Blog from January, 2023

Time/Date

20230130T1730-2230

People

Onkar, Roy, later Gabriel

Spaces Occupied

PHYS 401, 433C, Dome

Goals

1. Inventory
2. Serendipitous stargazing
   1. Test two-instances of SharpCap?
3. Decide on second dome camera location

Log

1. Starting Up Scope
   1. Control Computer(CC): Started DFM TCS, ASCOM Dome Control Panel, TheSky6
   2. Front Panel: Enabled MTR Driver Chassis, Drives
   3. DC: Opened Blue Iris
   4. CC: Dome Control > Connect; Then Open
   5. CC: TCS > Telescope > Initialization > Apply Windows Date & Time; Sync
   6. CC: TS6 > Telescope > Link > Establish
2. Cameras
   1. Collected Deep-Sky camera from shelves with adpaters
   2. Planetary camera was still on-axis 
   3. Connected Deep-Sky Camera to Finderscope; powered; connected to Icron extender with long USB-3.0/B
   4. Connected Planetary Camera to On-Axis port; connected to LBD1 
   5. DC: SharpCap > Cameras > ZWO ASI 2600MM Pro (Deep-Sky)
      1. Finderscope camera is working
   6. DC: SharpCap > Cameras > ZWO ASI 178MM (Planetary)
      1. On-Axis camera is working
3. Bandwidth Test
   1. Opened two instances of SharpCap
   2. Set exposure time to 100ms for both, got nominal frame rates for both cameras; no frame dropping
   3. Changed the Planetary CMOS to also run through Icron extender with long USB-3.0/B
   4. Started dropping frames through SharpCap
   5. Switched back to original setup with Planetary CMOS through LBD1
   6. Issue with SharpCap:
      1. SharpCap went through phase where it only detected the planetary CMOS
      2. Eventually fixed issue by repeatedly power-cycling Deep-Sky camera and reseating data cable
4. Looks clear
   1. Enabled AutoDoming
   2. Slewed to Mars
   3. lul Forgot mirror doors and dome
      1. Opened those via ASCOM and TCS, respectively
   4. Turns out: not clear
5. Closing up
   1. Slewed telescope to zenith
   2. Disconnected from TS6
   3. Slewing to Zenith
      1. Telescope > Movement > Offset/Zenith Tab, Apply Zenith Position & Slew
      2. Didn't work 
      3. Nothing happened. Scope was clearly off-zenith
      4. Opened TS6 and reconnected to scope, then asked to slew to Zenith – this worked.
      5. NOT SURE WHY.
   4. Closed Mirror doors via TCS
6. Removed both cameras from scope and stored on shelves
7. Began inventory-ing?

ToDo

1. Spec-out new long USB 3.1 - B, at least the longest

Notes

1. Slewing to zenith thru TCS didn't work as expected (at all)
2. AutoDome: Danced +- 7 degrees off of telescope azimuth

Weather

Data

None. Cloudy.

Time/Date

20230127T1726-

People

Roy, Connor, Gabriel

Spaces Occupied

PHYS 401, 433C, Dome, Roof

Goals

1. Find missing ZTF/M42 data from 20230126
2. Setup GoogleDrive Sync
3. Take Flat, Dark, and Bias frames
4. Test configuring PHD2on the Control Computer and use it via the finderscope

