User manual MEADE RCX400

Instruction Manual 16", 20" RCX400TM Advanced Ritchey-Chrétien Telescopes with The Max Mount MEADE.COM Read this manual carefully before attempting to assemble the MAX mount and attaching the OTA. Follow steps as outlined in this manual in order to assemble the telescope safely. Failure to follow steps may result in injury or death, and/or damage to the telescope and mount. DANGER WARNING! Never use a Meade RCX400TM 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. If you have never focused an RCX telescope before, go to pages 24 to 26 for detailed information. ® CONTENTS Telescope Features ...................................................... 4 Autostar II Features ........................................................11 Assembly ........................................................................14 Tripod Assembly ........................................................14 Pedestal Assembly and Adjusting Latitude ..............14 RA Assembly ............................................................16 Dec Saddle Assembly ..............................................16 Attach Counterweights ..............................................18 Low Latitude Counterweights....................................18 Attach OTA to Dec Saddle ........................................20 Attach Autostar II ......................................................21 Align Viewfinder with OTA ........................................21 Home Position and Balancing the OTA ..........................22 Balance RA Axis ......................................................20 Balance Dec Axis......................................................21 Getting Started ..............................................................24 Attach Handbox Holder ............................................24 Mounting, Focusing & Aligning the Viewfinder..........24 Focusing the Telescope ............................................24 To Change Focus Speed ....................................24 To Focus the Eyepiece ........................................25 Presets ................................................................25 To Define a Preset ............................................25 To Focus with a Microfocuser ............................25 To Focus with an RCX and a Microfocuser ......25 To Select a Preset ............................................26 To Sync on a Preset ..........................................26 Slew Speeds ..................................................................26 To Align for the First Time ..............................................27 Automatic Alignment ................................................27 Drift Align ..................................................................28 Collimation ................................................................28 Align the OTA ............................................................29 Calibrate Home ........................................................30 Basic Autostar II Operation ............................................31 Autostar II Menus ........................................................33 Menu Tree ................................................................33 Objects Menu ............................................................34 Event Menu ..............................................................35 Glossary Menu, Utilities Menu ..................................35 Setup Menu ..............................................................37 Hot Button Menus ....................................................40 Advanced Autostar II Features ......................................41 Adding Observing Sites ............................................41 Creating User Objects ..............................................42 Observing Satellites ..................................................43 Identify ......................................................................43 Browse ......................................................................44 Alternate Polar Alignment Methods ..........................45 To Download the Latest Autostar II Software............45 Periodic Error Correction ..........................................46 Optional Accessories......................................................47 Maintenance ..................................................................50 Specifications ................................................................51 Meade Consumer Solutions ..........................................52 Appendix A: Latitude Chart ............................................53 Appendix B: The Moon ..................................................54 Appendix C: Smart Mount ..............................................55 ® The names "Autostar," "Meade" and the Meade logo are trademarks registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and in