How the Sky Memo S Works for Astrophotography
Due to the rotation of the Earth, stars are not stationary
poles of the Earth (Fig1). Thus, being very faint and constantly moving across the sky
impossible to be captured on photographs, unless the camera is able to track them steadily to
allow long exposure. Sky Memo S provides the solution. With the high precision motor and built-in
Polar Scope, Sky Memo S can be set to compensate exactly for the star movement by rotating
the camera in the direction opposite to that of the Earth (Fig 2). The result is, the celestial objects
appearing in the field of view of your camera do not move anymore and so, taking a picture with a
long exposure
sharp your night sky pictures can be with Sky Memo S. In addition, Sky Memo S is also capable
of tracking at solar and lunar speeds.
Introduction:
The Sky Memo S Body
1：Mode ： Mounting Platform
2：Mode ： Locking Knob
3：Polar ： Knurled Ring of Polar Scope
4：Battery Case Cover 16： Polar Scope
5：Polar Scope Cover 17： Date Graduation Circle
6：Mini ： T
7：RJ-12 6-pins 19： AAx4 Battery Case
8：DSLR Shutter Control Port 20： T
9：3-Position Slide Switch 21： T
10： Right Button and LED Indication 22： Polar Scope Calibration Screw
11：Left Button and LED Indication 23：Worm Gear Meshing
12： Clutch ： Socket for 3/8"
25： 1/4”
The
may vary
Polar Scope Illuminator - TPolar
Scope.
Fine-T- T
¼” thread screw on the
Sky Memo S.
fine-tuning pointing in two directions.
3/8” Ball Head - T
with 3/8” thread screw on the
Sky Memo S.
Equatorial Wedge
- TSky Memo S for
polar alignment. Offers higher accuracy and stability than a
standard photo tripod head.
Counterweight -
with 1kg counterweight.
1/4" to 3/8" Convert Screw - T
socket for 3/8" thread screw to the socket for 1/4" thread screw in
order to mount the
Sky Memo S to a standard quick release plate
of the tripod with 1/4" thread screw
DSLR Shutter Control Cable - TDSLR Shutter
Control Port of Sky Memo S to your DSLR's external shutter
control port. This allows Sky Memo S to directly control the
DSLR's shutter release with pre-programmed shutter interval.
Y
local resellers.
offer as optional items.
Preparation :
Setup T
Without T take a standard photo tripod or video tripod with a
3/8”
desired height to provide a stable support for your
Sky Memo S.
Assemble
Equatorial Wedge to the tripod as Fig 4.
With T T
tripod with T
legs at the desired height to provide a stable support for your Sky Memo
S as Fig 5.
Mount Sky Memo S:
With Equatorial W Make sure the 1/4" to 3/8" Convert Screw is not in the
3/8" threaded socket at the bottom side of the
Sky Memo S. If it is, use a Slot Screwdriver to
remove it. Mount the
Sky Memo S on
Stopper is facing forward. Then point the
Polar Scope
Northern Hemisphere observing) or South Pole (For Southern Hemisphere observing) (Fig 7).
Lastly complete the Polar Alignment process (Please see
Polar Alignment session for
reference).
With Tilt-head/ Ball-head: Make sure the 1/4" to 3/8" Convert
Screw Adapter
is in the 3/8" threaded socket at the bottom of the
Sky Memo S. If it is not, use an Slot Screwdriver to install it. Mount
the
Sky Memo S to the quick release plate on the tripod. Then point
the Polar Scope to the direction of the North Pole (For Northern
Hemisphere observing) or South Pole (For Southern Hemisphere
observing)
see
Polar session for reference).
Please DO NOT move the tripod or change the angle of Equatorial Wedge
tilt-head in order to keep the polar alignment. IF you did, please redo the polar
alignment process.
Mount The Imaging Equipment:
Now you can mount your imaging equipment according to your need, including the Shutter
Control Cable,
as the following figures showKenko T authorized
dealers to acquire the optional accessories as needed. During mounting, please DO NOT move
the tripod or change the angle of the
Equatorial Wedge or tilt-head in order to keep the polar
alignment.
For Astrophotography：
Sky Memo S +3/8” Ball Head
Note: Make sure the locking bolt of the Mounting Platform has locked on the indentation on the
side of the
3/8" Ball Head for better locking and support.
