Tag: astronomy

An Inexpensive & Compact Allsky Camera?

A decent DIY Allsky Camera can easily cost over $400 USD to build. A “low-cost” Raspberry Pi 4B based system with HQ camera and wide-angle lens with enclosure will cost over $250 USD to build. If that price range is too steep for you, you might consider a very low cost option. It will not be an ALL sky camera but will provide a fun experience with quality images and videos. Consider building an inexpensive sky camera that covers about 1/4 of the sky. This will still provide good coverage and captures very impressive day and night sky images and time-lapse videos using the Allsky software found on github: https://github.com/thomasjacquin/allsky There is an updated version of this software, currently in test (February 2023), that supports the Pi Camera Module 3. I expect that it will escape soon ๐Ÿ™‚

You can build a compact component-based sky camera for less than $75 USD or about $100 USD with a very nice enclosure.

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Raspberry Pi 4 Based AllSky Cameras

Version 1 – PVC pipe & fittings

A couple of months back, I put together an all sky camera system for the Martz-Kohl Observatory near Jamestown, in Western New York. An all sky camera provides a (near) 180-degree fisheye view of the sky. This project was a joint effort with other members of the observatory. One member supplied parts for the system enclosure while another donated a Raspberry Pi 4B single board computer and ZWO ASI224MC astro-camera and lens. Others donated time and expertise for assembling and mounting the system on top of the observatory. There were definite lesons learned as the original assembly leaked under severe weather. The fight with dew and frost is ongoing. It will take some effort and thought to automate a method of keeping the dome clear. For now, an occasional cleaning of the dome’s’s exterior keeps everything working ๐Ÿ™‚

Version 2 – sealed enclosure

SO, with lessons learned, I built a version 2 all sky camera system! As opposed to the PVC pipe enclosure, I went with a waterproof box, similar to what other DIY folks have used. I used parts that I had lying around: a Raspberry Pi 4B, R-Pi HQ camera, an Argon Fan HAT and a USB 3 SSD that I was no longer using. I purchased a lens, dome, USB C cable mount, and various hardware and sealants.

On both systems, I use the Allsky software which is open source and available on github.

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PerAspera-AdAstra.Space

The Planetary SocietyMy wife, Claire, and I have been members of the Planetary Society since its founding in 1980. I was fortunate to be working at The Jet Propulsion Laboritory when Carl Sagen, Bruce Murray and Louis Friedman founded the society. Bill Nye, “The Science Guy” and space advocate, is now CEO.

The society’s mission has changed only slightly over the years and is now:

to empower the worldโ€™s citizens to advance space science and exploration. We advocate for space and planetary science funding in government, inspire and educate people around the world, and develop and fund groundbreaking space science and technology.

So, why this post and why this title? The Planetary Society has offered a year-free domain registration with the Top-level domain (TLD) of “space” to members. Well, I needed to take advantage of that and spread the word about this TLD. Being a big Science Fiction fan, the phrase, “Per aspera ad astra” came to mind. Several variants have already been taken so I had to be a (tiny) bit creative.

Until I think of “better” content and have time to put something together, the URL, PerAspera-AdAstra.space points to this blog.

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