johns18•2mo agoMost Upvoted

Warning: My star tracker setup last night was a total mess

I tried to get a clean shot of the Orion Nebula from my backyard in Tacoma, but my polar alignment was off by a mile (or so it felt). Spent two hours just trying to get the mount level on my uneven patio, then another hour fighting with the alignment app on my phone. The whole thing took about three hours before I even took one picture. Anyone have a better way to do this without losing a whole night?

3 comments

3 Comments

craig.parker2mo ago

My last polar alignment attempt took me 90 minutes of pure frustration. I finally bought a cheap bubble level that attaches to my mount's rail and it cut that time in half. Have you tried using a physical level before you even open the app?

sean_murray1mo ago

Used to think a bubble level was overkill for polar alignment, like it was just one more thing to fuss with. Then I spent a whole night fighting drift because my tripod was on uneven ground. Getting the mount itself level first made the whole app process way smoother, maybe cut my setup by a third. I mean, it's a cheap fix for a lot of headache.

the_luna2mo ago

Seriously, 90 minutes? I just eyeball my tripod on the patio and hope for the best. It's just stars, how perfect does it really need to be?