Orion 52084 User Manual

Orion® StarShoot™ Pro Deep Space Color Imager#52084INSTRUCTION MANUALProviding Exceptional Consumer Optical Products Since 1975Customer Support (800)

107. A Windows Security window will appear and mention that “Windows can’t verify the publisher of this driver software”. Choose Install thi

114. Open Maxim DL Essentials by clicking on the icon installed on your com-puter’s desktop. Once open, Essentials should automatically connec

12screen, you may need to stop-down the aperture of your telescope further. Try making another aperture mask with a diameter of only 1⁄4".10. Tur

13Screen Stretch WindowThe function of the Screen Stretch Window (Figure 8) is to properly map the image brightness levels captured by the camer

14of the mouse. To do this, hold down the Shift key, then left-click and drag the mouse on the image. You’ll find this feature to be a great convenienc

15FocusingFocusing the CCD camera is one of the most critical parts of imaging. It can be challenging, but MaxIm DL Essentials has some helpful featur

168. In the Camera Control Window, in the box below the Mode box, select Focus. Click Expose. The camera will only download the area you previ-ously

17Caution: Once you have achieved focus, be sure to click the Reset button at the bottom of the camera control window, otherwise the camera will crop

185. Select Single in the box under the Mode box and take a 10-20 Second exposure of the deep sky object to ensure it is centered well in your ca

193. Choose Autosave in the box beneath the Mode box.4. Set the number of dark frames you would like the camera to take under Autosave (

2Welcome to the exciting world of astro-imaging. Your new StarShoot™ Pro Deep Space Color Imaging camera is capable of capturing impressive

20VignettingVignetting (Figure 14a) in a telescope reveals edge-darkening in the astro-image. The large CCD chip in the StarShoot Pro can e

214. Select Single in the box beneath Mode.5. Set the Seconds to 0.1 for now and click Expose. You want the Max Pixel to read somewhere around

223. Click Add under the Dark Frames box in the Setup Calibration window (Figure 15) and select the file folder location for the dark frame

23This process can be automated for all of your light images, see “Batch Processing”.Flat Field CalibrationCalibrating your flat field images is d

24Combining Deep Sky ImagesEach individual deep sky image is faint and has a noticeable amount of noise. Combining the individual deep sky images elim

25Note: In addition to Average mentioned above, 3 other different combining methods can be chosen: Sum, Median, and Sigma-Clip. To learn mor

26Set the Screen Stretch Window to Medium (or otherwise manually adjust for best image appearance), and use Save under the File menu to save yo

27the amount of blurring applied to the image. Increasing the radius increases the amount of blur applied.For best results, turn on the Auto

28necessary to equalize the image background in all three color planes. The Reset button resets the background level subtraction to zero on

29There are three elements which must be set: the Permanent Stretch Type, the Input Range, and the Output Range. You can use the Preview Image to

3Filter ... 26Color Balance ... 27Stretch ...

30beginning and stack individual images again!Note on File FormatWhen saving images (using Save or Save As in the File menu), you have a choice of

311. Select the image file you want to process from your computer using the Select Files button. Use CTRL-click to select individual files, and

32superior due to the elimination of extra readout noise and the residual blurring caused in realigning the images.When taking long exposures with ast

33can be very tiresome and tedious, however, especially if taking many long exposures throughout the night.The StarShoot Pro can be used

347. The ASCOM Telescope Chooser (Figure 24) will appear. Select your telescope model from the provided choices. If your model does not appe

35Autoguider CalibrationIn order to properly control the mount, you must calibrate the system. The exact orientation of the StarShoot Pro,

36telescope does not move, check the Settings. Remember, you have to set up a method for sending the autoguider commands to the telescope! 11. The sta

37• On most telescopes, the Right Ascension drive likes to have some load pushing against sidereal tracking. If the mount is balanced such that it is

38View MenuZoom – Increases or decreases level of image magnification on computer screen. When you zoom in too much, you will start to see th

39Arrange Icons – Image windows can be minimized, at which point they become small bars (icons). If these have become scattered ab

41. Getting StartedParts List• StarShoot Pro Deep Space Color Imager• 10' USB cable• 12' DC power cable with lighter plug• CD-ROM• Hard carr

405. If the star drifts north, the telescope mount is pointing too far west. If the star drifts south, the telescope mount is pointing too far east

41objects, such as the Andromeda Galaxy or the Pleadies star cluster. Focal reducers will usually thread onto the nosepiece of the StarShoo

427. SpecificationsCCD Sensor: Sony® SuperHAD™ ICX413AQ ColorSensor format: 1.8"Pixel array: 3032x2016 (6,112,512 total)Pixel size: 7.8µm x 7.

43Connect the equipment into an output on a circuit different from that to which the receiver in connected.Consult the dealer or an experienced radio/

44The “Found New Hardware Wizard” appears again when the camera is plugged into a different USB port for the first time.This is normal. Most USB contro

45Check your USB connection for anything that could potentially introduce interference. Large power supplies or even a cellular phone nea

46Appendix B. Field of View Quick Reference GuideFor your convenience, refer to the list of common telescope focal lengths and their corresponding fiel

47600mm 138.8’ X 90.6’750mm 111’ X 72.5’900mm 92.5’ X 60.4’

48Telescope Focal Length Angular Field of View Image Scale of the Moon Image Scale of M421000mm 83.3’ X 54.4’1250mm 66.6’ X 43.5’1800mm 46.3’ X 30.2’

492032mm 41’ X 26.8’2540mm 32.8’ X 21.4’2800mm 29.7’ X 19.4’

5If your telescope has T-threads for direct camera attachment, a more secure connection can be made. First, unthread the nosepiece from the SS Pro. Th

50Telescope Focal Length Angular Field of View Image Scale of the Moon Image Scale of M423000mm 27.8’ X 18.13910mm 21.3’ X 13.9’

51Appendix C. Summarized Procedure to Imaging Deep Sky ObjectsAction Process TreeImage Capture1. Focus on a moderately bright star at least 30º (or

52Action Process Tree4. Take a flat field image by pointing the telescope at a uniform and featureless light source, like the sky at dawn or a white sh

533. Combine the images Process � Combine � Select all of the open images you want to combine � OKCombine Images window, Align Mode � Manual 1 star –

54Notes_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

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56One-Year Limited WarrantyThis Orion StarShoot Pro is warranted against defects in materials or workmanship for a period of one year from

6MountDeep sky imaging with the StarShoot Pro requires an equatorial mount with a right ascension (R.A.) motor drive. The goal for your mount is

7 • Video Display: 1024 X 768 or higher, 16-bit color or higher • Mouse • Internet Explorer 4 or higher required to display on-line help • High-sp

82. Click Install.3. The InstallShield Wizard will start. Click Next.4. Read the Maxim DL License Agreement. If you agree with the terms, then s

9Note: The StarShoot Pro will not work with USB 1.1. Your computer must have a high-speed USB 2.0 port available. 4. Select No, not this time when Wi