Instruction Manual ETX-80AT-TC MEADE.COM 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. Quick-Start Guide .......................................................... 4 Telescope Features ...................................................... 6 AutoStar® Features ........................................................10 Getting Started ..............................................................13 Parts Listing ..............................................................13 Telescope/Tripod Assembly ......................................13 Choosing an Eyepiece ..............................................14 Manual Operation of the Telescope w/out AutoStar..14 Manual Operation of the Telescope with AutoStar....15 Slew Speeds ............................................................15 Observe the Moon ....................................................16 To Track an Object Automatically ..............................16 Moving Through AutoStar's Menus ..........................16 Initializing AutoStar ..................................................16 Easy Alignment ........................................................18 Go To Saturn ............................................................18 Using the Guided Tour ..............................................19 AutoStar Menus ............................................................20 Menu Tree ................................................................20 AutoStar Operation ........................................................21 AutoStar Navigation Exercise ..................................21 Entering Data, Moving Through AutoStar's Menus ..22 Objects Menu ............................................................23 Event Menu ..............................................................24 Glossary Menu..........................................................24 Utilities Menu ............................................................24 Setup Menu ..............................................................25 Advanced AutoStar Operation ........................................28 Terrestrial Observing, Astronomical Observing ......28 Sidereal Rate ............................................................28 Advanced Alt/Az Alignment Methods........................28 Observing Satellites ..................................................29 Digital Photography with the ETX® ............................30 Optional Accessories......................................................32 Maintenance ..................................................................33 Troubleshooting ........................................................34 Specifications ................................................................35 Appendix A: Using AutoStar to Enter Coordinates ........36 Appendix B: Polar Alignment ..........................................37 Appendix C: Latitude Chart ............................................39 Appendix D: Training the Drive ......................................40 Appendix E: Basic Astronomy ........................................41 CAUTION: Use care to install batteries in the orientation indicated by illustration in the battery slots of the battery holder. Follow battery manufacturer's precautions. Do not install batteries backwards 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. If you are anxious to use your telescope for the first time, read the QUICK-START GUIDE on page 4. ® The name "Meade," the Meade logo, and "ETX" are trademarks registered with the U.S. Trademark and Patent Office and in principal countries throughout the world. All rights reserved. Patents: US 6,392,799 and other patents pending. © 2005 Meade Instruments Corporation. 3 QUICK-START GUIDE Setting up the Tripod 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. 2. Loosen the vertical lock and move the optical tube downward. Then, re-tighten the vertical lock. Step 1: Open tripod....and tighten lock ring. 3. Attach the telescope to the tripod: Line up the mounting holes on the telescope with the mounting holes on the base. Reach underneath and thread the mounting bolt through the tripod base and into the telescope base. Tighten to a firm feel only, do not overtighten. Note: If you wish to attach the accessory tray to the tripod, see page 13 for more information. It is not necessary to attach the tray for the quick start procedure. 4. Insert the eyepiece: Remove the supplied 25mm eyepiece from its container and slide it into the eyepiece holder. Tighten the thumbscrews to a firm feel only. Step 2: Loosen vertical lock to move optical tube. 5. Remove the dust cover from the end of optical tube assembly. 6. Use the focus knob to bring objects into focus. Your telescope has a very precise focus control. You may need to turn the focus knob 20 to 40 turns to focus your telescope for the first time. Always start observing using a low power eyepiece (such as a 25mm or 26mm eyepiece) to get a nice wide field of view. Later on you can change to high power, if so desired. But high powered eyepieces have a much narrower field of view and it's more difficult to locate objects using high powered eyepieces. Step 3: Attach telescope to tripod base using mounting bolts. Connect the AutoStar Handbox 7. Lift the battery cover. Gently remove the battery holder from the compartment so you don't accidentally pull out the wires attached to the holder. Insert 6 user-supplied "AA" batteries in the holder. Refer to the diagram on the holder to orient the batteries properly. Replace the holder back into the battery compartment and replace the lid. 8. Make sure that the computer control panel power switch is in the OFF position. Remove AutoStar from the packing materials and plug it into the HBX port. Flip the Power Switch on the computer control panel to the ON position. The copyright message lights on AutoStar's LCD display. 9. Press the key prompted by AutoStar to accept the Sun warning. Steps 4 and 6: Insert eyepiece and focus telescope. 