Installing KStars and Ekos on Raspberry Pi 5

For astronomy enthusiasts and professionals alike, the Raspberry Pi 5 offers an affordable and versatile platform for exploring the night sky. By combining the power of the Raspberry Pi 5 with astronomy software like KStars and Ekos, you can transform your tiny computer into a sophisticated observatory control system. In this guide, we’ll walk you through the steps to install KStars and Ekos on your Raspberry Pi 5, allowing you to capture stunning images of celestial objects and delve into the wonders of the universe right from your backyard.

This article describes a procedure to install software on a Raspberry Pi 5 with 8G RAM running Raspberry Pi OS (64-bit) (Debian v.12 bookworm) booted directly from a 1TB NVMe SSD PCIe drive. This procedure may work for other configurations, so please do let us know if it does, or tell us about any issues you faced and your configuration. Thanks!

Prerequisites:

Before diving into the installation process, ensure you have the following:

• Raspberry Pi 5 board with Raspberry Pi OS (or any other compatible operating system) installed and configured.
• For the best possible performance, check out how to Turbocharge Your Raspberry Pi 5: Booting from NVMe SSD.
• Stable internet connection for downloading software packages.
• Basic familiarity with the Raspberry Pi environment, including how to open a terminal and run commands.

Step 1: Update Your Raspberry Pi 5

Start by ensuring your Raspberry Pi 5 is up to date. Open a terminal window and run the following commands:

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade 

This will update the package lists and upgrade any installed packages to their latest versions.

Step 2: Build INDI from Source Code

KStars, and EKOS, use the Instrument Neutral Distributed Interface (INDI) framework for controlling astronomical instruments. The prepackaged versions of KStars includes out of date versions of INDI, which creates issues for other software including PHD2. If you haven’t already done so, you should first follow our guide for installing INDI on a Raspberry Pi 5.

Step 3: Build KStars from Source Code

The prepackaged versions of KStars are out of date, and will not be compatible with other astronomy software that is available for the Raspberry Pi 5, so we will build the package from source code. First, we need to install some prerequisites:

sudo apt install build-essential cmake git libstellarsolver-dev libeigen3-dev libcfitsio-dev zlib1g-dev libindi-dev extra-cmake-modules libkf5plotting-dev libqt5svg5-dev libkf5xmlgui-dev libkf5kio-dev kinit-dev libkf5newstuff-dev libkf5doctools-dev libkf5notifications-dev qtdeclarative5-dev libkf5crash-dev gettext libnova-dev libgsl-dev libraw-dev libkf5notifyconfig-dev wcslib-dev libqt5websockets5-dev xplanet xplanet-images qt5keychain-dev libsecret-1-dev breeze-icon-theme libqt5datavisualization5-dev

Create a project directory into which the source will be downloaded:

mkdir ~/Projects
cd ~/Projects

Download the KStars source code from the official KStars repository on GitHub. We will use a shallow clone to speed things up and save space:

git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/KDE/kstars.git

This clones the very latest bleeding version, which at the time of writing was 3.7.3 Beta. If you prefer to use a stable version then you should check the source branches on the GitHub page and select the latest stable e.g.:

git clone -b stable-3.7.2 --depth 1 https://github.com/KDE/kstars.git

Build the code:

mkdir -p ~/Projects/kstars/tmp
cd ~/Projects/kstars/tmp
cmake -DCMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX=/usr -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=RelWithDebInfo ~/Projects/kstars
make -j4
sudo make install

During the make step you may see many KMessageBox deprecation warning messages. You can ignore these.

KStars is now installed.

Step 4: Launch KStars

Once the build is complete, you can launch KStars from the applications menu or in the terminal.

kstars

Step 5: Preparing Ekos

Ekos is an astrophotography and telescope control application that integrates seamlessly with KStars. The Ekos front-end is installed with KStars but relies on the INDI (Instrument Neutral Distributed Interface) framework, for telescope control and device communication. If you haven’t already done so, follow our guide Harnessing Astronomy with Raspberry Pi 5: Installing INDI for Stellar Exploration to get Ekos and INDI up and running and your Raspberry Pi 5:

Step 6: Explore the Night Sky

With KStars and Ekos installed and configured, you’re ready to embark on a journey through the cosmos. Use KStars to navigate the night sky, learn about celestial objects, and plan your observing sessions. When you’re ready to capture images or control your telescope, switch to Ekos and take advantage of its advanced features for astrophotography and observatory automation.

Conclusion:

By installing KStars and Ekos on your Raspberry Pi 5, you’ve transformed your tiny computer into a powerful tool for exploring the universe. Whether you’re a seasoned astronomer or a beginner with a passion for stargazing, KStars and Ekos provide the tools you need to unlock the mysteries of the cosmos. So grab your telescope, set up your Raspberry Pi 5, and prepare for an unforgettable journey through the night sky!