Camera control/image acquisition software that calibrate subframes

Tim,

AstroimageJ (AIJ) does this, although I haven't tried it. I use it in post-processing mode, where callibration is done by batch process after all science images are taken. In real time mode, each science image can be callibrated shortly after capture from a library of callibration frames. I've attached an image of one page from the manual, with the relevant sentences underlined.

The manual can be found at: https://www.astro.louisville.edu/software/astroimagej/guide/AstroImageJ…

Roy

Tim,

Just realized you're looking for camera control/image acquisition software that does real-time callibration. AIJ has no camera control/image acquisition features, but I presume it could run in tandem with your chosen control/acquisition software. The reason I think this is that the real-time callibration is turned on by setting a polling interval in the Data Processing (DP) module of AIJ, which instructs AIJ to periodically inspect your science image folder for filenames meeting the format you set in the DP module. My guess is that you start the Data Processing module, then commence imaging. I presume the polling interval would be set shorter than your cadence, which should allow AIJ to recognize the presence of each new image.

Roy

SharpCap can apply Dark- and Flat-Field corrections on the fly optionally, and it also has a "library" functionality to manage calibration frames. See this manual page for instance: http://docs.sharpcap.co.uk/3.2/#Capturing%20and%20Using%20Flat%20Frames

When using this, you will however only get saved calibrated frames, the original frames are not saved anywhere AFAIK. So if you later see that your sensor has acquired a new dust particle in a particular inconvenient spot, it's not as trivial as just going back to the original frames and applying updated flats, you would have to reverse-compute those original frames first.

Cheers

HB

AIJ keeps the original science images and saves the calibrated images in a subdirectory.

I don't do this, mostly because I am interested in the quality of the raw science images before calibration. I don't know how necessary this might be, I like to do it. as a sanity check.

Ed

Hello! MPO Connections wil do this, I believe, but only for scopes that run in LX200 mode and use the LX200 command set. The number of supported cameras, filter wheels, and focusers are small as well. Best regards.

Mike

ACP (Astronomer's Control Panel) will, as a user option, calibrate every image. Even if the option is off, an automation plan can instruct ACP to turn on calibration for one target at a time. It stores both the calibrated and uncalibrated "raw" image files.

EDIT: prob. should mention that ACP uses MaxIm to do the initial image acquisition.