Instruction Manual DS-2000 Series Reflecting and Refracting Telescopes MEADE.COM Refracting Telescopes use a large objective lens as their primary light-collecting element. Meade refractors, in all models and apertures, include achromatic (2-element) objective lenses in order to reduce or virtually eliminate the false color (chromatic aberration) that results in the telescopic image when light passes through a lens. Reflecting Telescopes use a concave primary mirror to collect light and form an image. In the Newtonian type of reflector, light is reflected by a small, flat secondary mirror to the side of the main tube for observation of the image. Eyepiece F 2-Element Objective Lens Refracting Telescope In the refracting telescope, light is collected by a 2-element objective lens and brought to a focus at F. Secondary Mirror Concave Mirror F Reflecting Telescope Eyepiece In contrast, the reflecting telescope uses a concave mirror for this purpose. CONTENTS WARNING! Never use a Meade® Telescope to look at the Sun! Looking at or near the Sun will cause instant and irreversible damage to your eye. Eye damage is often painless, so there is no warning to the observer that damage has occurred until it is too late. Do not point the telescope or its viewfinder at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope or its viewfinder as it is moving. Children should always have adult supervision while observing. CAUTION: Use care to install batteries as indicated by the battery compartment. Follow battery manufacturer's precautions. Do not install batteries backward or mix new and used batteries. Do not mix battery types. If these precautions are not followed, batteries may explode, catch fire, or leak. Improperly installed batteries void your Meade warranty. Quick-Start Guide .......................................................... 4 Telescope Features ...................................................... 7 Autostar Features .......................................................... 9 Getting Started ..............................................................11 Packing List ..............................................................11 How to Assemble Your Telescope ............................11 Red Dot Viewfinder ..................................................12 Choosing an Eyepiece ............................................13 The Barlow Lens ......................................................13 Observing ......................................................................14 Observing by Moving the Telescope Manually..........14 Terrestrial Observing ................................................14 Observing Using Autostar's Arrow Keys ..................14 Slew Speeds ............................................................15 Observe the Moon ....................................................15 Astronomical Observing............................................15 To Track an Object Automatically ..............................15 Alt/az Home Position ..........................................16 Moving Through Autostar's Menus ......................16 Initializing Autostar ..............................................16 Observe a Star Using Automatic Tracking ..........17 Easy Two-Star Alignment ..........................................17 Two-Star Alignment ..................................................19 One-Star Alignment ..................................................19 Go To Saturn ............................................................19 Take a Guided Tour ..................................................19 Basic Autostar Operation................................................20 Autostar Navigation Exercise ....................................20 Entering Numbers and Text into Autostar ................21 Navigating Autostar ..................................................21 Adjusting the Speed of a Scrolling Message ............21 Menus and Menu Options ..............................................22 Complete Autostar Menu Structure ..........................22 Object Menu..............................................................22 Event Menu ..............................................................23 Glossary Menu..........................................................24 Utilities Menu ............................................................24 Setup Menu ..............................................................25 Optional Accessories......................................................28 Caring for Your Telescope ..............................................29 Collimation ................................................................29 Meade Customer Service ........................................31 Specifications ............................................................32 Appendix A: Celestial Coordinates ................................34 Locating the Celestial Pole ......................................34 Appendix B: To Find Objects Not in the Database ........35 Appendix C: Observing Satellites ..................................36 Appendix D: Training the Drive ......................................37 Appendix E: Battery Replacement ................................38 Appendix F: How to Manually Set the Time and Date ..38 Appendix G: Electronic Controller (DS-2000EC Users Only)..39 Optional #494 Autostar for DS-2000EC Users ........40 Basic Astronomy ............................................................41 If you are anxious to use your DS Astro Telescope for the first time, before a thorough reading of this instruction manual, see the QUICK-START GUIDE on page 4. IMPORTANT NOTE: DS-2000EC users, see APPENDIX E, page 39, for information about your supplied Electronic Controller. Autostar information does not apply. DS-2000EC users may obtain the #494 Autostar handbox as an optional accessory. See page 40 for more information. ® The name "Meade," "AutoStar," and the Meade logo are trademarks registered with the U.S. Patent Office and in principal countries throughout the world. All rights reserved. TM "LPI" and "Tonight's Best" are trademarks of Meade Instruments Corporation. Patents: US 6,392,799 Other Patent Pending © 2005 Meade Instruments Corporation. 3 QUICK-START GUIDE 1 4&5 1. Open the tripod: Remove the tripod from the giftbox and stand vertically. Gently pull the legs apart to a fully open position. Turn the center tripod lock knob to secure and stabilize the tripod. Tighten to a firm feel. Caution: Make sure you loosen the tripod lock knob before collapsing the tripod at the end of your viewing session. 