New in PixInsight 1.8.8-6: Gaia DR2 Local Database

Does the database allow to know which stars are variable stars?
So you can calculate the magnitude at that time of all variable stars in your photo based on all not variable stars in your photo.

Edit: I'm just thinking it should probably be better solved statistically like defining a kind of 'background' and then calculate the bigger magnitude deviations based on those that are statistically falling in the not variable star deviations.
 
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I'm going to chime in here as having problems getting PMCC to work now. I am getting the following:

GaiaDR2 shows up as being installed and I downloaded gdr2-1.0.1-01.xpsd putting it into a folder on an SSD drive.

What did I miss?


PhotometricColorCalibration: Processing view: masterLight_BINNING_1_FILTER_NoFilter_EXPTIME_240_integration

Writing swap files...

507.301 MiB/s



run -x -p="metadata_focal,400" -p="metadata_useFocal,true" -p="metadata_xpixsz,3.799999952316284" -p="metadata_ra,37.9810509838649" -p="metadata_dec,61.3454542763232" -p="metadata_epoch,2459161.547253599" -p="solver_vizierServer,http://cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr/" -p="solver_catalog,Gaia" -p="solver_catalogMode,2" -p="solver_magnitude,12" -p="solver_autoMagnitude,true" -p="solver_sensitivity,-1" -p="solver_noiseLayers,0" -p="solver_alignAlgorithm,0" -p="solver_distortionCorrection,false" -p="solver_distortedCorners,false" -p="solver_splineSmoothing,0.025" -p="solver_enableSimplifier,true" -p="solver_simplifierTolerance,0.25" -p="solver_simplifierRejectFraction,0.1" -p="solver_projection,0" -p="solver_showStars,false" -p="solver_showSimplifiedSurfaces,false" -p="solver_showDistortion,false" -p="solver_generateErrorImg,false" -p="solver_generateDistortModel,false" -p="solver_useDistortionModel,false" -p="solver_onlyOptimize,false" -p="solver_outSuffix," -p="solver_projectionOriginMode,0" -p="solver_useActive,false" -p="solver_files,C:/Users/DaleChamberlain/AppData/Local/Temp/PCC_T_PP3QKC2I88X3.xisf" -p="non_interactive,true" -p="isGlobalTarget,true" -p="isViewTarget,false" "C:/Program Files/PixInsight/src/scripts/AdP/ImageSolver.js"



Processing script file: C:/Program Files/PixInsight/src/scripts/AdP/ImageSolver.js

*** Error: *** Error: C:/Program Files/PixInsight/src/scripts/AdP/AstronomicalCatalogs.jsh, line 30: include file not found: pjsr/GaiaDR2.jsh

*** Error [001]: ReferenceError: __PJSR_AdpImageSolver_SuccessCount is not defined

*** PixInsight API Error: EvaluateScript(): Low-level API function error (0x0047): No such file

<* failed *>



run --execute-mode=auto "C:/Program Files/PixInsight/src/scripts/AdP/ImageSolver.js"

Thanks

Dale

Processing script file: C:/Program Files/PixInsight/src/scripts/AdP/ImageSolver.js

*** Error: *** Error: C:/Program Files/PixInsight/src/scripts/AdP/AstronomicalCatalogs.jsh, line 30: include file not found: pjsr/GaiaDR2.jsh
 
you need to go into the GaiaDR2 process, click the little wrench at the bottom, and then add the catalogs you downloaded.

rob
 
Ok it looks like I solved it by running the PixInsight repair. After that I applied all the updates, restarted PI, and added the Gaia database files (13 of them) and ran the GaiaDR2 process. After that I was able to use PMCC again!

Yea!

Dale
 
I am trying to do photometric color calibration of an old image and getting the following error. The error comes immediately after I click on "Apply". No processing happens. Which file is this referring to and why it could be missing? Any ideas?
Processing script file: C:/Program Files/PixInsight/src/scripts/AdP/ImageSolver.js
*** Error: *** Error: C:/Program Files/PixInsight/src/scripts/AdP/AstronomicalCatalogs.jsh, line 30: include file not found: pjsr/GaiaDR2.jsh
*** Error [001]: ReferenceError: __PJSR_AdpImageSolver_SuccessCount is not defined
*** PixInsight API Error: EvaluateScript(): Low-level API function error (0x0026): Invalid user interface object handle
<* failed *>

I tried the options given in this thread and it did not help. GAIA module appears in the list of installed modules and PixInsight says there are no more updates also. What am I missing? I am using Windows 10 (64 bit). Screenshot showing the GAIA module install status attached.
 

