Instruction Manual ETX-90AT Astro Telescope ETX-105AT Astro Telescope ETX-125AT Astro Telescope CONTENTS WARNING! Never use a Meade ETX Astro 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 in the orientation indicated by illustration in the battery slots of the battery compartment. 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 pages 4 and 5. ® The name "Meade," "ETX," "Autostar" and the Meade logo are trademarks registered with the U.S. Patent Office and in principal countries throughout the world. Patents: US 6,304,376 US 6,392,799 US 6,563,636 D 422,610 Patent Pending © 2004 Meade Instruments Corporation. Quick-Start Guide .......................................................... 4 Telescope Features ...................................................... 6 Autostar Features .......................................................... 9 Getting Started ..............................................................12 Parts Listing ..............................................................12 How to Assemble Your Telescope & Tripod ..............12 Attaching and Using the Viewfinder ..........................13 Focusing and Aligning the Viewfinder ......................14 Choosing an Eyepiece ..............................................15 Observing ......................................................................16 Observing by Moving the Telescope Manually ........16 Terrestrial Observing ................................................16 Observing Using Autostar's Arrow Keys ..................16 Slew Speeds ............................................................17 Astronomical Observing, Observe the Moon ............17 To Track an Object Automatically..............................17 Moving Through Autostar's Menus......................17 Initializing Autostar ..............................................18 Easy (Two-Star) Align ..........................................18 Observe a Star Using Automatic Tracking ..........20 Go To Saturn ............................................................20 Using the Guided Tour ..............................................21 Basic Autostar Operation................................................22 Autostar Navigation Exercise ....................................22 Entering Data, Navigating Autostar ..........................23 Autostar Menus ............................................................24 Menu Tree ................................................................24 Objects Menu ............................................................25 Event Menu, Glossary Menu ....................................26 Utilities Menu ............................................................27 Setup Menu ..............................................................28 Advanced Autostar Features ..........................................31 Adding Observing Sites ............................................31 Finding Objects Not in the Database ........................32 Observing Satellites ..................................................32 Create Your Own Guided Tour..................................33 Landmarks ................................................................36 Identify ......................................................................37 Advanced Alt/Az Alignment Methods ........................38 Browse ......................................................................39 Photography ..................................................................40 Photography with Autostar Suite ..............................42 Optional Accessories ......................................................43 Maintenance ..................................................................45 Troubleshooting ......................................................46 Specifications ................................................................48 Appendix A: Equatorial (Polar) Alignment ......................51 Equatorial Alignment, Celestial Coordinates ............51 Polar Mounting with #884 Deluxe Field Tripod ........51 Equatorial Mounting Procedure ................................52 To Track a Star When Polar Mounted ......................52 Autostar Polar Alignment Modes ..............................53 Locating the Celestial Pole ......................................53 Setting Circles ..........................................................54 Appendix B: Latitude Chart ............................................55 Appendix C: Training the Drive ......................................56 Appendix D: Basic Astronomy ........................................57 QUICK-START GUIDE This Quick Start Guide demonstrates how to install the batteries and eyepiece, and how to observe using the Autostar Arrow keys. If you wish to try out Autostar's "Go To" capabilities, check out the list of page references at the bottom of the following page. B 2 Remove the ETX telescope from its packaging and place it on a sturdy surface. Place the ETX on its side and remove the battery compartment cover (A) from the underside of the drive base. Insert eight (user-supplied) AA-size batteries into the battery compartment (B) oriented as shown in the battery compartment. Replace the cover and return the telescope to an upright position (if you wish to attach the telescope to the deluxe field tripod, see page 12). ® ...and the other end of the coiled cord into the coiled cord port at the bottom of Autostar handbox (H), as shown above. C Tighten (to a "firm feel" only, do not overtighten) the vertical lock (I) and the horizontal lock (J). See page 7 and 8 for more information. Place the 26mm eyepiece (C) into the eyepiece holder on the telescope and tighten the attachment thumbscrew (D) to a "firm feel" only. See page 7, for more information. Remove the dust cover (E) from the end of the telescope tube. D Flip the Power Switch (F) on