Star mask: selecting stars by size?

[Howard]

Hi:

I'm looking for a way to select stars from a star mask according to the star size, in order to build a separate mask for only those stars in a certain range of sizes. I can do this to some extent by adjusting the parameters in the StarMask dialog by trial and error, but a more direct means of selecting by size would be very convenient. For example, one often needs to process "fatter" stars separately, in order to reduce their halos, and one needs different settings in MorphologicalTransformation in order to erode stars of different sizes.

Many thanks for any suggestions!

Howard.

[marekc]

Hi Howard (and everyone),

I agree completely! I share your desire, and have been dreaming of this for a long time. I think it would be *wonderful* if we could click on some stars, and by doing so, tell PI `please select stars like this one'.

Like you, I commonly find it necessary to process the `fatter' stars separately from the stars that, say, a default StarMask would select. I've never successfully been able to make a `fat stars' StarMask for a second round of star-shrinking. I would dearly love to be able to do that, since I have a small-aperture telescope with a big PSF, thus producing `big' stars.

In my dream, the StarMask tool would have an option marked `Click here to build your star mask by clicking on *example stars*, rather than by manipulating all these numbers and sliders whose names don't mean very much to the average user'.

- Marek