Stellarium level 2

Stellarium software intermediate course

Intermediate Stellarium, level 2 (personal computer).

Part of the Stellarium Training Series.

Learn how to use the Stellarium planetarium software on your computer at a more complex level exploiting intermediate-level features.

Fee: Free to Members of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada.

 

Course Overview

Stellarium is a powerful planetarium application available for Windows, Macintosh, and Linux computers. The free software can be used to learn the sky and plan astronomical observing sessions. If logging observations, it be used to corroborate and confirm celestial objects seen. Educators, presenters, and outreach volunteers may use the software for demonstrations, presentations, and What's Up discussions.

oculars window in Stellarium (computer)

Participants will learn how to load additional catalogues, customise the application including setting up specific locations, load new comets, modify the toolbar, choose landscape textures, use stepping zooming, copy object information, configure eyepiece views, and slew a connected go-to telescope mount to a target. This will provide an amateur astronomer a deeper understanding of the Stellarium program.

Class sizes are limited. A waiting list will be kept if additional participants wish to sign up.

This 2-hour training course is not for the paid Stellarium app on smartphones or the Stellarium web app.

 

What You'll Learn

Upon successful completion of this course, you will be able to use Stellarium at an intermediate level.

  • customise Stellarium in various ways
  • perform time dragging and using alternate zoom techniques
  • set up for very specific locations on Earth
  • load new comets
  • take screen snaps and copy object information
  • connect to telescope mount
     

What You'll Receive

When you take the software training course, we will provide an electronic document, a PDF version of the Intermediate Stellarium Quick Reference Guide.

screen snap of a Stellarium quick reference guide

It covers intermediate features of the Stellarium software.

(Not exactly as shown.)

 

Outline

  • download additional star catalogues
  • customise object information display
  • perform time dragging
  • use stepped zooming
  • create custom locations
  • use pre-defined landscapes
  • load new comets
  • configure telescope and eyepiece profiles
  • take screen snaps
  • add more buttons to toolbar
  • copying object information
  • perform a telescope mount connection and slew (basic)
     

Prerequisites

As this is a level 2 or intermediate level, participants must be conversant with the basic features of Stellarium. See the level 1 introductory course outline for more info. Graduates of the level 1 course qualify automatically. Contact the instructor if you need assistance gauging your level.

You must have a Windows, Mac, Linux computer with the Stellarium for the desktop installed and working. https://stellarium.org/

This training is not for the paid Stellarium app on smartphones or the Stellarium web app.

You must have the Zoom meeting software installed and working. It is free. https://zoom.us/download

It is best, when participating in a computer training course, that you have two screens. Connect your laptop to an external monitor, if possible. If you do not have two computer screens, consider running the Zoom on your smartphone or tablet to monitor the instructor's shared screen.

It is assumed participants have some minimal knowledge of astronomy, the sky, celestial objects and planets. We will not teach astronomical concepts. This is tool training.

Open mind.

 

Who Should Attend

This course is for members of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada. It is one of the many benefits of membership.

If you are not a member of RASC, please join!

This course is intended for amateur astronomers who wish to gain a deeper knowledge of the Stellarium planetarium application. Basic experience and comfort with Stellarium is assumed.

If you are competent at the basics in Stellarium you're welcome to attend.

 

Ahead of the Course

Ensure Stellarium is working on your computer. 

Procure a second monitor for your computer if possible for the fullest, richest training experience. See our companion video on how to set up your monitors for the training.

Ensure the Zoom meeting software is working on your computer.

If you want to test driving your mount with Stellarium, have mount up and running, balanced, and ready to go. In other words, the mount should be operating as per normal after performing the normal start-up process which likely requires a one- or two-star alignment at a minimum. Have all the appropriate data cables and adapters at the ready.

 

Upcoming Course Dates

Courses will be scheduled on or near a full Moon. This popular course runs about every month.

  • Mon 31 Jul '23 - 7:30 PM MDT. Completed.
  • August...

Please register in advance for the software training course. 

You may use this registration form to express your interest and be added to the waiting list... 

The form will prompt you to indicate the next course date you're interested in. You may leave this as "next" to be added to a future course.

If available space is consumed, we will form a waiting list. If insufficent participants sign up, a course may be cancelled and participants offered the next available date. Minimum: 6. Space is limited to 10 to 15 online participants per session.

 

Completed Courses

For interest sake, these are the dates and times for the previously-run level 1 courses.

  • Mon 25 Jan 2021. 7:00 PM EST. Completed.
  • Mon 22 Mar 2021. 7:00 PM EDT. Completed.
  • Mon 3 May 2021. 7:00 PM EDT. Completed.
  • Mon 21 Jun 2021. 7:00 PM EDT. Completed.
  • Mon 19 Jul 2021. 7:00 PM EDT. Completed.
  • Mon 23 Aug 2021. 7:00 PM EDT. Completed.
  • Mon 20 Sep 2021. 7:00 PM EDT. Completed.
  • Mon 18 Oct 2021. Completed. 
  • Thu 17 Feb 2022. 7 PM EST. Completed.
  • Mon 21 Mar 2022. 7:30 PM MDT. Completed.
  • Thu 24 Mar 2022. 7:00 PM MDT. Completed.
  • Mon 18 Apr 2022. 7:00 PM EDT. Completed.
  • Mon 19 Sep 2022. 7:00 PM MDT. Completed.
  • Mon 3 Oct 2022. 7:00 PM MDT. Completed.
  • Thu 13 Oct 2022. CANCELLED.
  • Mon 12 Dec 2022. 7:00 PM EST. Completed.
  • Tue 24 Jan 2023, 7:00 PM EST. Completed.
  • Thu 9 Feb 2023, 7:30 PM MST - Cancelled.
  • Mon 27 Feb 2023, 7:30 PM MST. Completed.
  • Mon 13 Mar 2023, 7:30 PM MDT. Completed.
  • Thu 23 Mar 2023, 7:00 PM EDT. Completed.
  • Thu 13 Apr 2023, 7:00 PM EDT. Completed.
  • Thu 4 May 2023, time TBD. Cancelled.
  • Tue 9 May 2023, 7:30 PM MDT. Postponed.
  • Wed 7 Jun 2023, 7:30 PM MDT. Completed.

 

Any questions? Contact the administrator (software-training AT rasc DOT ca).

Return to the Stellarium Training Series hub.

Author: 
hotair@computer-ease.com
Last modified: 
Tuesday, August 1, 2023 - 2:09pm