I did a second communication session with the WaterFeeler2 PanCam today after letting the battery recharge. During the session, i downloaded the green channel for the medium resolution panorama and tested the nameplate LED.
Medium resolution Panorama (greyscale)
The image is a bit noisy because it was done without "stacking" (averaging multiple images), and i currently only have the green channel downloaded. With a couple more sessions during the next few days, we should be able to get the full color version.
Medium resolution Panorama (colorized)
Using the full color thumbnail image of the same panorama i got in the first session (launch event), i was able to colorize the greyscale panorama. I did this by scaling up the thumbnail and overlaying the greyscale image with a bit of transparency. It's not perfect, but it shows neatly a lot of detail with aproximate colors.
Thumbnail resolution LED test
The nameplate LED seems to work. This will be an experiment to attract insects during the night for a photoshoot.
Battery charging
It seems the battery pretty much charged up completely and the controller switched to a floating charge. Ok, sure, i've used up most of the gains during the second PanCam session, but it's the thought that counts...
Anyway, this new hacked together solar panel seems to to a much better job that the old (but nicer looking) one.
Even though the panel is not in direct sunlight anymore, we still get a little bit of charging before nightfall. We will see over the next few days (and hopefully "weeks" or "months") how this plays out, i'm much more confident that we will be able to top up the battery on a regular basis.
I'm not sure how well the power system will handle overcast sky or days when it's constantly raining, but at least on sunny days we should get enough charge for a couple of hours worth of PanCam session without digging too deep into our reserves. |