Log

1. Turned DC on (Why does this turn off?)
2. Starting Up Scope
   1. Control Computer(CC): Started DFM TCS, ASCOM Dome Control Panel, TheSky6
   2. Front Panel: Enabled MTR Driver Chassis, Drives
   3. DC: Opened Blue Iris
   4. CC: Dome Control > Connect; Then Open
   5. CC: TCS > Telescope > Initialization > Apply Windows Date & Time; Sync
   6. CC: TS6 > Telescope > Link > Establish
3. Cameras
   1. Collected Deep-Sky camera and planetary camera from shelves with adpaters
   2. Connected Deep-Sky Camera to Finderscope; powered (still on?); connected to Icron extender with long USB-3.0/B
   3. Connected Deep-Sky Camera to On-Axis port; connected to Icron extender with shorter USB-3.0/B
   4. DC: SharpCap > Cameras > ZWO ASI 2600MM Pro (Deep-Sky)
      1. Finderscope camera is working
   5. DC: SharpCap > Cameras > ZWO ASI 178MM (Planetary)
      1. On-Axis camera is working
4. Enabled Auto-Doming
   1. CC: Enabled Dome Control > "Slave Dome to Scope"
   2. Front Panel: Enabled AutoDome and Dome Track Switch
5. DATA FINDING
   1. GON Captures are in "D:\SharpCap Captures\2023-01-26\Capture\20_49_30"
   2. ZTF Captures are in "D:\SharpCap Captures\2023-01-26\Capture\21_32_14" 
6. DATA SYNCING
   1. Downloaded and installed Google Drive Setup from https://www.google.com/drive/download/
   2. Installed on Director user profile
   3. Used Roy's credentials to log in
   4. Setup Sync between " "D:\SharpCap Captures\" and "UMBC Observatory > Observations > Spring2022 > SharpCap Captures"
7. SharpCap File Save Settings
   1. Toward top-right of the SharpCap window, there is "Capture Profiles"
   2. You can load, save, manage different save profiles, specifying file type and some other fields.
   3. ALSO. On the bottom-right of the SharpCap window, there is a Scope Controls frame with a notes section. This populates a Notes field in the save profile, it's not clear where this ends up – doesn't seem like it gets to the FITS header ...
8. Open Mirror Doors
   1. CC: TCS > Telescope > Misc > "Switches/Mirror door"s tab
   2. We confirmed that all four mirror doors opened correctly
9. Weirdness with Lower Dome Shutter
   1. We noticed that the lower shutter didn't open all the way from 2.d.
   2. Fix: Asked them to open again, and the lower shutter opened all the way
10. Downloaded/Installed PHD2 on Control Computer
11. Needed Connection from Finderscope Cam to Control Computer
    1. Disconnected Finderscope Cam from Data Computer
    2. Attempted to use Finderscope cam with LBD2 and Control Computer; No result, but it worked fine with Data Computer
12. Installed ASI Camera Drivers on Control Computer
    1. Still no success connecting cameras to Control Computer
13. Tried connecting Finderscope Cam to Control Computer using front panel USB ports with LBD1 with no success
14. Connected Finderscope Cam to Control Computer front panel with the USB Extender Box
    1. Successfully connected Planetary Cam with LBD1 to Data Computer
15. Continued working with PHD2
    1. Camera Selected: "ZWO ASI Camera"
    2. Telescope Focal Length entered: 952 mm 
    3. Put corkboard sheet thing over Finderscope to build dark library in PHD2
    4. Took dark library with "Min Exposure Time" set to 1.0 s, "Max Exposure Time" set to 6.0 s, and "Frames to take for each exposure time" set to 5. The bubble for "Create entirely new dark library" was also selected
    5. Uncovered Finderscope
16. Stopped with PHD2 to try MaxIm DL
    1. CMOS not listed in Camera menu
17. Installed ZWO drivers for ASCOM and ASCOM Platform on Control Computer
18. Went back into MaxIm DL and connected the camera
    1. Navigated to the Expose Tab of Camera Control
    2. Took a dark frame (Covering the Finderscope with the corkboard sheet again)
    3. MaxIm DL couln't connect to mount with the drivers
19. Went back AGAIN to PHD2
    1. Got everything connected and got images on-screen, but couldn't guide because the software crashed early on
    2. Couldn't replicate what allowed us to get it working in the first place (software not working as expected)
20. Decided it was best to stop for the night and do more research before trying again
21. Stowed telescope at Zenith
22. Closed mirror doors
23. Closed dome shutters
24. Put away cameras
25. Disengaged switches on front panel

Note: For thermalizing the dome, the hatch must be closed. The hatch being open seems to heat up the dome according to Gabriel's small thermometer. Reported weather temperature outside was 0C while inside the dome the temperature only got down to 6C with the hatch closed. When we opened the hatch the temp went up to 10.5C. The thermometer was positioned on the telescope pedestal.