principal countries throughout the world. "RCX400 " is a trademark of Meade Instruments Corporation. Patents: US 6,304,376 US 6,392,799 US 6,563,636 D 422,610 Patent Pending. © 2006 Meade Instruments Corporation. TELESCOPE FEATURES Components of MAX MAX features a unique modular design that allows a couple of individuals to assemble, either permanently or transportably, a mount twice the size of any other commercially available mount. The mount breaks down into a Portable Pier (tripod), Pedestal, RA Housing Assembly, and DEC Housing assembly. Together all of the components and an OTA assembly fit easily into a station wagon, SUV, minivan or small truck. When assembled, quick release, but rock solid, dovetail plates allow OTA and instrument packages up to 250 lbs to be quickly mounted and de-mounted. Note: Your telescope and mount may look slightly different from the one shown in some of the images in this manual. However, your telescope will still operate as the one described in this manual. Optical Tube Assembly (OTA) Viewfinder Assembly Declination Housing Assembly Counterweight Assembly RA Housing Assembly Pedestal Assembly Eyepiece Assembly Low Latitude Counterweight Assembly [Optional: Required if within 20° of the Equator] Tripod 4 Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. Pedestal Assembly MAX's Pedestal assembly can be configured to cover three latitude ranges without the need of disassembly. Together, the three ranges allow the mount to operate anywhere on the planet. Latitude Lock Knobs (x4) RA Lock Knob Dovetail Ejector Knob Latitude Scale Latitude Range Bolts (8x) Azimuth Adjustment Knob Azimuth Lock Knobs (x5) Tripod/Pier Interface Plate PEDESTAL (WEDGE) ASSEMBLY RA Female Dovetail Dovetail Ejector Knobs (2) Azimuth Adjust Knob Latitude Adjust Knob Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. 5 Right Ascension Housing Assembly The RA Housing mates to the Pedestal easily, sliding firmly into a dovetail block that measures over 100 square inches. When locked in place, this broad footprint assures that your mount will operate as a single rigid block delivering accurate and repeatable pointing and tracking performance. The RA Housing contains Meade's patented Autostar II telescope control system, a massive 13.625" pitch diameter worm gear attached to a 3.84" diameter 6061-T6511 aluminum alloy main shaft supported by one 6020 Ball bearing (5.9055 OD x 3.9370 ID x 0.9449 wide) & one 6013 ball bearing (3.9370 OD x 2.5591 ID x 0.7090 wide) . Declination Lock Knobs Declination Safety Lock THE RA ASSEMBLY Control Panel (see page 10) Declination Female Dovetail (not visible, on bottom side) DB-25 connector Low Latitude Counterweight plug RA Male Dovetail 6 Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. Declination Housing Assembly The Dec Housing mates to the RA Housing using another huge dovetail block. The RA Housing, DEC Housing and Pedestal are all designed to allow you to track more than 6 degrees past meridian without interference. This mount will let you cover the whole sky. In addition to accepting quick change dovetail plates, MAX has two generous wing mount platforms that will allow you to attach guide scopes, piggy back cameras, short focal length refractors and a wide variety of secondary instruments without interfering with Max's "all sky" design. DEC ASSEMBLY OTA Safety Lock OTA Lock Knobs (2x) OTA Female Dovetail Dec Balance Hard Stop Bolt Accessory Wings (2x) DB-25 connector Saddle Panel Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. 7 pedestal attachment lever course adjustment lock lever fine adjustment turnbuckle THE TRIPOD MAX Tripod The MAX mount tripod can be transported or permanently installed. It provides a wide stance to assure that it can safely carry MAX's massive payload in all orientations, but still collapses down to a size that is easy to handle. Its design assures that despite its wide stance, it will not interfere with optical systems observing on the meridian. Like Max, it sets up, knocks down, and adjusts without the need of tools. Counterweights Matching Slots Counterweight Quick Release Buttons Fixed Counterweight Knobs (8) Safety Cap Fixed Counterweights (2) The MAX counterweights are beautifully crafted with sure locking, but quick release, buttons. They allow you to quickly locate balance so you can get back to work. Counterweight Shaft Adjustable Counterweights THE COUNTERWEIGHTS 8 Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. Optical Tube Assembly MAX is sold stand alone, or it is available bundled with Meade's 16" RCX400TM or 20" RCX400TM Optical Tube Assemblies. RCX OTA's integrate seamlessly with MAX. Together you get pinpoint stars from Meade's unique Advanced Ritchey-Chrétien optical system: · · · · · · Zero expansion carbon fiber body Advanced Ritchey-Chrétien optics Electronic Collimation Integrated Dew Heater OTA fan for quick cool down Digital Electronic Focus with Presets Viewfinder Optical Tube Assembly (OTA) Dust Cover 2" Eyepiece 2" Accessory Adapter OTA Alignment Bolts (concentric) 2" Star Diagonal Visual Back OTA Panel OTA Male Dovetail THE OTA Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. 