BigSky Planner Version 18 Build 4

What's New

BigSky Planner Version 18 build 4 supersedes the earlier Version 18 build 1 package. It keeps the Version 18 planning workflow and adds clean target startup, one-step date-change protection, and corrected planner insertion resequencing: the app opens with no selected targets unless the user reloads a saved plan, changing the observing date can save and clear, clear without saving, or cancel, and a newly checked target is inserted into the existing planner chain by first-visible order. Planner rows still auto-populate as a visibility-based target chain: each target ends when the next starts, and the final target ends at the earlier of its visible card end or the capture-window end.

Updates:

Home timing now receives the saved default telescope name and timing policy.
App start clears selected targets and planner rows unless the user explicitly reloads a saved plan from Planner.
Home and Weather date changes now use one confirmation gate that can save the current plan, clear it without saving, or cancel the date change.
After a confirmed date change, the current target/planner selection is cleared so the next night starts clean.
Adding another checked target after returning from Planner resequences the current chain into first-visible order.
Current iPhone location is used first for telescope initialization and stop-tracking calculations.
All Vaonis smart telescopes use the calibrated Vespera II Singularity field window.
Default telescope save prompts can return directly to Home Initialization Time.
Planner target chains auto-populate from the ordered target list, with target end times becoming the next target start.
Weather Setup can optionally use a Weather Underground PWS station ID for current observations while Open-Meteo fills unsupported forecast data.
GPS-captured locations can resolve the coordinate back into address fields when iOS supplies a placemark.
In-app Help, online manuals, PDF manuals, QA checklist, release notes, and the iOS wire diagram were refreshed.

Fixes:

Hestia is removed from smart telescope setup because it is a phone accessory, not a true smart telescope.
Older saved Hestia records are cleaned from local telescope storage.
Telescope page observation-location card now lists only the location name.
Home timing no longer briefly fills from the saved location while waiting for iPhone GPS timing.
Target database updates now show the large-dataset warning before the download starts.
Checked and planned targets stay available when returning to Targets, changing filters, or switching database/type choices during the active planning session.
Stale selected targets from a previous launch no longer seed a new plan before the user loads one.
Planner reports pad ALT values to two digits for cleaner preview, share, PDF, print, and Quick Ref output.
Vaonis timing documentation no longer describes the calibration as Vespera-II-only behavior.

Revision Details

Telescope Timing

Vaonis: shared calibrated Vespera II Singularity window, including the practical display offsets tested against observed Vaonis behavior.
Unistellar: visible-star orientation estimate.
ZWO Seestar: GoTo readiness estimate.
Celestron: conservative plate-solving readiness estimate.
DWARFLAB and unconfirmed models: visible-star readiness estimate.

Planning And Field Workflow Carried Forward From Version 18

Future-night planning from setup and Home.
Common Databases filters for curated object families.
Star and multiple-star target support in the bundled local catalog.
Multiple Clear Sky azimuth/altitude openings.
Mixed object-type plans without losing checked targets.
Target end-time propagation into the next target start time.
Planner Fill Gaps suggestions with Sample preview.
Quick Ref preview/export for short field use.
Updated in-app Help and manual screenshots.

Planner Chain Logic

The first target uses its selected or first usable start time.
Each non-final target end time is the next target start time.
When the user edits a target end time, that end becomes the next visible target start and the remaining chain ripples forward.
The final target ends at its visible card end or the capture-window end, whichever comes first.
First-available target times still help sort candidates, but they no longer overwrite an already built user chain.

Weather, Location, And Database Updates

Weather Underground PWS can be selected as an optional current-observation source by station ID.
Open-Meteo remains the fallback source for unsupported cloud and forecast rows.
GPS location capture can fill address fields from iOS reverse geocoding.
Target database updates warn before starting because the dataset may be large.