Hi, is it possible to export the obstructed horizon line, I ask, because I want to use the same in line in e.g. stellarium,
Thanks for the help.

I'm so tired of this cloudy weather, that I took a look rather far into the future.

Found an interesting rock not at CNEOS yet. 2005 LW3, H=21.62, 125-280 meters, 3LD pass couple days b4 Thanksgiving, possibly mag 13.4, max speed 148"/min in south. Uncertainty 0! Recently observed by Spacewatch this last April.

Very well placed for me (and Phil) on Nov 23 just after end of astronomical twilight moving 1.6'/min, 78° up in Pegasus. No Moon issues.

Taking bets on the weather??

CNEOS predicts that this newly discovered NEO will make a close approach on 2022 Sep 5 23:06 ±<00:01 UT at at distance of 0.00751 AU. H=23.1, 'Rarity'=2, Condition Code=6. The initial observation was made on August 31.

Using MPC's elements for 2022 Sep 4 00:00 UT, ST4v predicts that this object will reach a peak brightness of 15.3 magnitude on Sep 5 at 2100-2200 EDT when it will be moving through Ophiuchus at 122.9"/min. At the time of close approach it is predicted to be moving at 123.5"/min in daylight still at 15.3 magnitude. It's also observable with a 13" scope on the night of Sep 4 from 2200 - Sep 5 0100 EDT when it's predicted to be moving through Hercules at ~80"/min and ~16 magnitude.

Here's an Interactive Atlas chart showing the predicted path during close approach as seen from Columbus, Ohio: [attachment=2498]

Good hunting,

I have a Dobson mounted scope and certain elevation angles are not comfortable for me- I would like to filter a list for a specific window of time by a range of telescope angles . For instance: objects that can be viewed with the scope angle between 45 and 70 degrees between 10:00p and 11:30p on a specific night. Any suggestions?

Thank you,
Jon Reck

Hello,

I recently released six new videos for SkyTools Visual Real Time. The Real Time tool is meant to be used out in the field, at the telescope. Its purpose is to make observing simple and efficient. You may be surprised how easy it is to use once you get used to the idea, and especially how well the on-screen finder charts work.

I have spent the last year working on improving and simplifying the Real Time tool in many small ways, in both the Best Now and Sky Tour modes. If you have tried this tool and got lost, became frustrated, or ran into bugs, now is the time to give it another try.

Why six videos? Real Time is meant to be used at the telescope, but people observe in many different ways. The three main ways to observe with SkyTools at the telescope are: a GOTO telescope connected to SkyTools, Digital Settings Circles, and using on-screen finder charts.

Real Time also has two different modes: Best Now and Sky Tour. To cover each of these combinations requires six different videos.

The idea is to find the workflow video for the mode you want to use that matches how you observe most closely and then watch that video. It will take you through the process of building an observing list meant for a use on a specific night, and then using that list in the Real Time tool.

What is the difference between the two modes?

The Best Now mode allows the most flexibility. It presents a list of objects sorted such that the best ones to observe right now are sorted to the top. Using this mode can be as simple as pressing the Enter key on your laptop/tablet every time you are ready for a new object.

The Sky Tour mode is the most efficient way to observe, and is best for when you are doing a large project, such as observing all of the objects for an AL award, and is also useful for attempting a Messier Marathon.

The tutorial videos are here:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL...klh_SrnQzr

There is a new tutorial that describes how to get the most of out Night Vision mode coming soon, and I hope to release a quick tip video once per week thereafter, alternating between SkyTools Visual, and SkyTools Imaging.

Let me know what you think, and what video tutorials you would like to see next, and be sure to ask any questions you may have!

CNEOS predicts that this NEO will make a close approach on 2022 Oct 4 09:48±<00:01 UT at a distance of 0.07123 AU. H=18.2, 'Rarity'=1, Condition Code=0. It's ~0.78 km across.

ST4v predicts that this NEO will reach a peak brightness of 14.7 magnitude from Sep 22-29 at 0.08-0.07 AU distance moving at ~5.4"/min. At close approach the motion will increase to 6.6"/min.

Here's an Interactive Atlas chart showing the predicted path from August 28 to October 17: [attachment=2481]

The position ephemeris using MPC's elements for 2022 Aug 28 0000 UT for Columbus, Ohio is attached below. This object is better observed from the southern hemisphere.

This NEO is the target of NASA's DART mission to deflect an asteroid, Didymos's moon, Dimorphos, by impacting it with a spacecraft.
NASA's asteroid-deflecting test mission is just 1 month away from impact | Space

Good hunting,

Phil S.

CNEOS predicts that this 170m-540m NEO will make a close approach on 2022 Sep 1 23:30±<00:01 UT at a distance of 0.05357 AU. H=20.3, 'Rarity'=1, Condition Code=0. I almost missed ths one because it's just outside the 0.05 AU limit that I normally check.

ST4v predicts that this object will reach a peak brightness of 16.3 magnitude around midnight August 30 (EDT) when it will be moving from Lacerta into Cepheus ~22"/min. It's already predicted to be 16.4 magnitude tonight. Here's an Interactive Atlas chart showing the predicted path from Aug 27-Sep 1 as seen from Columbus, Ohio: [attachment=2479]

The ephemeris calculated using MPC's elements for 2022 Aug 28 0000 UT is attached below.

Good hunting,

Phil S.

The CNEOS website predicts that the recently discovered NEO 2022 QX4 will make a close approach on 2022 Aug 29 09:24±00:07 UT. The approach distance is 0.01225 AU, H=24.6, 'Rarity'=1, Condition Code=8. This NEO was discovered on August 24.

Using MPC's elements for 2022 Aug 25 00:00 UT, ST4v predicts that this NEO will reach a peak brightness of 15.1 magnitude on August 28 at 2300 EDT (Aug 29 0300 UT) when it will be in Aquarius moving at 60.6"/min. Here's an interactive Atlas chart showing the path of this NEO as seen from Columbus, Ohio: [attachment=2469]

Interestingly, the path goes through the earth's shadow at 2300 EDT. It's probably too distant at 0.01 AU to be eclipsed though.

Good hunting,

Phil S.

When I have Saturn up at 21:32:27 CDT August 22, and do a search for 14th magnitude Janus, I get a list of objects that does not include Janus. Is it because ST4 thinks it is too faint to see near the rings and therefore will not display? However, Mimus at mag 13 and Hyperion at 14.3 are shown.

Another app says that Janus is not a valid object. Several others have it displayed at RA 21h35m07s DEC 15°44'57".

Bug or just the way ST works?

I would like to store my working files and configuratiuons on my Microsoft OneDrive so that I can access them from both of my computers.

Is this possible?  

Thanks

Rich