So many times I have found that Guide can do things on my "wish list" that I had not suspected it could do. So here is a question. Suppose we are in "real-time mode," tracking a fast moving asteroid. Is there any command that can link the telescope to the asteroid, and tell it to "stay with it?" That way, if I were trying to photograph the asteroid, it would be a point, and the stars would blur. If this is not a current feature, it would be nice to have that feature in the next version.

Thanks to Bill for a great product and great support!

Pat Madden

-----Original Message-----
From: Bill J Gray [mailto:pluto@...]
Sent: Tuesday, November 12, 2002 8:12 PM
To: guide-user@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [guide-user] Real-time mode


Hi Robert,

The way to do this is through the 'real time' option in the
Animation dialog. You click on the "real time" check-box, and
Guide asks you for the frequency at which the screen should be
updated.

If I'm following a fast-moving satellite, I may need a
screen update once a second. I can then step outside,
look through the window at my PC screen, and see that the
satellite in question is now zipping past Vega. Look up,
perhaps use binoculars, and... there it is. (You can see
a lot of satellites in a night doing this, by the way.)

Obviously, most objects move a lot slower than that,
and once every 60 seconds is plenty. In the latter case,
whenever Guide notices that Guide's time is off by 60
seconds, it'll force an update to the screen, and you'll
see satellites, planets, etc. move a bit.

If you've not played with animation before, you may
want to take a look at chapter 15 of the manual. It
describes such nuances as the difference between "moving
target" mode (Guide recenters on a given object, so you
can "follow" an object such as a satellite as it moves
across the sky), "horizon" mode (at each update, Guide
stays at the same point relative to the horizon, with
stars drifting through your field of view, sort of like
a telescope with the drive shut off) and "proper motion"
(same thing, with the scope's drive turned on, so you
stay centered at the same RA/dec.)

-- Bill


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