DB Power Search and Constellation Filter

[wadeh]

It appears that the constellation filter is not working in a database power search.

I've attached a screen shot where I tried to get a list of all spiral galaxies with magnitude <= 12.0 in Andromeda.  It always gives me a list of all objects that meet my criteria in any constellation, even if I've selected the specific constellations in which I'm interested.

Thanks,
-Wade

   

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Oh, and I forgot to mention that I am using 4.0d.

Thanks,
-Wade

[PMSchu]

Hi Wade,

It's the constellation selection that's not working. A search of Messier galaxies in Andromeda or Boötes returns all of the Messier galaxies. A search for Messier open clusters or globular clusters also returns all of them. I guess you could sort the list on constellation and only select the appropriate galaxies as a work-around. 

I tested that for NGC galaxies & it seems to work. Just copy the selected objects to the appropriate Target List.

You probably already figured that out .

Phil S.

[theskyhound]

Thanks for reporting this! I am looking into it.

[Dennis]

Thanks for reporting this! I am looking into it.

I have found that selecting a User Defined Imaging System, Location and Time of year makes the Constellations selectable.

E.g. for my Mewlon 210 in Brisbane on 03 Sept I was able to select Aqr.

Cheers

Dennis

[PMSchu]

Thanks for passing this info along Dennis. I haven't tried to do a DB Power Search for a specific Imaging System and didn't notice this. I have access to several Imaging Systems and want my search results to be available for all of them.

Phil S.

[theskyhound]

Thanks for reporting this! I am looking into it.

I have found that selecting a User Defined Imaging System, Location and Time of year makes the Constellations selectable.

E.g. for my Mewlon 210 in Brisbane on 03 Sept I was able to select Aqr.

Cheers

Dennis

Hello,

I have trouble seeing how it would matter which imaging system was selected. My guess is you just got lucky, or it is something simple like changing the Imaging System. Try changing it back to see if that works.

[Dennis]

Hi Gregg

Hmm, I just tried again this morning and unfortunately ST 4 crashed.

ST4 Version e
Win 10 Pro 64 Bit
Intel i7
32GB RAM
512GB SSD

Here are a couple of screen captures of the Database Power Search Tool - Minor Planets Tab.

1 = the default settings before I make any changes.
2 = my changes; Orbit Class, Imaging System, Constellation.

Only this time, when I press Search I get the "Searching database..." message at bottom then a few seconds later, ST4 just completely shuts down.

I have subsequently re-launched ST4 3 times and still get the same behaviour.

I wonder how I got it to work a couple of days ago??? I'll have a look at my notes.

Cheers

Dennis

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Here are some more details on the behaviour of the Database Power Search Tool on my Win 10 Pro 64 bit system running ST4 Version e:

Set up 01.
Imaging System selected.
Location selected.
Current date (7 Sept) selected.
Orbit class - various sub-sets selected.
Constellation Aqr selected.
 
Results 01
The database search runs and completes but only returns a single Asteroid.
 
Set up 02
Imaging System selected.
Location selected.
Historical date (3 Sept) selected.
Orbit class - various sub-sets selected.
Constellation Aqr selected.
 
Results 02
The database search runs for a few seconds and then SkyTools 4 completely shuts down.
 
This appears to occur every time I try this with an historical date.
 
I have attached some screen captures showing this.
 
Cheers
 
Dennis

[Dennis]

I see what I have done Greg.

 

On my Notebook Computer (used at the telescope) I have both SkyTools 3 Pro and SkyTools 4 Imaging installed.

 

It looks like I had the ST4 Interactive Atlas & Camera View Windows open(for Nereid) and then I must have toggled to an ST3 Observing List (screen capture attached) believing that it was an ST4 Target List (which I had been trying to generate earlier) with all the Asteroids in Aquarius, so I could identify the 2 interlopers.

 

So, in summary, I wasn’t looking at an ST4 Target List, but my ST3 Observing List – whoops, apologies for the duff info.
 

I had just downloaded the full Bowell's ASTORB file (796568element sets) for both ST3 and ST4 and was running Database Power Searches in both applications hence the confusion.

Cheers

 

Dennis

[PMSchu]

Hi Dennis & Greg,

I really hadn't thought about the observing location & time parameters that would be required for a database search for minor planers in a specific constellation before. It makes sense that they would be needed to nail down the apparent locations of the objects. The Imaging System should not be needed for the calculation, but without choosing an IS the Location & Date parameters are greyed out. However, ST4i will assign the constellations for the minor planets search if 'Any' constellation is selected for the search and no IS, Location or Date info is provided. ST4i must use some default value to make the assignment of a constellation.

I just completed the search & found 65 minor planets in Aquarius tonight. I also downloaded the ASTORB data several weeks ago & have ~600,000 minor planets for the current epoch. A screenshot is attached. This was not a quick calculation on my 5 yr old AMD 8350 based computer  .

Thanks again Dennis for sharing this info,

Phil S.

[Dennis]

Hi Phil

I'm still learning the depths and "how-to's" of SkyTools 4 Imaging and I am finding the scope and depth of its functionality quite breathtaking. So much so, that how it operates and the important prerequisite set up steps have often exposed some of my incorrect assumptions when I compare it to my understanding and use of SkyTools 3 Pro.

I'm not sure if some of my assumptions about how to use the Minor Planet Tab in ST4 are correct, so I'll await Greg's response in determining the way this function was designed and meant to be used.

Thanks for the feedback.

Cheers

Dennis