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Flying WV
West Virginia University · Radio Astronomy Instrumentation Laboratory DSPIRA

Set up telescope software

Check compatibility before choosing an installation route or scheduling classroom observations.

Before you install

The existing telescope lessons describe Ubuntu and GNU Radio with a compatible SDR receiver. Check your computer, receiver model, and GNU Radio version together. Installation success alone does not verify receiver operation or calibration.

Generation checks pass on GNU Radio 3.10.9.2. All seven applications generate Python successfully with the DSPIRA blocks installed. Generated Python also passes syntax checks. Receiver operation and hardware calibration still need testing. Read the compatibility results and remaining checks before using these applications in class.

Email rail@wvu.edu with your operating system, GNU Radio version, and receiver model for setup guidance.

Prepare a single-horn spectrometer

  1. Review computer requirements.
  2. Choose an installation route appropriate for your computer.
  3. Install DSPIRA software, including GNU Radio dependencies, processing blocks, and applications.
  4. Open applications/spectrometry/calibrated-spectrometer.grc from your dspira-software folder.
  5. Set your receiver source block and follow the running instructions.

Current checkouts use calibrated-spectrometer.grc. Older videos and bootable images call this program spectrometer_w_cal.grc.

Older instructions may target GNU Radio 3.8. Do not assume they apply unchanged to newer releases.

Software download

Download DSPIRA software (ZIP)

Review compatibility before opening these files. Extract the ZIP and find the applications folder. The download includes the processing blocks and applications. Follow the installation steps before opening a flowgraph. Install the receiver’s GNU Radio plugin too. Osmocom and LimeSDR source blocks come from gr-osmosdr and gr-limesdr, respectively.

Choose where observations are saved

Current spectrometer and interferometer downloads save files in your home folder by default. To choose another folder, create it and set DSPIRA_OUTPUT_DIR before launching GNU Radio Companion:

mkdir -p "$HOME/dspira-data"
export DSPIRA_OUTPUT_DIR="$HOME/dspira-data"
gnuradio-companion

The folder must exist and be writable. Older downloaded applications may still contain someone else’s output path. Check the recording instructions before collecting data.

Process recorded observations

The software download includes a data-processing folder for calibration, mapping, CSV export, and power plots. Follow the Observations lesson for the analysis workflow. The processing guide lists Python dependencies and commands. These scripts can process saved files without GNU Radio installed.

Additional and experimental applications

The ZIP also contains two interferometers and four experimental lightning detectors. These are not required for a first single-horn observation.

Use DSP lesson examples for signal-processing exercises. Transient notebooks and data support advanced exploration.

Contribute or find older files

Application and DSPIRA block changes belong in dspira-software. Include software versions, receiver details, and test results.

The repository map explains older addresses and releases. For physical designs, use the hardware guide.