Alpaca Benro Polaris V2.0 - First Look - Silvana Della Camera Photography

Overview of the Alpaca Benro Polaris V2.0

A new version of Alpaca Benro Polaris (ABP) was released this month, and it is impressive! It is easier to set up than V1.0; it has streamlined many steps, and the Benro Connect app is no longer required for the initial connection to the PC (or Mac). The developers created the Alpaca Pilot App, a new browser-based interface that controls the connection to the Benro Polaris and has many refined features to fine-tune the tracking. This means the browser-based interface can be run on a mobile device as well, allowing control of the Benro Polaris Astro using SkySafari Plus/Pro or Stellarium Plus. The Alpaca Pilot has a catalog built in, so it can be used as a standalone application. GOTO functions very well, and it is great to have a wide catalog of objects to slew to.

As Benro has snoozed on releasing updates to the Benro Polaris, ABP levels up the abilities of this already amazing tripod head to a telescope mount. The Benro Polaris is no longer constrained to the Benro Connect app for astro applications.

Connected to a computer, the Benro Polaris Astro becomes a proper telescope mount where it can utilize the software that big brother telescope mounts use. The deep space catalog is further expanded by using Stellarium or any astronomy application that uses ASCOM for telescope control, and the use of N.I.N.A. – Nighttime Imaging ‘N’ Astronomy tightens everything up even further. N.I.N.A. is a free astroimaging software that controls your camera. N.I.N.A. also opens up using plate-solving for alignment. Pulse guiding with PHD2 with a secondary camera is possible too!

Use ABP as basic or as complex as you wish. You decide. ABP opens up the world of astronomy applications for the Benro Polaris Astro.

What is the Alpaca Benro Polaris?

Alpaca Benro Polaris is an open-source ASCOM-based driver that uses REST API to control the Benro Polaris Astro. ASCOM stands for “Astronomy Common Object Model”. Alpaca uses the modern and open network protocols of HTTP and JSON for data transfer. Since ABP is ASCOM-based, it opens up the Benro Polaris Astro to communicate with most any astronomy software that communicates with telescopes using ASCOM drivers.

Alpaca Pilot

Using this application is straightforward. It is well organized and very intuitive to use. Once the Benro Polaris is connected, all you need is this app to surf the sky. Using N.I.N.A. and ASTAP opens up deep space astrophotography and plate-solving for accurate positioning of the Benro Polaris Astro.

Once the Benro Polaris completes the GOTO to Andromeda, tapping on the telescope coordinates in N.I.N.A. reads the coordinates from the Benro Polaris. This reflects the target that the Benro Polaris has in view.

Get your ABP

Download and install Alpaca Benro Polaris. The application is on GitHub. https://github.com/ogecko/alpaca-benro-polaris Page down to get to the links and installation instructions.

The instructions are clear and easy to follow. Take it step by step and don’t rush through. Check out the YouTube videos as well. They are very helpful.

Access Alpaca Pilot via your browser and look around. Get familiar with it. The Alpaca Pilot can be considered as the replacement for the Astro module on the Benro Connect app, albeit with more muscle and accuracy.

Download and install N.I.N.A. Once ABP is installed and the connection to the Benro Polaris is active, N.I.N.A. and any other software, such as Stellarium has access to the tripod head.

Adding a Mini PC to your setup lets you remotely control the Benro Polaris, either from your home or in the field.

So far, ABP has been installed on a desktop and a laptop. I’ve also used Alpaca Pilot on my mobile devices. In the next couple of weeks, I will be installing it on a Mini PC and will document and share the process in detail. I haven’t used it for imaging yet, but I will post my findings when I am able.

If you have a Benro Polaris Astro and are using it for astro photography, give ABP a try. If you are considering purchasing a Benro Polaris Astro and are interested in imaging the night sky, go for it. After 3 years, it remains a favorite tool in my photographic arsenal. ABP has further increased its already impressive abilities. Keep in mind that the Benro Connect app is still required for other photographic applications, but for astro, ABP can’t be beat.

The developers did an outstanding job on this application. It is fantastic that the amateur astronomy community discovered this wonderful tripod head.

ABP V2.0 truly made the Benro Polaris Astro my dream tripod head. I am delighted to have backed the ABP V2.0 Kickstarter project.

Clear skies!

What is the Benro Polaris?

Night Shades – A Guide to Photography after Dark

Sights Beyond the Spectrum – An Infrared Photography Handbook

Master the Benro Polaris: The Ultimate Handbook for Photographers and Astrophotographers