4. Remove 4 screws from the mounting arm shaft: Locate the four screws on the mounting shaft. Remove the screws using a "+" (Phillips head) screwdriver. Attach the cradle to the mounting arm: Line up the cradle with the mounting arm shaft. The cradle contains a molded "key" that fits into a slot on the shaft. Line up the key and the slot, and slide the cradle onto the shaft. This automatically lines up the mating threads on the cradle with the ones on the shaft. Replace the four screws you removed in step #4 into the mating threads as depicted in the diagram above. 5. 2 6 2. Attach the mounting arm assembly: Place the mounting arm assembly into the tripod base. Reach underneath and thread the mounting knob through the tripod base and into the mounting arm assembly. Tighten to a firm feel only, do not overtighten. While observing, you may wish to slightly loosen this knob and rotate the mounting arm assembly with attached optical tube (see step #6 below) around the horizontal axis. 6. 3 Attach and balance the optical tube: Replace the optical tube into the cradle ring. Tighten the cradle rings lock knob so that it holds the optical tube loosely; do not tighten the cradle ring lock knob at this point. Slide the tube back and forth until you find a position where the tube remains horizontal (i.e., without tipping up and down). Tighten the cradle rings lock knob to a firm feel. 7a D A 3. Remove the optical tube assembly from the cradle rings: The optical tube assembly is shipped with the cradle rings attached. The rings need to be removed so they can be attached to the mounting arm. Loosen the cradle lock knob until you can open the cradle rings. Remove the optical tube assembly from the cradle rings. F B C E 4 7b D 9 I F H E 7a. Attach the 90° diagonal prism (refractor models only, see inside front cover): Pull out to remove the plastic dust cover from the eyepiece holder (A). Slide the tube of the diagonal prism (B) into the telescope's eyepiece-holder and tighten the thumbscrews (C) to a firm feel only to secure. 7b. Insert the eyepiece: Remove the supplied 25mm or 26mm eyepiece (D) from its container and place it in the diagonal prism (refractor models only; see Fig. 7a) or directly into the eyepiece holder (reflector models only; see Fig. 7b). Tighten the thumbscrews (F) to a firm feel only. Remove the dust cover from the end of optical tube assembly. Use the focus knobs (E) to bring objects into focus. 9. Connect Autostar: Be certain that the power switch (H) on the computer control panel is in the OFF position. Plug the coil cord of the Autostar Controller into the HBX port (I). Turn on the computer panel; the red LED lights when power is supplied to the panel. Slew Speed: Fast . . . Medium . . . Slow 10 J K 8 G 10. Change Speeds: Press the key prompted by Autostar to accept the Sun warning. You can now use the Arrow keys (J) to move the telescope up, down, right, or left. To change one of the telescope's nine slew speeds, briefly press the SPEED/? key (K). Each press decreases the slew speed down one level, and then will cycle back to the fastest speed. 11 8. Insert batteries: Open the battery compartment by lifting the cover and pulling it away from the drive base. Remove the battery holder from the compartment and carefully lift the 9v connector out from the compartment. Whenever you replace the batteries, to safeguard the wires, disconnect the 9v connector (G) from the battery holder before removing the batteries. 11. Sight along the tube: Sight along the side of the telescope's main tube to locate an object. Practice using the Autostar Arrow keys to center an object in the telescope's field of view. If you wish to attach the red dot viewfinder, see page 12. If you wish to initialize Autostar, see page 16. If you wish to align the telescope, go to page 17. If you wish to use Autostar to GO TO Saturn, go to page 19. . Insert eight AA-size batteries into the battery holder, oriented as shown on the diagram on the battery slots of the battery holder. Connect the 9v connector plug to the battery holder. Carefully replace the battery holder back into the battery compartment. Replace the cover. 5 Features of the DS-2000 Series telescopes are virtually identical. Certain features of your telescope may look different than, or be positioned slightly different than the one pictured here, but the functionality of the features is the same. E F 9 12 (not visible) 11 Fig. 1d (Inset): Compass/Bubble Level. Fig. 1b (Inset): (E) Altitude Setting Circle; (F) Altitude Lock. 10 7 1. Focus Knob 2. Eyepiece Holder 3. 90° Diagonal Prism (refractors only) 4. Eyepiece Holder Thumbscrew 5. Eyepiece 6. Focus Lock Knob 7. Red Dot Viewfinder/Bracket 8. Red Dot Viewfinder Alignment Screws 9. Compass/Bubble Level 10. Altitude Setting Circle and Lock 11. Dew Shield 12. Dust Cap 13. Optical Tube 14. Cradle Ring Lock Knob 15. Cradle Ring 16. Mounting Arm and Shaft 17. Computer Control Panel 18. Accessory Tray Attachment Bolts 19. Accessory Tray 20. Tripod Lock Knob 21. Tripod Leg Locks 22. Tripod Legs 23. Tripod Base 24. Azimuth Setting Circle 25. Battery Compartment 26. Base Lock Knob 27. Inner Support Struts 8 13 14 15 16 17 24 25 6 5 4 3 2 23 22 27 26 1 20 21 19 18 A B C D Fig. 1: DS-2000 Series Telescope. Fig. 1c (Inset): Computer Control Panel. (A) Handbox port; (B) Power indicator light, (C) ON switch; (D) Auxiliary port. 6 TELESCOPE FEATURES Take the time to become acquainted with all of these controls before attempting observations through the telescope. ³ Focus Knob: Moves the telescope's focus drawtube in a finely-controlled motion to achieve precise image focus. Rotate the focus knob clockwise to focus on distant objects, and counterclockwise to focus on nearby objects. Eyepiece Holder: Holds the eyepiece in place. On refractor models, also holds the 90° diagonal prism in place. 90° Diagonal Prism (refractor models only): Holds the eyepiece upright for easy viewing. Results in an upright, but reversed viewing of land objects. Eyepiece Holder Thumbscrew: Tightens the eyepiece in place. Tighten to a firm feel only. Eyepiece: Place the supplied eyepiece into the eyepiece holder (reflector models only) or the 90° Diagonal Prism (refractor models only, 3, Fig. 1) and tighten in place with thumbscrew (4, Fig.1). Fo ...