On Thu, 02 Dec 2004 10:09:27 -0700, Gene Holmerud <
geneous@cox.net> wrote:
> Thanks Rod. XEphem (also described at
> <http://www.apex.net.au/~twalker/linuxastro.html>) is still in distros,
> just the website has gone "404" apparently.
>
> On Thu, 2 Dec 2004 08:32:07 -0700, Rod Heyd <rsheyd@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> ...
> >
> > Incidentally, most of the "big telescopes" run by Steward Observatory
> > at the U of A, actually use a DOS program called PC-TCS. The main
> > reason being that you get the best pointing and tracking accuracy from
> > a non-multitasking OS, since you never know when some process might
> > interrupt your clock and potentially alter the telescope positioning.
> >
> Good point. Also starts my head spinning when I think of the database
> requirements. A "big telescope" would need data on millions of sky
> objects. That, with the DOS version of a gui would stress DOS a tad!
>
Actually, the database isn't usually an issue. When you go on an
observing run, you are expected to do your own homework and determine
the sky coordinates of the objects you want to observe. The
observatory really doesn't maintain a huge electronic database of
object coordinates. Usually, about the only objects they have
"preloaded" are the bright star catalog (which has a little over 9,000
stars in it) maybe one or two other catalogs of about the same size,
and that's about it. For everything else, you have to look it up
yourself, either using some online resource, or maybe even having to
go look in one of those things, I forget what they're called... oh
yeah *books*! :)
Cheers,
Rod
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