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NEOCP Machine monitors MPC NEOCP/PCCP, checks local astronomy software and simulates the observing workflow while only ASCOM simulators are available. All inputs are continuously saved in the application data folder.
The graph always shows 24 hours with the current time in the center. The lower time labels can be switched between UTC and station time. Station time is derived from the station name; if the name is unknown, geographic longitude is used as a fallback. The colors follow the usual solar-altitude ranges:
| Area | Sun altitude | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Day | above about -0.833 degrees | The Sun is above the apparent horizon. |
| Civil twilight | 0 to -6 degrees | The sky is still clearly bright. |
| Nautical twilight | -6 to -12 degrees | The horizon and bright stars can be visible at the same time. |
| Astronomical twilight | -12 to -18 degrees | The sky only becomes useful for faint objects. |
| Astronomical night | below -18 degrees | The darkest phase without moonlight. |
The scale marks full three-hour steps as 00h, 03h
and so on. Sunrise and sunset are shown as SR/SS
at the bottom of the graph, moonrise and moonset as MR/MS
at the top. The beginning and end of astronomical twilight appear as
AS/AE. If the Moon is above the horizon, the night area
is brightened according to the illuminated lunar fraction; the narrow bright bar
at the top marks moonlight in the visible time range.
Target planning uses MPC NEOCP and PCCP data. Limiting magnitude, minimum altitude and motion filters decide what remains visible. If Find_Orb is available, the app retrieves the observations for the object, starts the existing Find_Orb helper from the Tycho/MPC-Neo-Alert installation and imports the mean residual in arc seconds. For objects without usable observation files, a reproducible simulation value is still used so the workflow remains testable.
| Column | Explanation |
|---|---|
| # | Running number from the initial sort. It remains visible as the origin number even if the table is sorted by clicking another column. |
| Prio | Internal observing score. It combines residual in arc seconds, drop score, brightness bonus and a warning component for objects outside the configured limit. |
| Resid " | Residual in arc seconds. The source is Find_Orb where available, otherwise simulation. Green means inside the allowed field share, red outside it. |
| 3 sigma exp | Required exposure time for the configured sigma detection, scaled from limiting magnitude and reference time. |
| Usable field s | Time until the object crosses the configured usable field share. The percentage is set in the left configuration panel. |
| Tycho Stack | Shows whether three Tycho stacks with the configured subframe length and maximum frame count fit into the crossing time. |
| Drop | Estimate of how soon the object could drop out of NEOCP; the separate MPEC statistics are no longer shown in this interface. |
The Prov. tab shows only objects that disappeared since startup and were
assigned through the MPC ToConfirm_PrevDes index or an MPEC. If no
MPEC is listed, the app shows the alternate designation or MPC status; open
placeholders are not displayed.
Below the day/night graph is a live log with running work steps: MPC fetches, Find_Orb calculation, target planning, hardware diagnostics and FITS import. The view has horizontal and vertical scrollbars and can be cleared, saved or copied to the clipboard.
Every input on the left has hover help. The most important parameters are image-field width and height, residual factor, sigma threshold, simulated limiting magnitude, reference exposure time, usable field share and Tycho stack limits.
Configuration > Edit parameters opens a structured setup dialog with validation. The separate JSON editor remains available but saves only after Validate confirms complete and valid data.
The hover star chart starts in the fast view. Detail enables constellation lines, boundaries, deep-sky objects and Milky Way outlines. Label toggles deep-sky labels. Zoom + and Zoom - change field size, star count and star rendering. The altitude graph uses the currently propagated object position for each entry; moonlight brightens night segments depending on Moon altitude and phase. The altitude axis extends below the horizon so values are not visibly kinked by clipping.
Check web downloads reads versions.txt, checks download URLs and
compares local sizes and SHA256 hashes when release files are present. The Help menu
also contains the external modules, data sources and terms as a list.
With Load FITS, one or more FITS files from the instrument can be read. The app reads header data such as image size, binning, plate scale, field, rotation, aperture, focal length, exposure time and existing limiting-magnitude fields. If the files do not match the same instrument or binning, a warning is shown. The link FITS data determined opens a table with the extracted values.
ASCOM is detected through registry keys and driver lists. Tycho is searched in
typical installation paths. find_orbit is searched as fo.exe,
fo64.exe, find_orb.exe or an existing MPC-Neo-Alert helper.
If a component is present, the install button is disabled.
Tables use a monospaced font. Clicks on column headers sort only the visible table; this sorting is not saved when the program exits. Numbers are right-aligned.