Study Name
Every study has a Study Name field at the top of its configuration area. The name you enter identifies the study in the Studies list on the left of the main window, so a descriptive name makes it easy to tell your studies apart when a workspace holds several.
Ephemeris Settings
The Ephemeris Settings anchor every calculation a study performs. They combine a Location, which drives the time zone used for all dates and times, with the Reference System, which defines the coordinate framework the positions are measured in.
Date Range
The Date Range panel bounds the span of time a study scans for events. When you generate events, the study searches only between the start and end dates you set here.
Ephemeris Presets
An ephemeris preset stores a complete set of Ephemeris Settings, the location and the Reference System, under a name you choose. Applying a preset reconfigures those settings in one step, so you can switch between working setups without adjusting each dropdown.
Natal Data
Transit studies compare moving bodies against a fixed reference point in time. The Natal Data panel anchors the study to that reference by letting you choose a saved natal record and adjust its date and time.
Bodies Selection List
Most studies include a checkbox list of celestial bodies. Checking a body includes it in the study; unchecking it leaves it out. The list is how you tell a study which planets, points, and other bodies to examine.
Bodies List Presets
A bodies preset is a saved set of body selections you can reapply to any bodies list with a couple of clicks. Presets save you from re-checking the same bodies each time you build a similar study.
Orb Settings
Orb Settings control how much tolerance a study allows when it decides whether bodies are close enough to count as an event. Depending on the study type, you may see a Transit Orb, an Aspect Orb, or both. Each orb is measured in degrees.
Aspects Table
The Aspects table is an editable numeric table of cycle angles, in degrees, that you define yourself. When you generate events, the study records an event each time the cycle angle between two bodies matches a listed value exactly. There is no orb on these values: an event fires only on an exact cycle-angle match.
Hotspot Degrees Table
The Hotspot Degrees table is an editable numeric table of fixed zodiac longitudes, in degrees, that you want a study to watch. These values are the critical degrees, or hotspots, the study checks each moving body against.
Arcs Table
The Arcs table is an editable numeric table of arc values, in degrees, used by the Mundane Arcs study. When you generate events, the study records an event each time a body has traveled a whole-number multiple of one of the listed arcs.
Numeric Table Presets
A numeric table preset is a saved set of values you can reload into a numeric table with a couple of clicks. The same preset commands work on all three of Aquila's numeric tables:
Event Type Selection
Some studies can produce more than one kind of event. On those studies an Event Type dropdown lets you narrow generation to a single subtype instead of finding every kind at once. For example, a stations study can find retrograde stations, direct stations, or both.
Selectable Types List
Some studies let you choose which categories of events to include through a checkbox list of event types. Unlike the bodies list, this list selects kinds of events rather than celestial bodies. It appears in two forms:
Event Filter Editor
The Event Filter Editor lets you attach an optional filter to a study so that only the events you care about are kept. You write a filter as a boolean expression in C#, compile it to check that it is valid, and then generate events. The filter is entirely optional: a study with no filter keeps every event it finds.
Filter Script Presets
A filter script preset stores a filter expression under a name you choose, so you can reapply a favorite filter to any study without retyping it. Presets are handy for expressions you reuse often, such as a retrograde check or a sign filter.