9 CONTROL PANELS AND PORTS Off/On 12vDC In 12VDC Switched Out USB Port AUX port HBX port (Handbox port) Serial port RA ASSEMBLY CONTROL PANEL SADDLE CONTROL PANEL Reticle Port 12VDC Switched Focuser RA TO DEC JUMPER CABLE Smart Accessory Ports JUMPER CABLE BETWEEN OTA AND SADDLE PANEL (use one of the Saddle panel Smart Accessory ports) USB Ports Auto Guider HBX port 10 Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. AUTOSTAR II FEATURES ¸ µ Fig. 2: The Autostar II Handbox. Tour the Cosmos with Just the Push of a Button Control of Max and RCX400 telescope models is through the operation of the standard Autostar II system. Nearly all functions of the telescope are accomplished with just a few pushes of Autostar II's buttons. Because the Autostar II system uses flash (rewritable) memory, your system will be able to grow when new features and enhancements become available. Download the latest satellite data, star and object catalogs, tours, serial commands list, and software revisions, directly from the Meade website (www.meade.com). Some of the major features of the Autostar II system are: Automatically move the telescope to any of the more than 180,000 objects stored in the object library, including: Library # of Objects New General Catalog (NGC): 7,840 Index Catalog (IC): 5,386 Messier Catalog (M): 110 Caldwell Catalog: 109 227 Named Objects: 400 Herschel Catalog: 2,712 Abell Catalog of Galaxy Clusters: 645 Arp Catalog of Irregular Galaxies: Uppsala Galaxy Catalog: 12,940 12,939 Morphological Catalog of Galaxies: 28,484 General Catalog of Variable Stars: 17,191 SAO: Hipparcos Star Catalog: 17,325 ....plus more than 10,000 other objects from the Lunar 100, the Washington Star, Gliese, Hickson, PK, Landolt, Lunar Features, and other catalogs! Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. 11 The Autostar II system provides control of virtually every telescope function. The Autostar II handbox has soft-touch keys designed to have a positive feel. The LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) is backlit with red LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes) for easy viewing in the dark. The backlit display, key arrangement, and sequential menu structure make Autostar II extremely user friendly. B c d 2-Line LCD Display: This screen displays Autostar II's menus and information about the telescope. · Top line: Lists the primary menu. · Bottom line: Displays other menus that may be chosen, menu options, telescope status, or information about a function that is being performed. ENTER Key: Press to go to the next menu level or to choose an option in a menu. The ENTER key is similar to the RETURN or ENTER key on a computer. MODE Key: Press to return to the previous menu or data level. The top menu level is "Select Item." The MODE key is similar to the ESCAPE key on a computer. Note: Pressing MODE repeatedly while in the "Select Item" level moves Autostar II to the topmost screen: "Select Item: Object." Note: If MODE is pressed and held for two seconds or more, information about the telescope's status displays. When the status displays, press the Scroll keys (7, Fig. 2) to display the following information: · Right Ascension and Declination (astronomical) coordinates · Altitude (vertical) and Azimuth (horizontal) coordinates · Local Time and Local Sidereal Time (LST) · Timer and Alarm Status · Date · Site coordinates · Battery status Press MODE again to return to the previous menu. GO TO Key: Press to slew (move) the telescope to the coordinates of the currently selected object. While the telescope is slewing, the operation may be aborted at any time by pressing any key except GO TO. Pressing GO TO again resumes the slew to the object. Also, press during the alignment or GO TO procedures to activate a "spiral search." Arrow Keys: The Arrow keys have several functions. Press an Arrow key to slew the telescope in a specific direction (up, down, left, and right), at any one of nine different speeds. See SLEW SPEEDS, page 26. Use the Up and Down Arrow keys to move the telescope vertically up and down. The Left Arrow key rotates the telescope horizontally counterclockwise, while the Right Arrow key rotates it clockwise (unless reversed for Southern Hemisphere use). Also, use the Arrow keys to scroll through numbers 0 through 9 and the alphabet. The Down Arrow key begins with the letter "A;" the Up Arrow key begins with digit "9." Additionally, use the Arrow keys to move the cursor across the display: Use the Right or Left Arrow key (5, Fig. 2) to move the cursor from one number to the next in the display. e f g Number Keys: Press to input digits 0 to 9. Each Number key also has a specific function, which is printed on each key (these are commonly known as "hot buttons"--see page 40): 1 SPEED: Changes the slew speeds. To operate, press Speed and then a Number key (1 is the slowest speed, 9 is highest speed). 