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Moon Illumination Info in object Information
#1
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Hello
for working with iTelescope, especially with narrowband it is a discount of up to 50% for a moon illumination above 75%.
The object info window is a good help to see the time window which the angle separation is above 60° (Example), but what is the llumination?
It would be nice to have a graph overlay on the object info which shows the degree of illumination!
Then a quick look shows the time with an illumination of >75% and an angle separation of >60°.
Perhaps the same Info is usefull in the Planner bar.

Thanks
Ed
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#2
Hi Ed,

I think your are underestimating what SkyTools can do for you. You don't need to know the illumination of the moon. SkyTools directly calculates the brightness of the sky background at the position of a target object. This is much more accurate than "eyeballing it" yourself. So let SkyTools do the calculations for you by using the tools that have been provided.
Clear skies,
Greg
Head Dude at Skyhound
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#3
Hi Ed,

My reading of the iTelescope pricing is that they consider the Moon Illumination % without regard to the separation angle. If the moon is up and the phase is >75%, you would get the big price break. The separation angle is not a factor. If you set ST4i's moon sep filter to >60°, it will take care of the separation for you by filtering the nearer targets out of the list. Some of their OTA's with closed tubes may be able to handle moon sep angles below 60°, but I'm not certain of that. It probably varies by system. Perhaps someone with iTelscope experience could help with that.

Did I understand your question correctly & does this help you?

I have been trying to sort out the iTelescope price structure myself,

Phil S.
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#4
Wink 
Hi Greg
I know that the illumination is not necesserary for the ST4 calculations, but it is usefull to know the illumination concerning the different iTel discounts; it's only a question of "money"  Big Grin 
Of course I can consult another program for this information, but I think it is also a variable which counts.
Thanks
Ed
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#5
(2018-12-21, 09:22 PM)lewis Wrote: Hi Greg
I know that the illumination is not necesserary for the ST4 calculations, but it is usefull to know the illumination concerning the different iTel discounts; it's only a question of "money"  Big Grin 
Of course I can consult another program for this information, but I think it is also a variable which counts.
Thanks
Ed

Hi Ed,

I didn't realize that you were speaking about planning with regard to usage charges rather than planning in general. Sorry.

I did consider this sort of feature, but there are two issues that kept from going ahead:

1) The illumination percentages as calculated by iTelescope are not very accurate and they seem to be idealized to some extent. Without knowing their exact algorithm, SkyTools could easily get you into a conflict with iTelescope over the "real" illumination percentage during your observations. 

2) iTelescope can change their algorithm at any time, possibly resulting in more problems.

Until the illumination angle algorithm is understood by me, and I have assurances that they aren't going to change it, I am going to play it safe.

What I suggest in the mean time is to enable the "Show Almanac Columns" feature on the iTelescope reservation tool to determine the specific time periods for the moon discount.
Clear skies,
Greg
Head Dude at Skyhound
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#6
Thanks Greg
Yes, your way is the better one.
Thanks a lot for the ST4 which is running well and helps a lot.
All the best to 2019 ***
Greetings, Ed
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