the computer control panel to the ON position. A copyright message lights on Autostar's LCD display, followed by a warning not to look at the Sun. Press the Autostar key prompted by the message when you are done reading. Make sure that the computer control panel power switch (F) is in the OFF position. Remove the Autostar handbox and the coiled cord from the packing materials. Plug one end of the cord into the HBX port (G). ® A "Getting Started" message displays. Press ENTER to skip this message. See pages 9 to 11 for more information about Autostar's keys. 4 Enter Key Scroll Up Key Scroll Down Key Make sure that the flip mirror control (K) is in the "Up" position, as shown the diagram above. Keep pressing the ENTER key until "Country/State" appears on the display. (Ignore the prompts requesting "Date" and "Time" for now ­ these functions will be explained later). When "Country/States" displays, press either one of the SCROLL KEYS to cycle through the choices on the list. When your state or country appears on the list, press ENTER. "Cities" displays. Using the SCROLL KEYS, cycle through the list of cities and press ENTER when the city closest to you displays. Finally "Telescope Models" displays. Using the SCROLL KEYS, cycle through the list of telescope models and press ENTER when your model displays. The display now displays "Setup: Align." See page 19 for more information. If Autostar does not requests the Country/State, City and Telescope Model information, use the "Telescope Model" and "Site" options in the Setup menu to change this information. See pages 28, 29 and 31 for more information. Arrow Keys Arrow Keys Sight along the side of the telescope's main tube to locate an object. If you wish to learn how to attach and align the telescope's viewfinder, see pages 13 to 14. Use the telescope's focus knob (L) to bring the object into focus. Number Keys You can now use the ARROW KEYS to slew (move) the telescope up, down, right or left. Practice using the ARROW KEYS to center objects in the eyepiece. To change the speed at which the telescope moves (known as the "slew" speed) press a NUMBER KEY from 1 through 9. 1 is the slowest speed and 9 is the fastest. If you wish to observe using Autostar's databases, see: Page 19 to learn how to perform an Easy Alignment Page 20 to "Go To" Saturn" Page 21 to learn about Guided Tours Pages 22 to 39 to learn more about Autostar's menus 5 TELESCOPE FEATURES 18 1 2 3 4 5 Features of the ETX-90AT, ETX-105AT, and ETX-125AT are identical, with the exception of the size of optical tube and the type of viewfinder. 17 19 16 (on left fork arm) 6 15 14 7 13 11 8 9 10 12 Fig. 1: The ETX-90AT Telescope. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Eyepiece Viewfinder Holder Thumbscrew 90° Eyepiece Holder Optical Tube Vertical Lock Fork Arms Focus Knob Horizontal Lock Computer Control Panel A. ON/OFF Switch B. Auxiliary Ports (2) C. Handbox Port D. 12v E. LED 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 Base Housing Battery Compartment (bottom of base) Right Ascension (R.A.)/ Horizontal Setting Circle Flip-Mirror Control Knobs Photo Port Declination (Dec.)/Vertical Setting Circle Viewfinder Alignment Screws Viewfinder Alignment Bracket Dust Cap E B C D A B Fig. 2 (Inset): Computer Control Panel. (A) On/Off switch; (B) Auxiliary ports; (C) Handbox port; (D) 12v connector; (E) Power indicator light. 6 MEADE ETX: YOUR PERSONAL WINDOW TO THE UNIVERSE Caution: Using products other than standard Meade accessories may cause damage to the telescope's internal electronics and may void the Meade warranty. B Want to learn more about the eyepieces available for your ETX telescope? See OPTIONAL ACCESSORIES, pages 43 to 44. The Meade ETX-90AT, ETX-105AT and the ETX-125AT are extremely versatile, highresolution telescopes. With pushbutton controls, automatic tracking of celestial objects and diffraction-limited imaging, an ETX telescope may be all the telescope ever required by many terrestrial and astronomical observers. 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. Telescope Controls Become acquainted with all of these controls before attempting observations through the telescope. B C Eyepiece: Place the supplied 26mm eyepiece into the 90° Eyepiece Holder (4, Fig. 1) and tighten in place with thumbscrew (3, Fig.1). Viewfinder ETX-90AT: 8 x 21mm Viewfinder: Slide the eyepiece end of the viewfinder through the front of the viewfinder bracket (Fig. 18). ETX-105AT, ETX-125AT: 8 x 25mm Right-Angle Viewfinder: Slide the front cell end of the viewfinder through the rear of the viewfinder bracket (Fig. 19). Eyepiece Holder Thumbscrew: Tightens the eyepiece in place. Tighten to a firm feel only. 90° Eyepiece Holder: Holds the eyepiece upright for easy viewing. Optical Tube: The main optical component that gathers the light from distant objects and brings this light to a focus for examination with the eyepiece. Vertical Lock: Controls the manual vertical movement of the telescope. Turning the vertical lock counterclockwise unlocks the telescope enabling it to be freely rotated by hand about the vertical axis. Turning the vertical lock clockwise (to a firm feel only) prevents the telescope from being moved manually, but engages the vertical motor drive clutch for Autostar operation. When polar aligned, the vertical lock serves as the Declination or Dec. lock. Note: The vertical lock knob is a knurled knob located on the fork arm to the right of the focus knob (8, Fig. 1). Mounted beneath the knob is a circular scale without numbers. Do not confuse this scale with the Dec. setting circle (16, Fig. 1) on the opposite fork arm which has a numbered scale used to locate astronomical objects. Fork Arms: Hold the optical tube in place. Note: The telescope base and fork mount are designed with internal "rotational limit stops." The horizontal limit stop prevents the ...