ToDo

1. Configure DC to remain on
2. Permanently allow BlueIris to run
3. Need extension cord to allow box fan to pull from roof access door
4. Need to buy another long USB-3.0/B cable Onkar Rekhi / Gabriel Koletsi , spec one of these out and post to "To Buy" discord channel

Notes

1. Finderscope camera port was not powered off
2. Finderscope Deep-Sky Camera image suffers from vignetting

Weather

Data

If using the telescope cameras, record the local and any remote location of collected data.

Time/Date

20230126T1730-2300

People

Tara, Onkar, Matt, Connor, Gabriel, Roy

Spaces Occupied

PHYS 306A, 401, 433C, Dome, Roof

Goals

1. Find and understand adapter plates for planetary CMOS
2. Look at ZTF
3. Collect tracking sensitivity frames for analysis
4. Determine ZTF positions

Log

1. Found ThorLabs LCP8S and SM2 IMT (TMA4) for planetary CMOS
2. Began thermalizing dome
3. Dome shutters opened via ASCOM Dome Control Panel on first try
4. Connecting Deep-Sky CMOS to finderscope
5. Connecting planetary CMOS to on-axis port
6. Navigated to "Outlet Control" in Bookmarks bar, logged in and turned on power to Outlet 1
7. Opened SharpCap, it connected to Deep Sky CMOS without issue over icron USB extender
8. While dealing with finding the right adapter for the planetary CMOS, we slewed to the Moon (See captures)
9. Then went to Jupiter, but began to encounter clouds
   1. We tried to determine the average FWHM, but only with camera settings 
10. Went to Aldebaran 
    1. manually adjusted focus on finder scope
11. Finally figured out how to connect planetary CMOS to main scope
12. Went back to Zenith, disabled tracking
13. Opened Mirror Doors
14. Slewed to Aldebaran and enabled tracking
    1. Main Scope view didn't see anything but noise
    2. Finderscope saw Aldebaran
15. Changed focus on main scope to, minimizing FWHM of Aldebaran
16. Pointed at Mars, focus is at 2075
17. Stored Mars object position (DFM TCS → Initialization → Telescope Position → hit "Use next object position" and hit apply)
18. Slewed to Beetlejuice
19. Slewed to M42
20. Roy turned off the vnc service Gabriel was connected to and didn't enable it again. Gabriel is very mad.
21. Attempting to slew to comet ZTF, using sidereal tracking rate
22. Pointed the finder scope to ZTF, can't confirm if main telescope is pointed to it.
23. All of our cameras are more sensitive to green spectrum of light
24. Roy is waiting
25. We used ephemeris from jplhorizons
26. Shutdown
    1. Disconnecting thesky6 (terminating telescope link)
    2. Stowed telescope at zenith (heard thump)
    3. South mirror door fell due to not having a pin 
    4. jerry-rigging south door pin 
    5. slew to zenith for second time 
    6. Closed mirror doors

Camera Connection CONUNDRUM

1. Planetary CMOS connected via LBD2 not appearing in SharpCap
2. Connected planetary CMOS via Icron USB Extender and it worked

ToDo

Notes

1. when it says "Approaching limits" in DFM it will refuse to slew until you use a hand paddle to slew it out of the limit zone 

Weather

Data

Data collected stored in _______ locally and _______ remotely.

