SharpCap 4.1 has Been Released Out of Beta and includes updates to the solar and lunar mosaic tools. SharpCap is an easy-to-use and powerful astronomy camera capture tool that can be used with dedicated astronomy cameras, solar cameras, webcams and USB frame grabbers. A wide range of features makes SharpCap suitable for many types of astro-imaging including Planetary, Lunar, Solar, Deep Sky and EAA (Electronically Assisted Astronomy).
As the publisher notes, “It’s been quite a long time now since SharpCap 4.0 was released back in June 2021. Throughout 2021 and part of 2022 we added some new features to updates of SharpCap 4.0. That works well for adding small features and tweaking things here and there, but to add some really substantial features needed a new version that could be worked on and tested without breaking SharpCap 4.0. SharpCap 4.1 has been taken nearly a year in development to get it ready to release, although for at least six months there have been preview and beta versions available to download and try. I have to express my thanks to everyone who took the time to try out new features and report their successes (and failures) to me to help improve the software.”
SharpCap 4.1 contains the following new and improved features:
– A new Moon Mosaic planning tool (see sequencer menu – requires GOTO mount).
– Autofocus Improvements
– Python Scripting updated to Python 3.x
– Improvements to Feature Tracking
– Handle disconnected cameras that then reconnect (most camera types)
– Handle disconnected ASCOM hardware that is reconnectable or that works after a retry
– Add ASCOM switch support
– Add configurable settle times for mount and focuser
– Add on-camera filter wheel support for Atik and Moravian cameras
– Basler camera support updated to support Pylon 7.2.1 (or newer)
– Keyboard shortcuts for zoom-to-fit (CTRL+0) and zoom to 100% (CTRL+1)
– Flip image (after dark/flat) option to allow reorientation without needing new calibration files
– Option to recenter live stacking periodically (using plate solving) once the drift reaches a threshold level
– Pause and resume guiding automatically when SharpCap commands an ASCOM mount slew
– Add non-linear gradient background removal
– Option to mask over-exposed pixels to black (solar disk masking)
– Add horizontal zoom option to main histogram for close inspection around black level
– Improvements to GOTO Target/Co-ordinates tool including plate solving refinement and live stacking save/stop/restart
– Add Exposure/Gain shift control to quickly change exposure and gain while keeping image brightness constant (supports most cameras)
– Added a ‘Connect all hardware’ button to the toolbar
– More flexible image stretch in live stacking
– Additional color noise reduction option in live stacking
– Hot and cold pixel removal option as an alternative to using dark frames
– Improvements to display stretch, including toggle on/off and a continuous stretch adjustment mode
You can learn more here.
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