KStars 3.6.1: Step towards dual-rig support?

On the heels of KStars 3.6 released in July of this year, an updated version 3.6.1 has now seen the light. Main new feature is the definition of ‘Optical Trains’. An Optical Train is a definition of all the components that are used in a particular setup. This includes the mount, telescope, focuser, filterwheel and camera. But also auxiliary components, such as dust cap, flat light panel, rotator and reducer. And it specifies where the guiding pulses need to be sent.

Currently in the application, the benefits are convenient, but only minor. In the past there were multiple places where you had to select individual components. That is now a slightly more streamlined approach. At the top of each module, you select an optical train and all relevant settings are filled in. For a full understanding of how the new architecture works, this video is a good source of information.

While convenient, not earth shattering….yet. Because it looks like this might be a step towards dual-camera support. Currently if you have a dual-rig setup on the same mount, the way to run those is by having two separate computers controlling them. But there is no communication between them regarding slew commands, dither pulses, etc. So even though you can set one system as a ‘slave’, many images will be lost because the mount performs some movement that the slave does not know about. NINA has an option that is called synchronised dithering, which deals with this problem. Somehow it looks like optical trains pave the way for getting something similar in KStars/Ekos.

Other improvements are related to guiding, and general bug fixes. For a full overview of all the new features, you can have a look at the release notes. To download the software free of charge, go to: https://edu.kde.org/kstars/.