2 CALD (Caldwell): Press to display the Caldwell catalog on the Autostar II handbox. 3 M (Messier): Press to display the Messier catalog library. 12 Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. 4 FOCUS: Toggles between two functions. The first press allows you to change the focus and focus speed. The next press allows you to create presets that tell the telescope where to focus. 5 SS: Press to display the Solar System library. 6 STAR: Press to display the Star library. 7 RET (Reticle): Press to display the Reticle Control menu. 8 IC: Press to display the Index Catalog library. 9 NGC (New General Catalog): Press to display the NGC catalog library. 0 LIGHT: Press to turn on and off the red utility light on the top of the handbox. h Scroll Keys: Press to access options within a selected menu. The menu is displayed on the first line of the screen. Options in the menu are displayed, one at a time, on the second line. Press the Scroll keys to move through the options. Press and hold a Scroll key to move quickly through the options. The Scroll keys also control the speed of text scrolling on the Autostar II display. When text is scrolling, press and hold the Up Scroll key for a faster display speed and the Down Scroll key for a slower display speed. i ? Key: Press to access the "Help" file. "Help" provides on-screen information on how to accomplish whatever task is currently active. Press the ? key and then follow the prompts on the display to access details of Autostar II functions in the Help feature. The Help system is essentially an onscreen instruction manual. If you have a question about an Autostar II operation, e.g., INITIALIZATION, ALIGNMENT, etc., press the ? key and follow the directions that scroll on the second line. When satisfied with the Help provided, press MODE to return to the original screen and continue with the chosen procedure. j 1) 1! Coil Cord Port: Plug one end of the Autostar II coil cord (10, Fig. 2) into this port located at the bottom of the Autostar II handbox. Coil Cord: Plug one end of the Autostar II coil cord into the HBX port (F, Fig. 1d) of the computer control panel of the telescope and the other end into the Autostar II coil cord port. See j above. Utility Light: Use this built-in red light to illuminate star charts and accessories without disturbing your eye's adaptation to darkness. Press "0" to turn the light on and off. Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. 13 ASSEMBLY Refer to images pages 4 to 10 for location of various telescope features. A Phillips screwdriver will be useful during assembly. Pointing to ± 5° of the pole 1 2 Tripod Assembly Before you pull legs out of collapsed tripod, notice the pattern of the pins on top of the tripod (photo). Set the legs so the leg opposite the single pin is pointing North. Above 20° latitude (or South in Southern hemisphere)-- if less than 20°, use the Low Latitude kit; see step #24. Set up on a surface of concrete, or if on the ground, must be a solid surface (such as granite). CAUTION: AVOID GRASS AND DIRT. THE MAX ASSEMBLY WILL SINK INTO GROUND, NOT REMAIN LEVEL AND TIP OVER, CAUSING SERIOUS INJURY TO THE ASSEMBLY AND OBSERVERS. 3 Extend the legs outward. 4 Pedestal Assembly and Adjusting Latitude Position Mount Pedestal onto the tripod... CAUTION: THE PEDESTAL REQUIRES TWO PEOPLE TO LIFT THE ASSEMBLY. 5 ...Place the Pedestal over three Pedestal lock pins. Note that these pins are spring-loaded and are self-locating. 14 Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. 7 Tighten (rotate) the lock knobs below the Pedestal to a "tight" feel. 8 Back off the ejector knobs on the Pedestal. 9 Adjust legs until they are level. Adjust the turnbuckle for fine adjustment of level. The bubble levels will assist you. Latitude Range Bolts "Porthole" 10 The telescope comes set for mid-range latitudes (30° to 60°). If you need to set for low range or high range, remove the 4 latitude bolts from each side of the pedestal (8 total) using a supplied hex wrench (see photo above). The pedestal should now be able to swing freely. Swing the pedestal so that the bolt portholes match up with another set of bolt holes on the underneath plate (there are three sets of bolt holes, one for each latitude range). Move the pedestal until it lines up your latitude tick mark with the indicator on the latitude scale. Replace and tighten the latitude bolts. Note: If you are setting for low-range latitude, you will need to replace only three bolts on each side. There isn't a fourth hole on either side. 11 A Move and line up latitude tick mark with indicator Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. 