Date/Time

20230124-T1730-2200

People

Connor, Gabriel, Roy

Spaces Occupied

401, 433C, Dome

Goals

1. Observe astrometric standard such as NCG 188.
2. Take image of star(s) trailing
3. Make auto-dome wiki page

Log

1. Couldn't find planetary CMOS with adapter
   1. Chose to just use deep-sky CMOS on finderscope (since that's all we need)
   2. Deep-sky CMOS connected to Icron USB Extender – connected to SharpCap without issue
   3. No changes to focus needed to be made while reattaching
2. Dome shutters didn't open via DFMTCS > Telescope > MISC > Focus & Shutter Tab
   1. When we used ASCOM Dome Control Panel, they worked. 
   2. WE DON'T KNOW WHY
3. We set auto-doming up
4. We assumed pointing was good from the last session
   1. And it was
5. We slewed to NCG 188 and began taking a series of 1min-15min exposures
   1. Remembered to set tracking rate to Sidereal Rate
6. We found a few good exposures
7. We tried comparing the captures to the STScI Digitized Sky Survey result, but this was hard.
8. We used AstroMetry.net to locate NCG 188 in our finderscope captures. This was much easier.
9. See results HERE.
   1. Seems like Finderscope FoV with Deep-Sky CMOS is ~1.5deg x 1deg
10. We set the tracking rate to 13''/s and captured some images of NCG 188 trailing.
    1. Put these on the Auto-guider webpage
11. We reset the tracking rate to 15.042''/s and began a series of exposures
12. We installed SAO DS9 to C:\ and added it to the system PATH
13. We wrote the AutoDoming wiki page 
14. Closed up
    1. Disconnect TheSky6
    2. Telescope > Movement > Offset/Zenith > Set Zenith Position, then press "Apply" – this sets the scope's "Next Position" to the local Zenith.
    3. Disable all tracking
    4. Then press "Start Slew"
    5. ASCOM Dome Control Panel > Close (Dome Shutters)
    6. Disabled "AutoDome" switch
    7. Disabled "DRIVES"
    8. Disabled "MTR DRIVER CHASSIS"
    9. Stored Deep-Sky CMOS
15. WE LEFT

ToDo

Notes

• We figured out that the deep-sky CMOS cooler needs to be turned on via the SharpCap Camera Controls panel (right-hand side of window under "thermal controls")
• Need to figure out what the home position of the dome is

Date/Time 20230117-T1630-T1815

Attendance Roy, Matt, Gabriel

Spaces occupied Control Room, Dome

Goals

• Confirm distance needed for the GAM extension cable
• Label as many telescope parts as possible along with their page on the Engr package
• Make auto-dome wiki for How To

Log

• The shortest distance between the GAM wires in the dome and the TCS desk is between 9m and 1m, probably a bit more than that. 30 feet of wire extender should be just enough
• We cleaned the control room a little more
• Printed more labels for bookshelves

Todo

• Make auto-dome wiki for How To

Notes

Date/Time

20230116-T1700-T2140

People

Azzan, Connor, Gabriel, Roy

Spaces Occupied

433C, Dome

Goals

1. Try using the instrument rotator through Kineses software
2. Set up power switch
3. Center the finder-scope to the DFM Scope
4. Determine focus position on finder scope and set
5. Determine field of view on finder scope
6. Figure out if GAM-lite alignment is correct
7. Observe something with Planetary CMOS (On-Axis)
8. Test PhD2 Software with C8

