RetroCam Software

News

2024-12-12: The code has been moved to GitHub

v3.4.1 (2019-10-04)

Fixed a bug in the Nyden motor controller code (introduced in v3.4).

v3.4 (2019-06-12)

Added the Gaia catalog to the SkyMap window.

This requires the new StarCatalog format (/Users/Shared/StarCatalogs/).

Fixed a bug in the QuickLook Tool when resizing the window.

Deployment target macOS 10.13 (HighSierra).

Screen Shots and GUI Documentation

Setup Window

CoolDown button:

Preset the check-marks for operation during dewar cool down (left)

Observing button:

Preset the check-marks for regular observing (right)

The Hosts tab sets the TCP/IP hosts.

After pressing OK the RetroCam-Control window will be opened.

Main Menu

About RetroCam: displays a window that shows the version of the RetroCam-GUI.

Preferences: opens the preferences window.

Open ObjectList: opens a file-selector dialog that allows to load an object list into the ObjectList window.

Save: saves the current object list.

Show Logfiles: opens the RetroCam-GUI logfiles in the Console.

Show DataFolder: Opens the data path folder(s) in a Finder window.

Show AppSupport: Opens the Application Support folder in a Finder window.

Load Image: opens a file-selector dialog to load a FITS file into the QuickLook tool.

Load Sky: opens a file-selector dialog to load a FITS file into sky-subtraction buffer of the QuickLook tool.

Airmass: opens the Airmass window.

ObjectList: opens the Object List window.

SkyMap: opens the SkyMap window.

Clear Savepos: removes the green squares that mark previous exposures from the SkyMap.

DataPath: opens a dialog that allows the user to set the path for writing the FITS files.

QuickLook Tool: opens the QuickLook Tool.

Set Current As Sky: sets the current images as sky-image used for sky subtractions.

Filter Move+: moves the filter wheel a small amount in the positive direction

Filter Move-: moves the filter wheel a small amount in the negative direction

Filter Center Detent: find the nearest detent and centers on it

Reset Server: resets the (Win98) data server (IRcam server)

Target: opens a dialog that allows to set the Target temperature for the cooldown.

Tuning: opens a dialog that allows to change the LakeShoretemperature controller PID values.

Show Graph: opens the temperature graph window

GraphPars: opens a dialog that allows to change the graph parameters

RetroCam GUI: opens a web-browser with this document:

"http://instrumentation.obs.carnegiescience.edu/Software/RetroCam"

User Manual (LCO): opens a web-browser with the RetoCam user manual:

"http://www.lco.cl/telescopes-information/irenee-du-pont/instruments/retrocam"

Preferences

Observer: value for the FITS-record OBSERVER

Saturation Level: pixels values above this number will be displayed in red

Loop Done: text spoken after an exposure loop

Macro Done: text spoken after a dither macro

Single Step: popup a dialog box after each macro command

Abort On Error: abort macros when an error occurs

Show Macro Lines: show each macro line in the Messages window

Win98 Path: temporary storage path on the Win98 computer

Data Acquisition

Camera

ExpTime: sets the exposure time (3..999 seconds)

ReadMode: sets the readout mode

{Double, Quadruple, Sextuple, Octuple, Single, Bias, Reset}

ObjType: sets the object type

{test, standard, astro, tflat, sky, dark, dflat}

Filter: moves the filer wheel to the selected filter

{dk, Yc, Jo, Hc}

Go: starts a loop sequence of Loops exposures

Loops: number of exposures per sequence

Object: OBJECT value in the FITS header

Filename: name of the next FITS file

File: macro scripts filename

Dither: opens the dither-macro dialog

Execute: executes the macro-script

Pause: pauses the current macro-script (after the current command)

Abort: aborts the current macro-script (after the current command)

Disk(s): disk status

Data Path(s)

The FITS files will be written to both paths simultaneously.

Dither Macros

This dialog creates standard dither macro-scripts.

Step: step size [arcsec] between exposure loops

Pattern:

{None, Dice-5, Rot-5, Square-9, Rot-9, Random-11}

Guider:

{None, Auto, Manual}

QuickLook Tool

Magnifier (top right)

Can be moved by holding down the left mouse button, or with the cursor keys (up/down/left/right arrows).

Pixel

The current cursor pixel coordinate (center of the aperture and magnifier) and pixel value at the cursor position.

Min/Max

Minimum and maxium pixel value within the aperture.

Ave/Sig

Average and standard deviation within the aperture.

FWHM/Flux

Press the key while centered on a star to calculate an estimated FWHM and flux.

Magnification

Magnification factor of the Magnifier window.

Radius

Sets the radius for the aperture statistics (MinMax, AveSig above).

Telescope Control

TeleGUI

Get: Reads the telescope coordinates (alpha, delta, equinox) and focus from the TCS (telescope control system).

Note: It is recommended to press the Get button before starting a macro to ensure proper telescope pointing. This also updates the focus value that is written to the FITS header.

Send: Sends the coordinates in the Alpha and Delta windows to the TCS.

NE,N,NW,E,W,SE,S,SW: Moves the offsets from the dx and dy windows.

0,0: Moves the negative offset from the S(dx),S(dy) windows.

Zero: Resets the offset-sums in the S(dx),S(dy) windows to zero.

SkyMap

Displays the current view (red square) of the RetroCam array.

Airmass

Shows a graph of the change in airmass at the current telescope position.

Object List

The object lists a ASCII files, formatted as one object per line; each data field is seprarated by a '|' (pipe) character:

Name | 10:50:10.0 | -12:00:15.0 | 2000.0 | Comment

Edit: opens a dialog that allows to change the properties of the selected object.

Add: opens a dialog that allows to add an object to the list.

If the coordinates (alpha, delta, equinox) are left empty they will default to the current TeleGUI coordinates.

Remove: removes the selected object from the list.

PreView: sets the coordinates in the TeleGUI

and Airmass window to the selected object (coordinates are not sent to the TCS).

setObject: Sends the coordinates of the selected object to the TCS.

If the equinox of the list object is different from the equinox of the TeleGUI (TCS), then the coordinates are precessed to the TCS equinox before they are sent.

Temperature Control (Cooldown only)

Instrument Software Documentation Index