I wasn’t able to get APT to plate solve using ASPS with the images taken using the Canon in prime focus, however, I was able to get ASPS to resolve the same image externally and sync the mount.  While the solution isn’t ideal as I would prefer one single interface for all controls it will work until I can figure out what I’m doing wrong in APT. 

Set up began at 17:00 and finished around 17:30, leveling and rough alignment is going much quicker now.  Weather forecast is for another clear night, humidity is currently 57%. Temperature is currently 80 degrees with an expected low of 57 degrees. Sunset is at 19:01, moonrise is at 21:54, illumination is 77.9%.  I’ll have just over an hour and half of astronomical darkness.  Primary target will be Andromeda and secondary will be Neptune. 

Equipment to be used is the Canon with the field flattener. I will be honing my skills with alignment and focusing using Jupiter.  Once I’ve achieved a good focus, I will switch to ASPS to plate solve and sync the mount.  The plan for each target is to Go To, plate solve and sync then Go To the target again.  Should hopefully center the target in the scope.  I’ll take several test shots to fine tune to exposure and ISO settings using the histogram graph in APT.

I made it outside about 30 minutes after sundown, Jupiter was bright in the sky.  Alignment on her went smooth, though there is an issue somewhere with initial alignment.  Jupiter is always up and to the left in my finder and I have to make serious adjustments using the RA and AZ knobs to get the scope aligned.  Once I’ve got her roughly centered in my finder scope, she’s in the FOV of the EP and I fine tune from there.  Thinking about it, it would seem that the tripod isn’t actually pointing due north and my longitude isn’t quite correct.  I’m pulling them from my phone’s GPS and compass, I’m using a compass app that calculates true north based on my location that it pulls from my GPS

I discovered that I can align using Live View.  Jupiter appears as a small dot and I roughly center using the RA and AZ knobs.  Then I zoom once and adjust again then zoom the final time and adjust until she’s centered.  Then tell Syn Scan that alignment is complete.  I can take a pic in APT and plate solve directly in ASPS and sync the mount and all is good.  Now my problem, whenever I issue a Go To command in any app, whether it be Syn Scan Pro or Stellarium, once the Go To is complete, the mount starts to drift.  I could realign on Jupiter and things would be great again.  She would stay dead in the center of the FOV.  That is until I slewed somewhere.  I would slew with the Syn Scan app and it would say manually center on target when it finished the slew. Once I started that though it would start drifting, I watched the arrow control flashing in the Syn Scan app, I’d click them and they would stop.  Then I could click finish and it would stop. Is this normal behavior?

I discovered my issue during mount alignment, I’m should be using the hand controller to center Jupiter in the finder and OTA, not the manual DEC and AZ knobs, those are just for Polar alignment.  I’ve solved my Go To issues.  Tomorrow is another day with the promise of clear skies.  I’ve got over two hours of astronomical darkness.

Clear Skies!