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According to the error message, the file C:\Program Files\PixInsight\include\pjsr\GaiaDR2.jsh is not there. Have a look in the directory. I have 1.8.8-6 on Win 10 and have it. I suppose that if you don't (no idea why), reinstalling PI will fix it.

C:\Program Files\PixInsight\include\pjsr>dir GaiaDR2.jsh
2020-10-18 05:30 PM 4,270 GaiaDR2.jsh
 
I visited the following page that gives instructions on download and install GAIA database and downloaded the first two files: https://pixinsight.com/forum/index....nsight-1-8-8-6-gaia-dr2-local-database.15385/

The above page says the following
Installing Local Gaia DR2 Database Files

The first step to use this important new feature in PixInsight is to install the required database files in XPSD format. Open the GaiaDR2 process from Process Explorer, where you'll find it under the StarCatalogs category:

However, I don't find StarCatalogs in Process Explorer. Please see the attachment for the list I see under Explorer. Looks like the instructions are either incomplete or I am missing something very elementary!
 

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There have been similar reports, see earlier in the thread, in particular message #8 from Juan which contains a workaround.
 
Could you, please, write magnitude range for Gaia data files? I don't know which one I need. There was a similar table somewhere but I can't find it.
 
Could you, please, write magnitude range for Gaia data files? I don't know which one I need. There was a similar table somewhere but I can't find it.

This is now fixed. The software distribution system gives now complete information on magnitude ranges and number of sources for each database file. Sorry for the delay in finishing this interface.
 
I'm trying to download the GEDR3 folders. I have a rather slow internet, I guess, and see download speeds from your at a max of about 1MB/s. Before I can get even one catalog file down, 5 of 6 times I'm logged off the system. How can I prevent this?
 
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By "system" you mean the PI software distribution web site?

One workaround until others give better solutions: modern browsers can resume a file transfer so if you don't delete the partially downloaded file, you should be able to continue downloading it.

EDIT: you can also keep your login session active by opening a different browser tab to the same site and refreshing it periodically.
 
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I am in the process of downloading the files... :oops:

All screenshots are blurred :( - Totally unreadable !
I don't know if they are necessary to understand the installation, then the use of these files...
Does anyone have the same problem?
Thank you for your help.
La Cebra (the Zebra :))

(Translation with DeepL)
 
Blurry images in a web page are the consequence of a very slow network connection - the web server provides a low-resolution version of the image as a placeholder, so the layout of the page is correct. The high resolution version should be automatically downloaded later, but if you're downloading the Gaia files in the meantime, the connection will be even slower, so it may take even longer. As a possible workaround, you can right-click the image and open it in a separate tab - this might open the high resolution version.
 
I'm confused. I installed the EDR3 databases and it shows and works from Image plate Solver Script.

Should it be an option in Photometric Color Calibration? I saw it wasn't there, then read some that implied it now works there. I don't see a database server that looks like it.

I appear to be current at 1.8.8-7 Windows Pro x 64.

I should also note that PCC works well for me with the remote databases, was curious if it's faster with this. But maybe my real question is -- is that the benefit of this work? Everyone got excited about the feature, but I did not really understand why. Non-internet off-line work?
 
Should it be an option in Photometric Color Calibration?

Open the new APASS tool and configure it (wrench icon) to use the APASS DR10 database. Do the same with the Gaia tool and Gaia EDR3. The rest is fully automatic in PCC (just make sure you have the automatic catalog and automatic limit magnitude options checked for plate solving and photometry.

But maybe my real question is -- is that the benefit of this work?

The main benefits are:

- Extremely fast and efficient database access. Milliseconds instead of minutes.

- No dependency on online service availability.

- Adaptive, optimal limit magnitude calculations for astrometry and photometry, thanks to fast database access. This is impossible with online database access.

- Direct access to the latest versions of each catalog: Gaia EDR3 and APASS DR10. EDR3 is still not implemented to use an online Vizier service in the ImageSolver script. The APASS DR10 catalog in not available through Vizier.
 
Thank you. I missed the APASS tool. It all seems to work, PCC still took 12 minutes, but not sure what it was before, it's one of the "set it and go do something else" jobs. Seems to spend most time on "validating reference stars" and MMT.

But no matter, it works, was just trying to see if I was missing anything. Would be nice if these sort of setup things were just all part of the install; for example I have no idea now what to do to make sure this stays current.
 
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