KStars 3.8.1 is Released

KStars v3.8.1 is released on 2026.02.092 for Windows, Linux, and MacOS.

For Linux users, it's highly recommended to use the official KStars Flatpak hosted at Flathub. You can install the stable flatpak or try out new features by downloading the KStars Nightly Flatpak for x86_64 and arm64 architectures.

This is mostly a bugfix release with nice improvements in debayering algorithms thanks to John Evan's work on this using OpenCV. Here are some highlights:

 Scheduler & Observatory Automation

• Enhanced weather-based scheduling with proper abort/resume during soft shutdown
• Improved preemptive shutdown with wakeup timers and better state management
• Safety monitor now continues monitoring even after complete shutdown
• Fixed jobs incorrectly marked as aborted when completed

Live Stacking Improvements

• Added debayering support for multiple cameras including Touptek
• Implemented hot/cold pixel removal
• Added XISF file format support with debayering
• General bayer processing refactoring
  
  
  
  
  

Meridian Flip & Alignment

• Fixed capture operation timeouts during meridian flips
• Added extensive logging for post-flip actions
• Improved rotator timeout handling - now aborts alignment instead of waiting indefinitely

Reliability & Error Handling

• More resilient INDI web manager connectivity checks with graceful failures
• Fixed ADU-based flat frame signature matching
• Improved filter offset handling for multi-camera setups
• Better dark frame diagnostic logging

Other Fixes

• Fixed comet position calculations for hyperbolic orbits (e.g., 3I/ATLAS)
• Improved artificial horizon importer to handle spaces in files
• Enhanced HIPS survey filtering and sorting with partial sky survey support. Support for many more catalogs like NSNS