15 Latitude Adjust Knob 11 Adjust knob. B Fine tune the latitude adjustment using the Latitude THE RA ASSEMBLY Slide the RA assembly onto the Pedestal dovetail. 12 CAUTION: MAKE SURE THAT YOUR FINGERS ARE CLEAR OF THE TRACK BEFORE YOU SLIDE THE RA ASSEMBLY INTO THE PEDESTAL TRACK. THE RA ASSEMBLY REQUIRES TWO PEOPLE TO LIFT. 13 Tighten the RA assembly lock knob.. THE DEC SADDLE ASSEMBLY clamp 14 Back off Decalready knob. Note, in the photos, the Dec assembly is shown as attached. However, back off this knob before you attach the assembly. 15 Slide the DEC assembly in from the top...... A 16 Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. 15 B ...Slide down to the hard stop. 16 Slide safety pin into the hole. 17 Retighten the Dec clamp knob. 18 Plug in the RA to Dec jumper cable. Hint: You may wish to plug into the RA connector before attaching the DEC Assembly. Then attach the jumper cable to the Dec assembly after it is attached. Some users may find it difficult to reach in below the Dec assembly. Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. 17 19 ATTACH COUNTERWEIGHTS Line up a fixed counterweight's 4 bolts with the four threaded holes in the Dec assembly base. The weights can only be positioned with indentations lined up in a vertical orientation. 20 A Slide the bolts into the threaded holes and tighten each securing knob by hand until it reaches the top. Then use a 1/4" shaft, such as a Phillips screwdriver to turn the knob very tight. 20 B Screw in counterweight shaft until it reaches the hard stop. 21 Using a Phillips screwdriver, tighten the screw in the head of counterweight shaft to secure it in place. 18 Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. Put on adjustable counterweights (three for 20 inch models, two for 16 inch models). The weights can be two person 22 attached more easily if you make this abutton. Otherjob. One person holds weight and holds in A person pushes the weight up the shaft-slide up to within one inch of the end of travel. Push counterweights up against one another. CAUTION: PAY ATTENTION TO YOUR HANDS AS YOU ATTACH THE COUNTERWEIGHTS SO NOT TO PINCH THEM DURING ASSEMBLY. ALSO TAKE CARE NOT TO DROP COUNTERWEIGHTS. THE COUNTERWEIGHTS CAN CAUSE SERIOUS INJURY IF DROPPED, ESPECIALLY ON THE FOOT. 22 B 23 Screw the safety cap on the end of the shaft after the counterweights are attached. CAUTION: IF THE COUNTERWEIGHT(S) EVER SLIP, THE SAFETY CAP PREVENTS THE COUNTERWEIGHT FROM SLIDING ENTIRELY OFF THE SHAFT. ALWAYS LEAVE THE SAFETY CAP IN PLACE WHEN THERE ARE COUNTERWEIGHTS ON THE SHAFT. observing site is equator, you 24 If yourattach the optionalwithin 20° of thekit. See page 4 must counterweight (OPTIONAL) ATTACH LOW LATITUDE COUNTERWEIGHTS to see overview of the assembly. Attach the adjustable weight shaft and safety cap in the same manner just described . Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. 19 25 Adjust the clamps so that there is NOT a gap. no gap ATTACH OPTICAL TUBE TO THE DEC SADDLE its dust cover attached 26 The OTA should havein an upright position. when left stored on the ground A A minimum of four people are needed to lift the optical tube. 26 DANGER!: MAKE SURE THAT THE COUNTERWEIGHTS B ARE ATTACHED BEFORE PROCEEDING WITH THIS IMPORTANT! DANGER!: DUE TO THE WEIGHT AND SIZE OF THE 16" AND 20" OPTICAL TUBES, PLEASE USE EXTREME CAUTION WHENEVER ASSEMBLING, DISASSEMBLING, LIFTING, TRANSPORTING OR STOR26 ING THIS PRODUCT. FOUR OR MORE PERSONS (TWO C ON EACH SIDE) SHOULD ALWAYS BE USED WHEN ASSEMBLING OR DISASSEMBLING THE TUBE TO THE DEC SADDLE. DISREGARD FOR THE ABOVE WARNING COULD RESULT IN SERIOUS INJURY OR DEATH. STEP. SEE STEPS 17 THROUGH 22. 26 The tube should be lifted up over the low end (the rear) of the assembly and slid into the dec assembly track. If D the dovetail clamps were loosened as described in step 25, you will only need to lift the tube halfway over the track in order to slide it in, that is, the tube will fit into the track about halfway down, instead of having to slide it in from the high end. 20 Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. 27 Connect the Smart Accessory port on the Saddle control panel to OTA using the 9-pin jumper cable. 28 ELECTRICAL CONNECTIONS Attach the OTA cable to the saddle plate. Plug in 12VDC In-make sure power switch is turned off first. Plug in handbox to HBX and plug in any other accessories. 29 Slide in the included 2" accessory adapter, a diagonal eyepiece holder and an eyepiece. Tighten thumbscrews to secure. 