Log

1. Unclear what Thor Instrument Rotator connects to. See img1
2. Touble connecting both cameras to SharpCap
   1. Currently FinderScope Deep-Sky CMOS is connected via LBD2 in dome to top of PC Tower in Control Room
      1. This works.
3. Saw issue with LBD Cable (Extreme USB) #2
   1. LBD #1 was connecting CMOS to SharpCap.
   2. LBD #2 was not
   3. We swapped the PC Tower Port connections and then none of them worked.
4. We noticed that there are blue and green USB ports on the rear of the PC Tower.
   1. We don't know the difference between the blue and green USB ports 
5. After connecting both cameras[Planetary CMOS to LBD #2 and Deep-Sky CMOS to Icron Extender Box]
6. We were able to load two instances of SharpCap and have each one reporting frames from different CMOSs
7. We were able to point at Jupiter and get it in both the FinderScope and On-Axis. 
   1. The GAM-lite works as far as the focal point of the DFM Scope
   2. The FinderScope works as well.
8. Investigate FoV of FinderScope (1902)
   1. After updating telescope position and completing Pointing, we slewed to NGC 188 in northern sky
   2. We took a few images, but they weren't bright enough to determine the FoV reliably.
   3. We lost the field to clouds before we could find the best SharpCap settings to get a good exposure. NEXT TIME
9. Gabriel took the walkie to DHall.
10. Gabriel brought the walkie back
11. Stowed DFM Scope at Zenith and concurrently disabled tracking on front panel
12. Experimented with remote dome shutter closing
    1. Only works when remote/manual toggle switch is set to remote in DOM-003
13. Mirror doors closed
14. Thor Instrument Rotator
    1. Slewed Telescope over for easy access to motor controller with DFM TCS still on. This makes sure that we keep track of tracking/position of the DFM Scope.
    2. Connected Instrument Rotator to Icron Extender
    3. Clicked "Connect" in Kinesis software
    4. Selected found device (if not found, nothing will appear in this window)
    5. Needed to tell it "HDR50/M", per Eileen
    6. Selected "Move" and gave a few positions in either direction from the 0-degree position.
    7. Gabriel has videos of this but reported that it all worked as expected
    8. Slewed the DFM Scope back to zenith
15. Slewing to Zenith
    1. DFM TCS
       1. DFM TCS > Telescope > Movement > Offset/Zenith tab. Set Zenith Position "Apply". Start Slew
    2. TheSky6
       1. Find "Zenith", Slew to next object position
16. Disable AutoHoming
    1. Autohome disconnected from ACSOM
    2. Switch "Auto Dome" disabled
    3. Front panel switch toggled from "Dome Track" to "Home"
17. Network Power Switch
    1. Connected to Network Power Switch via WiFi
       1. Logged in with default username and password
       2. password changed and recorded in "UMBC Observatory"> Documentation > "Passwords for Networked Items"
    2. Set IP of Network Power Switch to 130.85.72.157
       
       1. We prolly wanna static IP Roy Prouty 
    3. Set Network Power Switch Gateway to 130.85.72.129 for this subnet

ToDo

1. Make auto-dome wiki for How To
2. Determine theoretical FoV of finder scope setup
3. Experimentally confirm FoV of finder scope setup
4. Request static IP in PHYS pool ... perhaps 130.85.72.157, named obs-power.phys.umbc.edu
5. Investigate the difference between slewing to zenith on TheSky6 and slewing to zenith via DFM TCS
6. Determine how to calibrate/adjust finderscope in manual/ENGR Pkg
7. Figure out what Pointing Models are on Control Computer via manual

Notes

• LDB Cable Manual: https://www.icron.com/pdf/usb-3-0-spectra-3001-15-manual.pdf
• There are concerns about rotating the camera/instrument with all of the cables connected.
• What does "Start Trail" mean in DFM TCS?

Date/Time

20230112-T1630-20230112-T2230

People

Connor, Nathan, Gabriel, Jackson, Roy 

Spaces Occupied

PHYS 401, 433C, In-between, Dome

Goals

1. Develop plan for testing GAM operations
2. Execute said plan
3. Take good notes of said execution
4. Tidy Control Room (433C)

Log

1. We connected to the GAM with the three cables that connect to it
   
   1. There is a 3 prong power input jack but it is not connected to anything on either side
2. Tried sending commands to the GAM without doing anything else but that didn't work. We also couldn't get a GAM status update through DFMTCS.
   1. We turned off DFMTCS, turned off switch on GAM control module (The bigger black box connecting to the gam).
   2. Turned DFMTCS on again and then turned the switch back on, and now we could get GAM updates on DFMTCS.
3. Tried moving translating stage, but we noticed that one of the wires on the translating stage motor was disconnected. We will need to revisit this later.

