Astrofiler 1.2 Released!
New version introduces calibration, stacking, cloud archiving and more!
Hi there:
AstroFiler is a powerful application designed for astronomers and astrophotographers to efficiently manage, organize, and catalog their FITS image files. With an intuitive graphical interface, it provides tools for batch processing, file organization, metadata extraction, session analysis, and direct integration with smart telescopes for seamless data acquisition.
Astrofiler 1.2.0 is a update focused on calibration automation, stacking for thumbnails, FITS file compression, quality metrics, and safer repository/cloud workflows. All “batchable” workflows in the GUI have been implemented as command line utilities to facilitate automation. Detailed documentation is in the Github Wiki.
See: https://www.astrofiler.com
Highlights:
General
Vastly improved startup performance even on very large repositories and lots of performance tweaks - no need for paged view for images for example
Splash page on startup so you know the software is actually running
Comprehensive code refactoring to conform to Python standards. User transparent but very important for ease of future enhancement.
Advanced quality analysis
Real quantitative metrics per light frame: FWHM, eccentricity, HFR, SNR, star count, and image scale
Robust (SEP-based) star detection
Metrics stored in the database automatically (so they’re searchable and can drive workflows)
GUI tooltips if you hover over the session
Auto-Calibration system
Automated master bias/dark/flat creation and tracking
Batch light-frame calibration with correct correction order and proper provenance
Session-aware master selection (telescope/instrument/binning/temp/filter matching)
FITS headers updated with calibration history + master references (counts/checksums/timestamps)
Calibrate a single session from the Right Click context menu in the Sessions view
Stacking for Image Previews
Automated image stacking to create thumbnails displayed in Sessions menu
Image registration with Astroalign before stacking
Pretty Picture / Deepsky stacking with sigma clipping
Photometric safe stacking (star-registers frames, then combines via mean with no sigma clipping, and writes float32 FITS to preserve linear photometry) to support Photometry in version 1.3
Stack a single session from the Right Click context menu in the Sessions view
Cloud Sync (Google Cloud Storage)
Full GUI-driven sync with profiles (Complete / Backup / On-Demand) and analysis mode
Cloud URL tracking in the DB, improved matching, and hash-based duplicate prevention
Safer cleanup behavior: verification before deleting local files in backup-style workflows
Backup soft deleted files (e.g. raw images after calibration completed) and remove from repo
New tabbed configuration dialog (General / Cloud / Calibration / Smart Telescopes) to reduce clutter and make setup clearer
Smart/Remote telescope integration
Seestar and Dwarf III Support as per previous versions
iTelescope support (secure FTPS download + calibrated file discovery)
Stellarmate support (SMB access to pictures folder)
Improved telescope download workflows with metadata extraction and progress reporting
FITS handling and automation improvements
Lossless FITS compression support integrated into the ingest workflow (using FITS standard compression)
Smart Algorithm Selection: Automatic optimal compression based on FITS data type
RICE compression for 16-bit integer data (NINA compatible)
GZIP-2 compression for 32-bit floating-point data (78% reduction on real astronomical data)
Safe fallbacks for unknown data types
Expanded CLI tooling and more consistent logging for unattended runs
Technical Requirements
Python: 3.8 or higher (installer available for all platforms for easy setup)
Operating System: Windows 10+, Linux (Ubuntu 18.04+), macOS 10.14+
Memory: 4GB RAM minimum, 8GB+ recommended for large datasets
Storage: Variable (depends on FITS repository size)
Network Requirements (for Smart Telescope Features)
Local Network: Telescope and computer on same network segment
To install the new version do the following.
Prereqs
Install Git
Install Python 3.8+ (3.10/3.11 recommended)
Installation
For more information and install instructions see: https://github.com/gordtulloch/astrofiler-gui
Upgrading from Previous Versions - Foolproof Method
To install the new version if you are already using Astrofiler, do the following:
Move the astrofiler-gui folder to astrofiler-gui.bak
Install Astrofiler as above
Copy (don’t move it, so you have a backup!) astrofiler.db to the new astrofiler-gui folder BEFORE running Astrofiler, which will do an in place update of your database (no need to rescan)
After making sure everything works, remove the astrofiler-gui.bak
This application will make changes to your FITS files during operation - it will move them, rename them, add FITS header cards, and (if requested) compress your FITS data. Always ensure that you have a backup of your FITS repository before using Astrofiler. The author is not responsible for any data loss resulting from operation of this application and provides no warranties either express or implied as to the correct operation of this software. See License information here.