30 ALIGN THE VIEWFINDER WITH THE OTA: (See page 24 to learn how to attach the viewfinder to the telescope.) During the daytime, point the telescope at a distant object (at least 200 yards away), such as a telephone pole or a street sign. Center the object in the telescope's eyepiece. Look through the viewfinder and loosen or tighten, as appropriate, one or more of the collimation screws until the viewfinders crosshairs are precisely centered on the object in the OTA. Notice that the left rear knob is spring-loaded, to make the adjustment of the two other rear knobs easier. Fine tune this alignment on a bright star during the nighttime. spring loaded knob 31 Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. 21 32 CAUTION: BEFORE DISASSEMBLING, THE TELESCOPE MUST BE PUT INTO THE HOME POSITION. HOME POSITION AND BALANCING THE OTA After power is applied and Autostar has initialized, press MODE to move to the vertical home position (32). 33 Before using the telescope, you will need to balance it in both the RA and Dec axes. Before you balance, attach the eyepiece assembly, the viewfinder and all the accessories you will be using with the telescope (cameras, guide scopes, etc.). In other words, you need to balance the unit with all the "weight" that will be attached to it. TO BALANCE THE RA ASSEMBLY: First you will balance the RA axis. You will balance it, first, with the telescope positioned at a 45° angle and then at a 90° angle perpendicular to the home position). Use the scroll keys to position the RA axis at 45° (33). Go to the Utilities menu. 34 Scroll down to "Balance Scope." Press the down arrow key to see the two choices available: Balance RA and Balance Dec. With "Balance RA" displayed, press ENTER. With "Balance RA" displayed, press ENTER (34). The telescope assembly will move back and forth slightly on the RA axis. It is now determining the torque needed to move on this axis. 35 A balance readout will be displayed on the handbox. The readout will display fractions close to the number one. For example, ".95" and ".91." Move the bottom adjustable counterweight one-half to one full turn (35). You will only need to move the weights in small increments. Then move the other adjustable counterweights to butt up against it (Note: The telescope will continue to move back and forth, while you adjust the weights). 22 Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. When the display readout is close to "1" (perhaps .99 1 while it is moving, 36 or 1.01) and remains close tostops the Balance it is balanced. Press MODE. This procedure. Next move the telescope so that it is 90° perpendicular to the Home Position. Select Balance RA once again and press ENTER. Perpendicular to home position Repeat the same procedure in the perpendicular position. Once again, move the weights to get the balance readouts to get close to 1. 37 BALANCE THE DEC AXIS DANGER!!! YOU WILL NEED 4 PEOPLE TO PERFORM THIS PROCEDURE. Home or 90° position Dec Balance Hard Stop bolt Next move the telescope so that it is 90° perpendicular to the Home Position (see Fig. 36). Select "Balance Dec" and press ENTER. The Dec axis back and forth, like the RA axis did. Check 38 will movehow close the Dec axis is from balance. and see A Press MODE. Move the telescope to the home position. Position 4 people to hold onto the tube securely and loosen the Dec lock knobs. See Fig. 37. Move the OTA forward or backward within the female dovetail track and tighten the lock knobs. Move the telescope back to the position that is 90° perpendicular to the Home Position, as shown in Fig. 36. Select "Balance 38Dec" and press ENTER. Check and see how close the B Dec axis is from "1" in the Dec Balance menu. Move the OTA back to the Home position. Move the OTA forward or backward again. Continue this procedure, moving back and forth between both the home (Fig. 38A) and the perpendicular position (Fig. 36), and adjust the OTA until the telescope is balanced in this axis. Make sure you tighten the lock knobs after each adjustment of the OTA. finally balanced, press 38 When the axis isknobs and turn the Dec ENTER. hard Tighten the lock Balance C stop bolt so that it butts up against the OTA plate--it remembers your Dec Balance point. You should not have to balance the telescope again unless you change Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. 23 b c GETTING STARTED To Attach the handbox holder: Remove the handbox holder from the plastic bag. If necessary, loosen the lock knob (1, Fig. 39a) and place the clamp (2, Fig. 39a) about one of the telescope's handles. Tighten the lock knob to a firm feel. Slide the AutoStar II handbox into the holder (3, Fig. 39a).You may also snap the handbox into the holder: Slide one side of the handbox into the holder and then firmly press the other side of the handbox into the holder until it snaps in place. Adjust the tilt of of the holder by loosening the lock knob and then moving the holder clamp to the desired angle. Retighten the lock knob. To attach the visual back and diagonal mirror: Attach Visual back and Diagonal mirror: Thread the ring of the 2" accessory adapter over the rear cell and rotate the ring, tightening to a firm feel. Slide the diagonal into