1. Next we tested rotating mirror direction.
   
   1. After trying to rotate mirror to north and pressing apply nothing happens. After pressing "Update GAM Status" the south filter wheel starts rotating endlessly in ascending order. (Clockwise when viewed from the instrument mounting side)
   2. We are unable to stop it. Nothing that could be done in DFMTCS stops it. Shutting down DFMTCS doesn't stop this either.
      1. Removing the serial cable on the side did nothing.
      2. This means that the GAM motor control (probably) happens inside the black box and that just receives a command from the computer.(This is confirmed on the man721 manual on page 20)
      3. The endless rotation of the south filter wheel could be a result of a bad filter wheel position encoder or a bug
   3. One possible reason for this "miscommunication" between the TCS intended output and the actual output at the GAM (in this case the output is which motors are being driven) might be caused due to the wires being attached incorrectly to the GAM controller. There are 3 ports on the GAM controller that have cables connect to the GAM (P1, P2, P3). These wires all use the same type and size of jack so they could be connected to wrong ports. All of the motors used are similar, so if there is a signal intended to be sent to the translating stage movement but because of bad wiring it is sent to the south filter wheel, it could mean that the filter wheel rotates instead. This could also explain the south filter wheel not stopping its rotation, since the controller is trying to get output from the translating stage encoder.
      1. First way of diagnosing this would be to remove each of these cables at their port and see if all of the pins on the connector are filled. If they are not, we can check to see if there are unused pins on the jack as well. If the above is true and the pin layout on the connector and jack are different, then we can easily confirm that this is the issue by connecting each connector to the jack that matches their pin layout and then test the GAM. If none of this is the case or all of the pins are populated, then we have to do other tests.
      2. Another test for this hypothesis would be to try to replicate the endless rotation of the south filter wheel and then try to engage the encoder for the translating stage position. If this stops the rotation, then the possibility of the incorrect connection being the culprit is far more likely.
      3. Another test would be to fix the loose cable of the translating stage motor and try to issue the movement command again. If this makes the translating stage move, then we can assume that at least one of the connectors are connected to the correct jack.

1. Reconnecting the translating stage motor cable changed nothing.
2. P1 and P3 connector pins match the jacks. P2 connector matches its jack mostly. Pin 17 on jack exists, but it does not exist on the connector. We could not determine if it is broken or if it came like that from the factory.
3. Engaging the limit switch of the translating stage didn't stop the south filter wheel from going on and on endlessly.

All of these tests are done assuming that the culprit is not inside the GAM. This is because:

• The endless rotation of the south filter wheel could be caused by a faulty encoder circuit. This includes, but is not limited to:
  • Faulty relay
  • faulty wiring
  • faulty encoder
  • a combination of the above

Possible testing for the missing connector pin to see if it is an issue is to do a continuity test. This would require us to test every single combination of pins on both ends of the cable. This will take a long time and is very error prone due to the amount of pins...

After connecting everything again the DFMTCS software correctly reads the on-axis and south filter wheels positions. Trying to rotate the on-axis filter wheel rotates the motor but not the filter wheel

ToDo

Notes

Date: 20230111 1530-1730

Attendance: Gabriel, Eileen, Roy, Erik

Spaces Occupied: 401, 433C

Goals

1. Attach finder scope
2. Attach power box
3. GAM Cabling Discussion
4. Meetings on Weds? (Eileen/Roy)

Log

1. Attached finder scope attachment. Note, focus needs to be fixed with small screw on north side of finder scope. New assembly is heavy and will slowly pull attachment down. There is hardware that limits how far down the attachment can fall.
   1. Attachment to finder scope is possibly a hazard. DON'T BONK IT.
2. Attached power box plate and power box. Uncabled, but it is there next to finder scope.
3. We will likely not need to invent extension cables to test GAM motors. We will know more after Thursday motor tests
4. Gabriel/Erik/Roy worked to attach outdoor camera to atmospheric physics platform.
5. Eileen/Roy/Gabriel worked to attach instrument rotator to bottom plate of GAM-lite.

Left: FinderScope attachment

Middle: Network power switch mounted next to finder scope

Right: SBIG ST-4 Autoguider CPU mounted onto GAM-lite bottom plate along with instrument rotator

ToDo

1. Need to find solution for cables
2. Need to test tracking
3. Confirm GAM-lite plate places CMOS/attachment plate on-axis, w.r.t. focus: Need a clear sky
4. Determine focal range of DFM Scope to see if GAM lite is necessary (this would be good to know, but doesn't matter at this point)
5. Perform tracking sensitivity study with obs crew
6. FIND ALL THE CMOSs
7. Find cabinets for between fire extinguisher and red light to the right of the fire escape door