Sky Memo S + Fine-T
Counterweight + T
Sky Memo S + Dovetail + Dual Ball Heads +Dual Cameras + Shutter Control Cable:
Sky Memo S + Fine-T
Ball-Head + Camera+ T
For Time-Lapse Photography:
(For reference only: you can assemble very different configurations to create more interesting
time-lapse photography)
Horizontal Rotation Time-Lapse Photography:
V
Provide Power Source:
Sky Memo S allows two power source options. One is inserting 4
providing DC 5V through USB port (type mini-B). (Fig 15)
Start Using Sky Memo S
Quick Function Reference:
Mode Dial:
For power control and selection of pre-programmed modes.
3-Position Slide Switch: for selection of rotation direction and camera shutter interval.
Buttons: The
LEDs : The LEDs built-in buttons provide the lighting source in the dark and indicate the device
status such as low battery and motor error
Snap : This is a 2.5mm 3-segment stereo jack for connecting to a camera’
to control camera shutter interval.
After finishing the preparation steps, you can start to enjoy the
Sky Memo S. Its major functions
are described as follows:
Main Function: Sky Memo S has a user-friendly Mode Dial and 3-Position Slide Switch to
allow users easy selection of the pre-programmed movement pattern.
Sky
Memo S,
the two buttons give direct access to higher speed movement for quick positioning.
Mode Dial: Used to turn on/off power and select the desired modes shown in
Mode Index is pointing at OFF, the mount has no power
OFF mode, the power is turned on. The LED on the Mode Dial will light up to indicate the current
mode, and the LED on the buttons will light up, too. Meanwhile,
Sky Memo S will start tracking
at the constant speed corresponding to the mode selected (Please refer to table 1).
.
.
3-Position Slide Switch: Selects the rotation direction of the Sky Memo S and the camera
shutter interval. When the switch is slid to
N or TIMELAPSE, the Sky Memo S will rotate in
the astronomical tracking direction in the Northern Hemisphere, which is counter-clockwise
around the North Celestial Pole; when the switch is slid to
S, the mount will rotate in the
astronomical tracking direction in the Southern Hemisphere, which is clockwise around the South
Celestial Pole.
Right/Left Buttons: Used to rotate the Sky Memo S at the highest speed for easier
positioning towards the desired object. When the Right Button is pushed, the
Sky Memo S will
rotate at 12-time sidereal rate and in the same direction as when sliding the switch to
N or
TIMELAPSE; when Left Button is pushed, the Sky Memo S will rotate at 12-time sidereal rate
and in the same direction as when the switch is slid to
S;
SNAP (DSLR Shutter Control Port): Sky Memo S provides a camera shutter control
interface to control the shutter interval. The SNAP
trigger signal connects to the tip and base segments. By using the proper
Shutter Control
Cable
, the mount can control the camera's shutter release ( please refer to DSLR Shutter
Control Cable in the Optional
The Shutter interval period of every selected
mode has been pre-programmed. Please refer to T
Mode
Dial
is set to Mode and Slide Switch is set to N, the shutter interval period is 100
seconds, or 50 seconds if the
Slide Switch is set to TIMELAPSE (See
change is applied to the buttons, mode dial, or switch, the timer is reset and the selected shutter
interval period will restart from 0 sec.
Osc Range: T
Astrophotography applications,
Sky Memo S will reverse after reaching 360° rotation. That is, for
Mode and 0.5X, Sky Memo S will oscillate within a 360° range. For the other
modes, in order to provide more attractive scene while filming for time-lapse photography
time-lapse applications such as Mode 2X, 6X and 12X,
Sky Memo S will oscillate within
180°(See
For example, when the
Mode Dial is set at 6X and Slide Switch at N, the position where the
particular mode is entered will be the left boundary of the oscillation. That is, it will rotate to the
right first until it reaches 180°, then oscillates within this range (Fig 21 & 22) . If any button is
pushed, the position at which the button is released will become the new left boundary of the 180°
range. If the switch is set at
S, it will rotate to the left first until it reaches 180°, then reverse the
direction for another 180°, and repeat the cycle (Fig 21 & 22).
Auto-Guider: Sky Memo S
auto-guiding signal to provide more accurate celestial tracking for better quality of
astrophotography
autoguider with a ST
Mode . For other modes,
the auto-guiding signal has no effect.
USB Port: Sky Memo S contains a
support firmware upgrade. Please refer to
"Firmware Upgrade" on page 26 .
Motor Status Detection: If the
speed) over 5 seconds, in order to protect the motor and the mounted equipment,
Sky Memo S
will stop the motor and indicate "Motor Error" by flashing the LED on the buttons. Pushing buttons
or switching mode will restart the motor and restart the detection. Moreover
error 5% not the
Sky Memo S will
indicate "Motor Error" by flashing the LED on the buttons, but it will not apply any change to the
motor control.