the 2" accessory adapter and secure it in place using the visual back thumbscrew. To Insert eyepiece: Remove the UltraWide 24mm eyepiece from its container and slide it in the diagonal mirror. Tighten the thumbscrew located on the diagonal mirror to a firm feel only. d Fig. 39a: Handbox holder: (1) Lock knob; (2) Clamp; (3) e f Fig. 40a: Viewfinder mounting bracket assembly : Mounting screws (4), locking screws (5). Remove back locking screw so you can thread in Mounting and Focusing the Viewfinder for the First Time The first time you mount and focus the viewfinder, follow the these steps: 1. Attach the viewfinder mounting bracket assembly: The mounting bracket assembly is shipped attached to the viewfinder bracket. Loosen the thumbscrews (5, Fig. 40a) and slide the bracket out of the mounting assembly (the photo depicts one thumbscrew removed for the sake of clarity). Place the bracket assembly over the pre-drilled holes on th back outer rim of the telescope, Thread and tighten the two supplied locking screws (4, Fig. 40a). Attach the viewfinder bracket: Slide the track on the bottom of the viewfinder bracket into the slot in the viewfinder mounting assembly. See Fig. 40b. To secure the viewfinder to the mounting assembly, tighten the two thumbscrews to a firm feel only. Slide the viewfinder tube (see Fig. 40c) into the viewfinder bracket. Loosely tighten the adjustment screws (12, Fig. 40d). You will use the adjustment screws to align the viewfinder (see page 21). Look through the viewfinder. Rotate the eyepiece/focuser until you sharply focus the crosshairs. Rotate the tube so that the crosshairs align with the Dec and RA axes. Loosen (rotate clockwise) the objective lens locking ring (11, Fig. 40c). Rotate the objective lens (9, Fig. 40c) until you sharply focus on an object located at infinity. Tighten the locking ring (11, Fig. 40c). You may now rotate the eyepiece (10, Fig. 40b) to focus on objects. 2. 3. g 4. ih Fig. 40b: Viewfinder bracket assembly: Slide the track (7) into the mounting slot (6). Tighten the thumbscrews (8) to secure. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. j 1! 1) Align the Viewfinder During the daytime, point the telescope at a distant object (at least 200 yards away), such as a telephone pole or a street sign. Center the object in the telescope's eyepiece. Look through the viewfinder and loosen or tighten, as appropriate, one or more of the collimation screws (12, Fig. 40d) until the viewfinders crosshairs are precisely centered on the object in the OTA. Notice that the left rear collimation screw is spring-loaded (12, Fig. 40d)--you don't need to adjust it--to make the adjustment of the two other rear knobs easier. Fine tune this alignment on a bright star during the nighttime. Fig. 40c: 8x50 Viewfinder tube: Objective lens (7), eyepiece/focuser (8) and locking ring (9). 24 Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. Focusing the Telescope 1@ All focusing is performed digitally, using AutoStar II's Focus key (number key 4). The Focus key functions as a toggle key: Press the Focus key the first time to focus the telescope eyepiece and to control the speed at which you focus. Press the Focus key again to set and adjust up to nine focus presets. To change the focus speed: 1. Press the Focus key once. "Focuser: Fast (or the current speed)" displays for two seconds. Use one of the Scroll keys to scroll through the list of 5 available focus speeds: Fast, Medium, Slow, Fine, S. Fine. Scroll through the list until the speed you desire displays. Choose a focus speed with which you feel comfortable. To focus the telescope eyepiece: 1. Press the Focus key once. "Focuser: Fast (or the current speed)" displays. After two seconds, "Focuser: Position = XX" displays. "XX" stands for a number value in decimal millimeters. 2. Point the telescope at a distant object. Look in the eyepiece and use the Arrow keys until the image in the eyepiece is in sharp focus. 3. Press MODE to leave Focus menu. Presets: Nine preset focus positions are available, and they operate much like presets on a car radio--everyone can have their own favorite station, or in this case, their own personalized focus. You can set one preset to take into account your own eyesight, one for your observing partner (who may wear glasses), one for your camera's focus, and so forth. Three preset menus are available. Use the Define Preset menu to assign a preset, use the GoTo Preset menu to select a preset you have previously assigned, and use Sync On Preset menu if you do not park your telescope (this menu will reset all your focus presets after you turn off and turn on your scope again ). To define a preset: 1. Point the telescope at a distant object, press FOCUS and use the Up and Down Arrow keys to focus the telescope until the object is sharply focused as previously explained. 