Process overview - abstract

Process overview - abstract

Acquire field images - Reference - Target

Extract magnitudesChoose

plot

Quick peek targetlightcurve with

raw target instrumental magnitudes

Reduce-Transforms-Color index-Extinction

Convert target field to standard magnitudes

Plot target lightcurve with standardmagnitudes

Calibrate images

Gather more lightcurvephase data to fill-out

the curves entire phaseEnd

Start

Entire lightcurve phase

obtained ?yes

no

PhotoRed

MPO Canopus

Process overview – package based

Acquire field images - Target - Comparisons - Object

Reduce - Target-Color index-Extinction

Acquire field images - Reference - Color Index - Extinction

Extract reference magnitudes

Reduce - Reference-Transforms-Color index-Extinction



Chooseplot


raw target instrumental magnitudes

Calibrate images

Extract targetmagnitudes

Calibrate images

import import

Start

Acquire images – two alternative workflows

High color index reference field – V,R,C Landolt,

Henden

High-low extinction

reference field – V,R,C Landolt

Continuous target field –

V or C, V preferred

High color index reference field – V,R,C Landolt,

Henden

Continuous target field –

V, R, C

Low extinction “reference” field

– V,R,C

“High” extinction “reference” field

– V,R,C

Basic hi-low method

Continuous VRC method

<2º

<2º

Best comparison star in target

field


field

PhotoRed reduction coefficients set from acquired images

High color index reference field – V,R,C

Landolt, Henden

High-low extinction reference field – V,R,C Landolt

Continuous target field – V

or C, V preferred

Basic hi-low method

<2º


field

Transforms

First-Order All Sky

First-Order Comps

Color Index (Comps/Target)

Comps Standard Mags

Target Standard

Mags

PhotoRed reduction coefficients set from acquired images

Transforms

First-Order All Sky

First-Order Comps

Color Index (Comps/Target)

Comps Standard Mags

Target Standard

Mags

High color index reference field – V,R,C

Landolt, Henden

Continuous target field – V,

R, C

Low extinction “reference” field –

V,R,C

“High” extinction “reference” field –

V,R,C

Continuous VRC method

<2º


field

Process – overview – Three methods to convert to standard magnitudes

Only one of the three methods – the basic “rigorous” method is graphed here, using only the basic “high-low” imaging method.

PhotoRedReduce - Target

-Color index-Extinction

Extract reference magnitudes



Calibrate images

Basic rigorous - can use

in all cases

Binzel - use where comp stars

of same color index are in target field

Quick Mags- use for

long-period AAVSO variables

Report to MPO Center

Report to AAVSO

Extract target field image data

MPO Canopus



Calibrate images

ReferenceField imagelow-high in V,R and C

View raw comparison

plots

Choose other comparison

stars or reshoot session

Targetfield image

in V and/or C

Extract data

(Lightcurve wizard)

Makeobservations

*.FF2 files

View raw comparison

plots

Comparison stars

variable?

Choose other comparison

stars or reshoot session

yes

no

Continue – import data to PhotoRed


raw target instrumental magnitudesor

Save image ofcomp stars &

note best comp star

Choose bestcomparison star

Extract reference field data - reduce transform coefficients

PhotoRed

Acquire field images - Reference - Color index - Extinction


Calibrate images


Reference field image

high color-indexExtract data

(Photometry wizard)

Makeobservation*.obs files

View transforms

plot

Comparison stars

plot bad?

yes

no

Reduce - Reference-Transforms-Color index

Reduce - ReferenceTransformsColor index

Deselect outliers

View errorsplot

Transform error plot bad?

yes

no

Continue – To set rough extinction

Reduce - ReferenceErrors

Deselect outliers

Set transform coefficients

Extract reference field data - reduce rough extinction coefficients

PhotoRed

Acquire field images - Reference - Color index - Extinction


Calibrate images


Reference field imagehigh-low extinction

Extract data

(Photometry wizard)

Makeobservation*.obs files

View extinction

plot

Extinctionplot bad?

yes

Continue – To set target extinction

Reduce - Reference-Transforms-Color index

Reduce - ReferenceExtinction

“First Order – All Sky”

Deselect outliers

Set rough extinction

coefficients

no

PhotoRedMPO Canopus

Reduce target field – fine-tune extinction (modified Hardie)



Importtarget field data from

MPO Canopus

import

Makeobservation

*.obs file

Make special single group table

Store special observation

*.obs file

Reimportoriginal target field data fromMPO Canopus

View extinction

plot

Extinctionplot bad?

yes

noReduce – Target Extinction

“First-Order Comps”

Deselect outliers

Continue – To set target

color index coefficients

Set target fineextinction

coefficients

Note on best comp star in target field

Use only 1 - best of 5 possible

comp stars

PhotoRedMPO Canopus

Reduce target field – set color index coefficients



import

View color index

plot

Color indexplot bad?

yes

noReduce – Target color index

“Color-index (Comps/Target)”

Deselect outliers

Continue – To set standard

magnitudes

Set targetcolor indexcoefficients

Original target field data fromMPO Canopus

PhotoRed

Reduce target field – standard magnitudes of comparison stars




Coefficients in Reductions

dialogue

Target field -stored special

observation*.obs file

Convert target comp stars to

standard magnitudes“Comps Standard Mags”

Coefficients in Reductions

dialogue

Target field -original

observation*.obs file

Convert target to

standard magnitudes“Target Standard Mags”

Makestandard mag*.FF2 archive

file

Continue – To plot lightcurve

Save the Reductions tab

coefficients

PhotoRed MPO Canopus

Plot lightcurve



import

Standard mag*.FF2

File from PhotoRed

Importstandard mag

target field data from PhotoRed to MPO Session

Plot rawtarget magnitudes(Julian Day scale)

Plot refinedtarget magnitudes

with aligned phases(phase scale)

Multiplesession

dataExtract choose

sessions to plot

Print/savealigned lightcurve

plotEstimate

periodBest periodestimate?

yes

no

MPO Canopus

Acquire more images until lightcurve phase is filled-out



End

Entire lightcurve phase

obtained ?

yes

noGather more lightcurve

phase data to fill-outthe curve’s entire phase

Print/savealigned lightcurve

plot

Find nextopportunity to Image missing phase segment

with time-of-minimum

calculator

Identifymissing

phase portions

Data for entire phase plotted?

yes

no

End

To start – acquire more images

Get Julian Date of minimum

point

Documents

Process overview - abstract