LED Indication: Sky Memo S has LEDs behind the buttons to indicating the current status.
There are three different ways the LEDs will light up. If the LEDs don't light up, the
Sky Memo S
is not in working mode.
Normal Status: LED will light up continuously at low intensity
LED will light up at low intensity to provide light source in the dark when the motor status is normal
and the power level is normal.
W LEDs will blink at a 0.5-second rate in two cases:
1.
Firmware upgrading: When updating the firmware, LEDs on the Sky Memo S will blink
as a warning not to turn off power
2.
Battery low (The Sky Memo S supports
most
replace the batteries when it indicates low battery in order to protect the batteries from over
discharge. When using
battery low
Motor Error Status: LED will blink at a 3-times-per-second rate in two cases:
1.
Motor speed accuracy violation: The motor speed error is over 5%. If this keeps
happening, the user may need to check for overloading (Max load is 5kg) or low battery l
2.
Motor stall: the motor stalls over 5 seconds. May be caused by external interference.
Please check if the mount is blocked by an external force.
Polar Alignment:
Before starting with the polar alignment procedure, please review the following figure to get
familiar with the scales and dials of the Polar Scope .
Use the built-in Polar Scope to complete the polar alignment. First, remove the Polar Scope
Cap
and insert the Polar Scope Illuminator (Fig Power Dial to turn on the
power to illuminate the
Polar Scope , then keep rotating the Power Dial until reaching optimal
illumination (Calibrate the
Polar Scope as needed. Please refer to " Appendix Ⅰ:Calibrate
The Polar Scope").
For Observing in The Northern Hemisphere:
find Polaris (the brightest star near
Celestial Pole) Polar Scope
Equatorial Wedge or
tilt-head on the tripod. Use third party Polaris Finder application or
orientation of Polaris in the
Polar Scope by simply entering the date, time, longitude and latitude
of your observing location. Then move Polaris to that corresponding position in the Polar Scope
by using the fine-tuning movements of the
Equatorial Wedge or by moving the tilt-head on your
tripod(Fig
refer to the "
The Orientation of Polaris in The Polar Scope " in the following portion.
For Observing in The Southern Hemisphere: locate in the Polar Scope the 4 dim stars
(Around Polar Scope as
Fig 26). Align the orientation of
4
Equatorial Wedge or by moving the tilt-head of your tripod.
The Orientation of Polaris in The Polar Scope
As Polaris is not located exactly at the North Celestial Pole, we can see it orbiting the North
Celestial Pole in a Polar Scope . The large circle seen in the center of the pattern in the Polar
Scope is a representation of Polaris’
polar alignment process, it is necessary to determine the orientation of Polaris on the circle. We
can use the following 2 methods to get the orientation:
1. Locate both Polaris and Kochab in the sky near the North Celestial Pole.
of Kochab to Polaris is an approximation of the orientation of Polaris in the Polar Scope . For
example, if Kochab is at the 1
the 1
2. Use the built-in
Date Graduation Circle, Time Graduation Circle and Time Meridian
Indicator
to find the orientation of Polaris in the Polar Scope following the steps described below:
1. First, rotate the Wedge and adjust the latitude to bring Polaris within the field of view of the
Polar Scope.
2. Then rotate the
Date Graduation Circle to align Oct 31 to the 0 of the Time Graduation
Circle
and turn the Eyepiece/Mounting Platform to align the Time Meridian Indicator to the
0 of the
Time Meridian Circle
is directly below the
3.
please refer to "
Appendix I: Calibrate the Polar Scope"
4.
Adjust the Date Graduation Circle . Find out the difference in degree between your
observing site longitude and the central meridian of your time zone and determine if you are on the
east or the west side of the central meridian. Now
Date Graduation Circle
accordingly
Example: If you are located in Prince Rupert, Canada, your longitude is 130.32°W
meridian (STDM) for
relation to the STDM. T
5. Match the Date Graduation Circle with your observing time by turning the eyepiece/
Mounting Platform. Please
DO NOT rotate Date Graduation Circle directly at this step. For
example, if your
Daylight Time
nd
scale mark of
March is aligned with the “20” on the Time Graduation Circle , which represents 8:00pm(Fig 31).
6. Put Polaris at the 6 o'clock position in the FOV of the Polar cope to finish the polar alignment.
Example for
1. Sky Memo S according to your need. Then finish the polar
alignment.
2.
