminate satellite trails, make mosaic mode work, etc. There is a lot of very useful information in the FIT file, apart from the image itself.
Add more exposure times, like 5/40/60 seconds, especially if you introduce EQ mode.
When doing a long exposure, save an intermediate FIT file every 5 minutes or so. This is such a simple change and it would make my use of the S50 so much better.
I know planning mode should be here any time now, but as a minimum until then, add a hard stop feature, i.e. when the total stacked exposure time reaches a user programmable level, save the FIT file and exit stargazing mode. So I can start a two hour capture and then go to bed. Of course, this should already be part of the planning mode features, hopefully.
For AI Denoise, add FIT file support for both inputs and outputs. Like wvreeven, I have no use for JPEGs or MP4s.

wvreeven

Support@Seestar I did another test on Saturday night and got over 50% dropped frames in 10 minutes time. I uploaded the logs and tagged you in the bug report. Thanks for having a look!

wvreeven

I did two tests with v2.3 tonight:
1) 10 minutes of enhanced imaging on M33 which was still high in the sky but in the west so getting lower. I got a frame drop percentage of about 20%.
2) a 15 minute mosaic on M45. I got a frame drop percentage of about 50%.

Unfortunately I shut down the SeeStar before uploading the logs. I'll try again tomorrow and then I'll try to remember to upload the logs.

wvreeven

starnet59 Regarding 4. it is there now in v2.3.

Support@Seestar

starnet59 These are excellent suggestions that would greatly enhance the user experience. I will make sure to pass them along to the team for consideration in future updates. Thank you for your feedback!