---
title: 'Software Stacks & Community Tools'
url: 'https://casazza.net/Home/astronomy/my-software'
markdown: 'https://casazza.net/Home/astronomy/my-software.md'
date: '2026-10-29'
description: 'Software Stacks & Community Tools Software plays a vital role across all my observing, imaging, and community outreach efforts. My software ecosystem is divided into three functional stacks. My control panel behind ¼" red acrylic 1. Visual Observing Stack Target Logging & Charting: SkyT…'
taxonomy:
  category:
    - astronomy
  tag:
    - software
    - nina
    - pixinsight
    - csac
    - tonights-sky
    - star-hop
    - pifinder
---

# Software Stacks & Community Tools

Software plays a vital role across all my observing, imaging, and community outreach efforts. My software ecosystem is divided into three functional stacks.

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![SWatnight.jpg](https://casazza.net/Home/user/pages/02.astronomy/05.my-software/SWatnight.jpg)My control panel behind ¼" red acrylic

---

## 1. Visual Observing Stack

- **Target Logging & Charting:** **SkyTools 4** serves as my primary database for target selection and visual logging. For real-time sky maps, I use **Cartes du Ciel** and I am actively transitioning toward **KStars** due to CDC's stagnation.
- **Mount Control:** Custom **StarMaster ASCOM Driver** interfaced via a serial-to-Bluetooth wireless adapter for wireless go-to and tracking control.
- **Plate-Solving Hardware:** **PiFinder** standalone plate-solver for instant position verification at the eyepiece.

---

## 2. Astrophotography & Processing Stack

- **Deep-Sky Acquisition:** Driven primarily by **N.I.N.A.** for sequence execution, automated polar alignment, and focusing, paired with **ASTAP** and **PlateSolve3** for plate solving.
- **Guiding & Mount Control:** **PHD2** for auto-guiding, interfaced with **Green Swamp Software (GS Server)** for mount kinematics.
- **Solar Capture:** **FireCapture**, **IMPPG**, and **AutoStakkert!** for high-speed solar frame stack analysis.
- **Utilities:** **SharpCap** for sensor analisys.
- **Post-Processing:** **PixInsight** enhanced with the **RC-Astro plugin suite** (BlurXTerminator, StarXTerminator, NoiseXTerminator).

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!\[\[IMAGE PLACEHOLDER: Screenshots of Clear Sky Alarm Clock and Tonight's Sky web interfaces\]\]

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## 3. Community Web Applications & Freeware

I develop and host custom web applications designed to solve real-world observing challenges for the broader amateur astronomy community:

### [Clear Sky Alarm Clock (CSAC)](https://clearskyalarmclock.com)

Born out of my own desire never to miss a rare night of exceptional transparency and seeing. The tool monitors local weather model forecasts automatically and sends email-based alerts when clear sky conditions are predicted. Following the passing of Attilla Danko (creator of Clear Dark Sky / Clear Sky Charts), plans are underway to transition stewardship of this tool directly to the Clear Dark Sky team.

### [Tonight's Sky](https://tonightssky.com)

A custom astronomical ephemeris utility rewritten in 2024. Unlike standard planetarium tools that simply list object positions, *Tonight's Sky* calculates whether specific targets are actually observable through your specific telescope aperture under your local sky light-pollution conditions. It is a first step toward planning a night under the stars.

### [Star Hop](https://casazza.net/StarHop)

An interactive star-chart generation utility designed specifically for manual deep-sky visual hunting. It generates clean, step-by-step visual star-hopping paths between bright reference stars and faint target fields.

### [Astro Helper](https://casazza.net/Home/astronomy/astro-helper)

A beginner-focused target finder. Currently covering Messier and Caldwell objects, *Astro Helper* is staged for a full architectural rewrite that will integrate directly with *Tonight's Sky* and *Star Hop*.

### PiFinder Open-Source Contributions

As an active contributor to the open-source **PiFinder** project on GitHub, I write custom dataset loaders (including catalog intake scripts for the *Harris Globular Cluster Catalog* and *Lynga Open Cluster Catalog*) and am currently developing intake code for quasar datasets.

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## Navigation

- Parent: [Astronomy](https://casazza.net/Home/astronomy.md)
- Previous: [Astrophotography](https://casazza.net/Home/astronomy/astrophotography.md)
- Next: [Community & Equipment Stewardship](https://casazza.net/Home/astronomy/community-and-imagers.md)