Shutter Control Cable and auto-guiding)
if needed.
3. Slide the 3-Position
Slide Switch to N if you are in Northern Hemisphere (Fig 32).
4. Rotate the
Mode Dial to Mode . The LED on the Mode Dial will light up Mode
. The LED in the buttons will light up, too. The
Sky Memo S will start tracking the celestial objects
at ， about
time, it will assume control of the camera by activating the camera’s shutter release function with
an interval period of 100 seconds (as if you are pushing on the shutter release button of the
camera for 99.5 seconds and not pushing for 0.5 second and pushing again for 99.5 seconds).
5. Y
Sky Memo S at the highest
times
object, release the button. The
Sky Memo S will continue celestial tracking and restart the shutter
interval period of 100 seconds.
Example for Time-Lapse Photography in Mode 12X:
1. Sky Memo S according to your need.
2.
Sky Memo S with the Shutter Control
Cable.
3. Slide the Slide Switch to position N. Rotate the Mode Dial to Mode 12X.
4. Sky Memo S will rotate firstly to the right with a speed of 2 hour per revolution until reaching
180° then oscillate within this 33). the same will assume control
camera
if you are pushing on the shutter release button of the camera for 1.5 seconds, and not pushing
for 0.5 seconds and pushing again for 1.5 seconds).
Appendix I
Calibrate The Polar Scope
Before using the Polar Scope for polar alignment, the Polar Scope itself must be calibrated
to ensure the pattern in the
Polar Scope is aligned to the mount’s R.A. axis.
steps will outline how to calibrate the
Polar Scope. Calibrating during daytime is
strongly recommended :
1. Choose a fixed object (the Polaris at night, or a faraway object in daytime); orient Sky
Memo S
to put the crosshair of the Polar Scope exactly on the chosen object.
2. Rotate the mount in R.A. axis for half a turn.
3. If the object remains exactly behind the crosshair in the
Polar Scope after the rotation,
then it means the
Polar Scope is aligned to the R.A. axis and no calibration is needed.
4. If, during rotation, you see the object wandering off, calibration is needed.
rotate the
Sky Memo S to find the point where the object is at the longest distance from the
crosshair center
using the 3 tiny adjustment screws on the side of the Polar Scope (Fig 34).
wrench is needed.
IMPORT
below
5. Repeat steps 1 to 4 a few times until the object remains at the center of the reticle when
rotating the mount in R.A. axis.
6. T
Date Graduation Circle to align Oct 31 to the 0 of the Time Graduation
Circle.
Then hold the Date Graduation Circle and turn the eyepiece/Mounting Platform to
align the
Time Meridian Indicator to the 0 of the T (Fig 36). Then,
when looking through the eyepiece, you should see the pattern aligned as shown in Fig 37. If the
pattern is oriented differently
Date
Graduation Circle
to align Oct 31 to the 0 of the Time Graduation Circle. Then hold it and
turn the eyepiece/mounting platform to orient the pattern in the position shown in Fig 36. Loosen
the
Time Meridian Indicator Calibration Screw and move the meridian indicator to align it
to the 0 of the
Time Meridian Circle without turning the Date Graduation Circle and
Eyepiece/Mounting Platform. T
through the eyepiece. Now the pattern should still be in the right position.
Note:
• When adjusting the
other two gently
• Do not over tighten the Polar Scope.
• Do not loosen one screw completely or loosen more than one screw at a time; otherwise,
the pattern plate in the
Polar Scope will be disengaged and further adjustment is impossible.
• If the pattern plate does disengage, remove the
Polar Scope’s eyepiece by turning the
Knurled Ring counterclockwise and then engage the pattern plate again.
• It is recommended to do this calibration at daytime, aiming at a point object (such as a distant
rooftop) because the delicate operation with the tiny
dark.
Appendix I I
Fine-T：
The Fine-T
the other direction (at 90°, DEC direction). Y
clutch knob. Y
by using the fine-tuning knob. Y
the dovetail and then mount two ball heads on the dovetail to carry two cameras or one camera
and another instrument. Y
use ball head at the other side. Y
Equatorial Wedge：
The
Equatorial Wedge is a device to adjust the latitude for polar alignment. Rotate the
Latitude
Sky Memo S indicated by the Latitude
Indicator
rotate to right or left horizontally
wedge is horizontal. The accuracy is 1°. When you install the
Mounting Plate on the Sky
Memo S
, Make sure the Stopper is facing forward as Fig 39 shows to avoid equipment
slippage, before you fasten the Locking Knob.
32
