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Starlight Xpress Ultrastar PRO Handbook
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Starlight Xpress Ultrastar PRO Handbook

Imaging and guiding camera
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Ultrastar PRO handbook Issue 1, September 2020
Handbook for the SX 'Ultrastar PRO' Imaging
and Guiding Camera
Thank you for purchasing a Starlight Xpress 'Ultrastar PRO' camera. We hope that you will be very
pleased with the performance of this product. Please register your product and warranty at
https://forms.gle/tmsHEJfQG2bLJjr57
.
The Ultrastar PRO is a higher QE and larger area version of the very popular 'Superstar' and is a very
compact imaging camera, which is powered and operated via a single USB2.0 computer connection. It
also provides an opto-isolated output connection for direct control of most mounts, via their
'Autoguider' sockets. This output is compatible with the 'ST4' style of RJ12 connection and supplies 4
'pull down' direction lines and a common return. Alternatively, you may send the mount control
signals via a serial connection from the guider control computer. The Ultrastar PRO utilises a very
sensitive Sony 'ExView2' CCD (the ICX825AL) with an array of 1392 x 1040 pixels in a 'two-thirds-inch'
format. Although the chip is not cooled, it has a very low dark signal and very little readout noise, so it
can be used to guide on faint stars that are well beyond the reach of webcams and most CMOS chip
based cameras.

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Summary of Contents for Starlight Xpress Ultrastar PRO

  • Page 1 Please register your product and warranty at https://forms.gle/tmsHEJfQG2bLJjr57 The Ultrastar PRO is a higher QE and larger area version of the very popular ‘Superstar’ and is a very compact imaging camera, which is powered and operated via a single USB2.0 computer connection. It also provides an opto-isolated output connection for direct control of most mounts, via their ‘Autoguider’...
  • Page 2 Starlight Live which is a ‘Live-stacking’ software. Starlight Live allows you to use the Ultrastar PRO as an imaging camera by taking a series of short exposures (typically 10 sec or more) and then automatically stacking the images together to form an equivalent ‘long’...
  • Page 3 It is ideal for public outreach events, where the images can be seen ‘developing’ in real time, and for field use where the compact size of the Ultrastar PRO makes for easy transport and setup. The free software ‘Starlight Live’ (previously ‘Lodestar Live’) from Paul Shears, makes Live Viewing very easy and is highly recommended.
  • Page 4 Ultrastar PRO handbook Issue 1, September 2020 If stars are visible, Starlight Live will use these for registering the images together and the image clarity will steadily improve as the stack develops. The image brightness and contrast may be manipulated by adjusting the sliders provided.
  • Page 5 55 mm F1.8 SLR lenses can be bought for as little as 20 pounds on Ebay and work very well with the Ultrastar PRO. The correct focal distance for these lenses is about 45 mm, so you will need a C to lens thread adaptor of about 32 mm overall length to achieve focus.
  • Page 6 Various image processing functions are available from the menu bar and will be adequate for many general imaging purposes. Many other imaging programs will recognise and work with the Ultrastar PRO. Maxim DL5 and 6 will work, although the camera might appear as an ‘Unknown’ device in earlier versions of this software.
  • Page 7 Guiding with the Ultrastar PRO: For guiding, the Ultrastar PRO is generally used with a separate guide telescope, or via an off-axis guider assembly. It is designed to be inserted into a standard 1.25” focuser tube, but also has a 25.4mm ‘C’...
  • Page 8 Check that pressing the arrow buttons causes the star field to drift left, right, up and down, as appropriate. The LED at the back of the Ultrastar PRO should change colour when the buttons are pressed. If all is well, move onto the next step below:...
  • Page 9 Ultrastar PRO handbook Issue 1, September 2020 Once a good guide star has been found, press the ‘Stop’ button and then the ‘Select guide star’ button. You can now click the mouse arrow on the guide star and a green cross will appear, centred on the star (see above).
  • Page 10 Guiding with ‘PHD2’ A very simple-to-use guiding program is Stark Labs ‘PHD2’ (http://openphdguiding.org/). I recommend this as a good and simple way to guide with the Ultrastar PRO and I use it myself on most occasions. To guide with PHD2, first press the ‘camera’ icon and select the ‘Starlight SXV’ option for the camera.
  • Page 11 Ultrastar PRO handbook Issue 1, September 2020 Click the mouse on a suitable guide star in your last image and then select the ‘Target’ icon. PHD2 will set up a cursor and box on the guide star and proceed to ‘calibrate’ the mount. After about 1 minute...

  • Page 12: Conditions Of Guarantee

    Ultrastar PRO handbook Issue 1, September 2020 Ultrastar PRO maintenance The Ultrastar PRO head is designed for a long and reliable lifespan and needs very little maintenance to keep it in good working order. The only common issue is with dust particles which collect on the CCD window and can shade areas of the image field.