I just got a Seestar S50 this month to use for the Lunar eclipse while I was traveling. They just came out with the new firmware that makes it so you can do EQ mode. I just got done setting it up for EQ mode inside to see how it works. Will need to wait on some clear skies to give it a real test. This YouTube video covers the setup really well. Has anyone tried using EQ mode yet?
I went out last night to test out EQ mode on my new Seestar S50. I got the mount all setup and RA was way off when I tried the first test. Then I remembered the one thing that is a bit different is the mount needs to be turned opposite of the way it would be setup with a regular telescope. Once I got things reversed the setup went much better. The sky was almost completely overcast by then so i wasn’t sure it was going to work. I tried it out on NGC 2903 which is Mag 9. I ended up getting a 6 minute image even though I wasn’t seeing many stars.
When I was poking around looking for info on the just announced S30 Pro, I saw this video on using the S30 with an EQ wedge. Some good tips in it, the main one being you need a heavier, heftier tripod, or it may tip over!
At least the first half is worth watching if you’re considering trying the EQ mode with the Seestar.
Since we had clear skies and no wind I decided to give EQ mode another try. Got it all setup and calibrated. I figured I would see how well it would find the Moon. It worked perfectly.
After that I set it to 30 seconds and tried NGC 2903 to compare it to the 10 seconds I did with the almost totally overcast that I took the week before. Was getting too much light from the Moon being too close to that object. Instead I when to M81 and M82 which looked good after one frame. Here is it after 67 minutes.
I’m using my Manfrotto tripod which is pretty heavy duty and the legs can be opened wider for stability. I’m using a Sky-Watcher Star Adventurer Latitude EQ base.
It’s amazing what an itty bitty telescope can capture!
