External Control

AstroHelm can act as a telescope that external software connects to. Once linked, your planetarium or imaging application can display the current pointing position and send GoTo commands.

How It Works

AstroHelm presents itself as a telescope in four protocols: ASCOM (Alpaca), INDI, LX200, and Stellarium. External software can read the current coordinates and send GoTo targets. When a GoTo command arrives, AstroHelm displays the target on screen so you can manually slew to it using the onscreen directions.

Enabling the Server

Open Settings → External Control and toggle on the switch.
Note the IP address and port shown beneath the toggle. The IP address is the four numbers separated by dots before : (for example, 192.168.1.123), and the port is the four or five digits after :. Enter both in your client application.

Networking

All servers run over Wi-Fi. Your iPhone running AstroHelm (the server) and your device running external software (the client) must be on the same local network. A home network typically satisfies this requirement, but for field use it may not be practical.

There are a few alternatives:

Mobile Hotspot

If your observing site has cellular coverage, you can enable a mobile hotspot to put both devices on the same network.

Client hosts the hotspot, server connects to it: Proceed as usual.
Server hosts the hotspot, client connects to it: AstroHelm may not detect the correct IP address automatically. Try 172.20.10.1 first. If that does not work, on your client device go to Settings → Wi-Fi, tap the info icon next to the hotspot, and look for the Router address under the IPv4 section — that is the server’s IP address.

Portable Router

A portable router lets you run your own network in the field. Popular options include GL.iNet and UniFi.

Personal VPN

If both devices can reach the internet, a personal VPN lets them communicate across different networks. Tailscale is a popular free option.

Client Setup

SkySafari

SkySafari supports two modes: Go-to and Push-to. In Go-to mode you get slew controls (which have no effect on AstroHelm) and can send GoTo targets to AstroHelm. Push-to mode simply shows the current position. Use whichever mode suits your workflow — both read coordinates identically.

For Go-to mode, you can use ASCOM, INDI, or LX200 protocol.

For Push-to mode, create a telescope preset using “Other”. Choose either Equatorial Push-To or Alt-Az Push-To, depending on your mount. Choose Meade LX200 Classic as scope type.

Stellarium Mobile

Stellarium Mobile uses the LX200 protocol. Under Observation Tools, enable Telescope Control and enter the LX200 IP address and port, then toggle the link on. You should see the reticle appear.

Note that telescope control requires the Plus version of Stellarium Mobile. Despite the name, Stellarium Mobile does not support the Stellarium protocol — use LX200 instead.

Stellarium Desktop

In the plug-in manager, enable Telescope Control with Load at startup, then restart Stellarium. You can then add AstroHelm as a telescope using any protocol supported on your operating system.

To use the Stellarium protocol specifically, select External software or a remote computer.

Coordinate systems: the Stellarium protocol uses J2000 coordinates; all other protocols use JNow.

Troubleshooting

Client cannot connect

Confirm both devices are on the same Wi-Fi network. Some routers (especially public Wi-Fi) isolate clients - try disabling Client Isolation in your router settings.
Verify the port number in the client matches the one shown in AstroHelm’s External Control settings.
If your client supports multiple protocols, try switching to a different one.

Coordinates are wrong or stale

If your software has a refresh rate setting, try increasing it.