Automated Telescope Facility
The ATF software controls the telescope, CCD cameras, dome and filter
wheel in a complelely automated way.
The telescope mount, dome, and
filter wheel are all operated with stepper motors using an intelligent
controller (Oregon Microsystems PC-34).
The software consists of several UNIX drivers, hardware interface
daemons, and X-Windows Motif client applications. Communication is
via stream pipes. Some feature of the system include:
- Complete control of all hardware (telescope, dome, filter wheel,
- focus, and CCD camera).
- User-friendly script language for observing requests.
- Optimization of scheduling requests using a sorting algorithm to
- minimize time between observation and transit.
- Built-in stellar and non-stellar catalogs so objects can be specified
- by name only (e.g. SOA, YBSC, NGC, Messier, GCVS).
- Catalogs for solar system objects with built-in orbital elements.
- Automated CCD calibration (dark field subraction and flat field)
- using archived calibration images. Thermal frames are scaled
- appropriately by exposure time.
- Automated logging on a per-schedule basis.
- Automated archiving of images.
- Optional compression of images using H-compression.
- Real-time display (with optional analysis) of images as they are
- acquired.
- Automated start/stop at astronomical dusk/dawn.
The Automated Telescope Facility has now produced a CD-ROM
containing ~600 Megabytes of images, software, and laboratory
exercises used in our classes at the University of Iowa and supported by
the Automated Telescope Facility.
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Current Version: ??
License Type: ??
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Home Site:
http://www-astro.physics.uiowa.edu/
Source Code Availability: Yes
Available Binary Packages:
- Debian Package: No
- RedHat RPM Package: No
- Other Packages: Yes
Targeted Platforms:
Windows, UNIX (Linux and Solaris binaries available on CD-ROM)
Software/Hardware Requirements:
ANSI C compiler and Motif library is compiled from source. Don't know the binaries are Motif statically linked or not.
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Other Links:
None
Mailing Lists/USENET News Groups:
None
User Comments:
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