4 Observe You can now use the AutoStar Arrow keys to move the telescope up, down, right, or left. To change the speed at which the telescope moves (sometimes called the slew speed), briefly press the Speed/? key. Each press decreases the slew speed down one level, and then will cycle back to the fastest speed. Sight along the side of the telescope's main tube to locate an object. At first, practice during the daytime. Use the AutoStar's Arrow keys to center on objects in the telescope's field of view. Observe trees, mountains, signs and so forth. Then when you're comfortable locating objects in this manner, try observing at night on the Moon, planets and stars. Note about the Flip Barlow: To use the built-in flip Barlow, rotate the the Flip Barlow control so that it is in the down position (see diagram, left). The Flip Barlow doubles the magnification of your eyepiece. If you use the Flip Barlow, you will need to turn the focus knob in a counterclockwise direction. You may have to turn the focus knob 20 or more turns to focus with the Barlow engaged. Step 7: Install batteries.. Step 8: Plug in handbox and turn on computer control panel. Sight along the top of the optical tube. Flip Barlow in down position. Note: Flip Barlow control in the "down" position. 5 TELESCOPE FEATURES g j i f b c d e 1) 1@ 1# 1% h 1$ 1! 1& 1^ 1. Eyepiece 2. Eyepiece holder thumbscrew 3. 90° Eyepiece holder 4. Rear Cell Port 5. Flip mirror control (inset) 6. Flip Barlow 7. Battery compartment 8. Fork arms 9. Optical tube 10. Objective lens cell 11. Base/Holes for tripod bolts 12. Dust cap 13. Vertical lock 14. Horizontal lock 15. Focus knob 16. Computer control panel A. HBX port B. LED C. On/Off D. AUX port 17. Base housing Fig. 1: The ETX-80AT Telescope. 6 1^ Fig. 1b : The computer control panel: A - HBX port; B - LED; C - On/Off; D - AUX port. 1* h Fig. 2: The AutoStar Handbox (see page 10). Fig. 1c: The battery compartment. 1( 2) 2@ 2# 2! 2$ 2% Fig. 3: The tripod. 18. AutoStar 19. Bubble level compass 20. Tripod base 21. Adjustable legs 22. Accessory tray 23. Locking knob 24. Leg braces 25. Leg locks 7 ETX: Your Personal Window to the Universe The Meade ETX-80AT is an extremely versatile, high-resolution telescope with features similar to those once available only with larger and more specialized imaging systems. With pushbutton controls, automatic tracking of celestial objects, and software downloading capability, an ETX telescope may be all the telescope ever required by many terrestrial and astronomical observers. Caution: Using products other than standard Meade accessories may cause damage to the telescope's internal electronics and may void the Meade warranty. Your ETX telescope reveals nature in an ever-expanding level of detail. Observe the feather structure of an eagle from 50 yards or study the rings of the planet Saturn from a distance of 800 million miles. Focus beyond the Solar System and observe majestic nebulae, ancient star clusters, remote galaxies, and even stars recently discovered to have planets orbiting about them. Meade ETX telescopes are instruments fully capable of growing with your interest and are ideal for both the casual observer and serious astronomer alike. b c d E F Eyepiece: Place the MA 25mm or other eyepiece into the 90° Eyepiece Holder (3, Fig. 1) and tighten in place with thumbscrew (2, Fig.1). Eyepiece Holder Thumbscrew: Secures the eyepiece. Tighten to a "firm feel" only. 90° Eyepiece Holder: Holds the eyepiece upright for easy viewing. Rear Cell Port: Attach any 35mm camera with a removable lens to this port using an optional #64ST T-Adapter. Flip Mirror Control: ETX telescopes include an internal mirror. With the flip mirror control in the "Up" position, light is diverted to the eyepiece in the 90° eyepiece holder (3, Fig. 1). With the flip mirror control in the down position, light is diverted through the rear cell port (4, Fig. 1) for use with a camera for photography. See Figs. 4a and 4b. Flip Barlow: Flip the switch to engage the Barlow. The Barlow doubles the magnification of your eyepiece. You may have to turn the focus knob several times to refocus. See page 14 for more information. Battery Compartment: Install batteries in this compartment. See Step #7, page 13 for more information. Fork Arms: Hold the optical tube in place. Optical Tube: The main optical component that gathers the light from distant objects and brings this light to a focus at the eyepiece. Movable Objective Lens Cell: This component contains the telescope's lenses. The focus knob (15, Fig. 1) moves the cell for precise image focus. Base/Bolt Hole for Tripod Bolts: Thread the tripod bolts up through the tripod and into the two holes in the base. Dust Cap: Unthread the dust cap counterclockwise from the front lens of the telescope before observing. Note: The dust cap should be replaced after each observing session and the power turned off to the telescope. Verify that any dew that might have collected during the observing session has evaporated before you replace the dust cap. G Fig. 4a: Flip mirror control in the "up" position. H I J 1) Fig. 4b: Flip mirror control in the "down" position. 1! 1@ 1# Vertical Lock: Turning the vertical lock counterclockwise unlocks the telescope, enabling it to be freely moved up and down. Turning the vertical lock clockwise (tighten to a "firm feel" only) prevents the telescope from being moved manually, but allows the vertical motor drive to operate for AutoStar operation. Caution: When loosening the vertical lock, be sure to hold onto the optical tube (9, Fig. 1). The weight of the objective lens could cause the tube to swing suddenly downward and damage the telescope. 1$ Horizontal Lock: Controls the manual horizontal rotation of the telescope. Turning the horizontal lock counterclockwise unlocks the telescope, allowing it to be freely rotated by hand side-to-side about the horizontal axis. Turning the horizontal lock clockwise prevents the telescope from being rotated manually, but allows the horizontal motor drive to operate 8 1% Focus Knob ...