SQM

This page contains continuously updated data from a Unihedron SQM-LE Sky Quality Meter. The charts below were generated with SQM Reader Pro software and are uploaded to the website as jpeg files via FTP every 15 minutes. Each of these data points represents an average of three meter readings, one taken every five minutes. The meter measures the night sky in Magnitude per Square Arc Second (Mag/Sq Arcsec). This figure is then used to calculate a theoretical Naked Eye Limiting Magnitude figure (NELM). Data from the SQM-LE is distributed to Unihedron’s Database of Sky Quality Meter Readings. The SQM-LE is attached to my integrated PVC pipe weather station stand and is mounted in a waterproof plumbing enclosure. The eye of the meter is aligned with a hole that has been cut in the enclosure and covered with a square piece of silicone sealed acrylic. Ethernet cable and the power supply cable are routed from meter through the PVC pipe and into a standard grey electrical box. A WRT54GL Linksys router running DD-WRT in repeater bridge mode is housed in the electrical box along with a power strip connected to an outdoor extension cord that is plugged into an electrical outlet on the deck.