Notes

• Need to find solution for cables

Date: 20230110 1300-

Attendance: Connor, Nathan, Matt, Gabriel, Eileen, Roy, Erik

Spaces Occupied: 401, 433C, 306A, Machine Shop

Goals

1. Install GAM-lite
2. Attach small CMOS
3. Find CMOSs (3x Small, 2x Large)
4. Attach Autoguider

Log

1. Eileen/Roy met at 1300.
2. Met in 306A at 1330. Erik delivered GAM-lite
3. Moved to 401/433C.
4. Prepped DFM Scope for GAM-lite install
   1. Found screws
   2. Ladders
   3. Jack
5. Held up by misalignment between jack plate and North
6. Could not attach small CMOS to GAM-lite
   1. Adapter plate screws wouldn't allow CMOS adapter to screw in
7. All met Erik in PHYS machine shop
   1. Gabriel talked to Erik about "SCREW NUT Part# Kerk BF6008N" found on page G32-081A
      1. Part seems to be hard to find.
      2. Gabriel 3D printed a replacement, but this didn't work
      3. Gabriel ended up doing something really weird. But it works. We may want to engage with Erik to lathe a new part per the specs in engineering manual
   2. Erik is going to:
      1. Finish FinderScope attachment for digital pointing
      2. Drill two additional holes in the GAM-lite bottom plate for attaching the old SBIG ST-4 CPU (autoguider)
      3. Also drill four new holes for the instrument rotator
8. Back in 401/433C.
   1. Erik completed the two additional holes for the old SBIG ST-4 CPU (autoguider)
   2. Under Roy's direction, Nathan and Gabriel forced the screws onto the bottom GAM-lite plate around the adapter plate.
   3. The small CMOS was attached the the bottom plate of the GAM-lite.
9. Gabriel demonstrated that if the DFM Scope is too far from zenith, engaging the "HALT MOTORS" button allows the DFM Scope to fall.
   1. We're not sure if this is a bug or a feature
   2. Probably Onkar's fault.

ToDo

1. Confirm GAM-lite plate places CMOS/attachment plate on-axis, w.r.t. focus: Need a clear sky
2. Determine focal range of DFM Scope to see if GAM lite is necessary (this would be good to know, but doesn't matter at this point)
3. Perform tracking sensitivity study with obs crew
4. FIND ALL THE CMOSs

Notes

1. Connor has C8 Laser Spotters

Attendance (Open House): 27

Attendance (Observing Group): Tara, Matt, Gabriel, Roy, Azzan

Date & Time: 1/5/22 1700-2230.

Spaces Occupied: 401, Control Room, Dome

Achievements

1. cleaned up and prepped space (1700-1900) - tara & roy
2. displayed tara's current event slides 1900-1930
3. gave coherent talk on space 1930-2030 -roy
4. gave a mostly correct description of war(m) room operations -Matt 2030-2100
5. took 6-7 folks to the dome and showed the the primary mirror, secondary mirror and where the gam is supposed to go lol -tara 2030-2100
6. discussed GAM and need for good spectro-polarization measurements to help understand evolution of (bio)chemistry in early SS - roy 2030-2100
7. Chatted with attendees and closed-up

Notes/ToDo/Wishlist

1. Need to clean up control room.
2. Need to develop observation slideshow for OH nights
3. Small metal cart is annoying.
4. Need to figure out next steps with AstroPol

Attendance: Gabriel, David, Nathan

Date/Time: 1/3/2023, 14:00 - 14:25

Spaces Occupied: Control Room, Dome

Goals: Diagnose slow mirror door issue

LOG:

        In this blogpost we documented our attempt of diagnosing the culprit of the south mirror door opening and closing slower than the rest. We concluded that the problem lies either in the motor itself, the belt, the bearings or the pistons. 

We tested the gears by checking the tightness of the screws that fix the gears onto the motor's rotor pole (lack of a better word) and they were secured properly. The motor rpm is the same as the gear's rpm, so there is no slip there. 

We did notice that while the motor starts rotating at the same time as the other ones, the door lags behind - especially in the beginning of the movement. This means that the issue is in the piston. There is some slip in the piston assembly, we don't know what causes it though. We'll have to take it apart or replace it if it is beyond repair.

TO DO:

Repair or replace south mirror door piston.