Welcome to Telescope - a terminal/console program for the amateur astronomer.
Note: Version 1.0 is a complete rewrite based on the rcurses library
This application can help structure your telescopes and eyepieces. It will calculate properties of your scopes and EPs. Scope+EP combination properties are also calculated.
The top panel lists your telescopes and the lower panel shows the eyepieces.
Here are the navigation keys and what they do:
| Key | Meaning |
|---|---|
| t | Add telescope (name,app,fl[,notes]) |
| e | Add eyepiece (name,fl,afov[,notes]) |
| ENTER | Edit selected |
| TAB | Switch panels |
| UP/DOWN | Move cursor |
| Shift-UP | Move item up |
| Shift-DOWN | Move item down |
| HOME/END | Jump to start/end |
| o | Toggle order by Telescope APP and Eyepiece FL |
| SPACE | Tag/untag |
| u | Untag all |
| A | Tag all (bulk operation) |
| Ctrl-o | Create observation log with tagged equipment |
| x | Export tagged items to CSV |
| X | Export all items to JSON |
| v | Show version information |
| D | Delete item |
| r | Refresh all panes |
| q/Q | Quit (save/no save) |
| ? | Help |
Telescope and eyepiece data is saved in the file '.telescope' in your home directory. The app now supports:
- 📝 Notes field: Add optional notes to telescopes and eyepieces
- 📤 Export functionality: Export tagged items to CSV or all items to JSON
- 🏷️ Bulk operations: Tag/untag all items at once with 'A'/'u' keys
- 🎨 Enhanced UI: Color-coded background highlights for optimal eyepiece ranges
- 💾 Automatic backups: Your data is automatically backed up (configurable)
- ⚙️ Configuration file: Customize colors and settings via
~/.telescope_config - ✅ Input validation: Improved error handling and validation
- 📦 Version checking: Press 'v' to check for updates from RubyGems
Create a file ~/.telescope_config to customize colors and settings. See .telescope_config_example for available options.
You can install telescope by simply coloning this repo and put the file telescope in your "bin" directory. Or you can simply do gem install telescope-term.
After installation, fire up the program and press '?' to display the help text.
| Abbreviation | Meaning |
|---|---|
| APP | Apperature (in millimeters) |
| FL | Focal Length (in millimeters) |
| F/? | Focal ratio (FL/APP) |
| <MAG | Maximum magnitude visible |
| xEYE | Light gathering compared to the human eye |
| MINx | Minimum usable magnification (may be lower for refractors) |
| MAXx | Maximum usable magnification |
| SEP-R | Minimum separation, Rayleigh limit |
| SEP-D | Minimum separation, Dawes limit |
| *FLD | Recommended eyepiece for star fields |
| GLXY | Recommended eyepiece for galaxies and nebulae |
| PLNT | Recommended eyepiece for planets and globular clusters |
| DBL* | Recommended eyepiece for planet details and double stars |
| >2*< | Recommended eyepiece for tight double stars |
| MOON | Minimum feature resolved on the Moon (in meters) |
| SUN | Minimum feature resolved on the Sun (in kilometers) |
| Abbreviation | Meaning |
|---|---|
| FL | Focal Length (in millimeters) |
| AFOV | Apparent Field Of View |
| MAGX | Magnification (with that telescope) |
| TFOV° | True Field Of View (deg/min/sec) |
| PPL | Exit pupil (in millimeters) |
| 2blw | Magnification with that telescope and a 2x Barlow lens |
| tfov | True Field Of View with the 2x Barlow lens |
| ppl | Exit pupil with the 2x Barlow lens |