2. Press the Focus key again (FOCUS toggles between the Focus menu and the Preset menu). "Focuser Preset: Go To" displays. Use a Scroll key and scroll down the list of options until "Focuser Preset: Define Preset" displays. Press ENTER. 3. A list of presets displays. If no preset is currently assigned, "1- Unnamed" displays (followed by 2- Unnamed, up to 9 - Unnamed). 4. Use the up and down Scroll keys to scroll through the alphabet and the right and left Arrow keys to move to cursor right or left across the display. 5. When you have finished typing in a name and focusing the telescope, press ENTER. That number preset is now defined. You can enter 9 names. For example, you may enter "Joe," "Jill," "Deep Sky Imager" and so forth. To select one of these presets, you will use the "Focuser Preset: Go To" menu. 1# Fig. 40d: Viewfinder adjustment screws (12); spring loaded screw (13) Fig. 40e: Align the viewfinder on a distant object, such as a light or telephone pole. Important Note: Press MODE at any time to exit Focus modes. 6. Focusing Telescopes Equipped with a Microfocuser To focus telescopes other than an RCX with one of Meade's microfocusers (e.g., LX200 GPS 16"), perform the following procedure. Make sure you have the microfocuser attached to the telescope and plugged into the Focuser port on the saddle plate: · Press the Number Key 4 and Autostar displays "Saddle Focus: Speed Fast." · Use the Up/Down keys to scroll through the four microfocuser speeds (fast, medium, slow, fine). Use the Up and Down arrow keys to move the focus in or out. · Focusing both RCX focusers and Telescopes Equipped with Microfocusers If you are using both an RCX and a telescope with a microfocuser (as a guiding Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. 25 scope), you can use Autostar to control both the RCX and the microfocuser. Make sure you have connected the saddle plate to the RCX and the microfocuser to your telescope and also the saddle plate's Focuser port. Follow this procedure: Press the Number Key 4 and Autostar displays "OTA: Fast" displays. You are now in control of the RCX focuser. · Use the Up/Down keys to scroll through the RCX focuser speeds. · Press the Number Key 4 again and "Define Presets" displays. Define the RCX presets as described earlier. · Press the Number Key 4 and Autostar displays "Saddle Focus: Speed Fast." You are now in control of the microfocuser focuser. Use the Up/Down keys to scroll through the four microfocuser speeds. · · Use the Up and Down arrow keys to move the focus in or out. Press MODE to exit the Focus menu at any time. To select a previously defined focus preset 1. Press the Focus key twice. "Focuser Preset: Go To Preset" displays. Press ENTER to select this menu. 2. Use a Scroll key and scroll down the list of previously defined presets. When the desired preset displays (for example, "Deep Sky Imager"), press ENTER. Important Note: If you do not park your telescope, you will need to select one of the presets and refocus your telescope using the Sync On menu. See TO SYNC ON A FOCUS PRESET below. To sync on a focus preset If you park your telescope, AutoStar II remembers all the focus positions you defined as presets and you will not need this menu. If you do not park your telescope, you will need to select just one of the presets and refocus your telescope using the Sync On menu. Then AutoStar II will reset all the other presets back to the focus preset positions you previously defined. 1. Press the Focus key twice. "Focuser Preset: Go To Preset" displays. Use a Scroll key and scroll until "Focuser Preset: Sync On Preset" displays and press ENTER to select this menu. 2. Use a scroll key to choose one of the previously entered presets from this list (the most likely preset you will choose will be one that accounts for your own eyesight). 3. Use the Up or Down Arrow keys to focus the eyepiece. 4. Press ENTER. AutoStar II now "remembers" the relative focus positions of the eyepiece.You can now choose any preset and it will be correctly focused. To exit the focus operation at any time: 1. Press MODE. · Important Note: Press MODE at any time to exit Focus modes. Slew Speeds Autostar II has several slew speeds that move the optical tube at rates that are directly proportional to the sidereal rate and have been calculated to accomplish specific functions. Press the Speed key (Number key "1") and then press a Number key to change the slew speed, which is shown for about two seconds on Autostar II's display. The available speeds are: Number Number Number Number Number Number Number Number Number Key Key Key Key Key Key Key Key Key 1= 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0.01x to1.0x sidereal, variable in 0.01x increments Guide Rate = 2x = 2 x sidereal (0.5 arc-min/sec or 0.008°/sec) 8x = 8 x sidereal (2 arc-min/sec or 0.033°/sec) = = 16x = 16 x sidereal (4 arc-min/sec or 0.067°/sec) = 64x = 64 x sidereal (16 arc-min/sec or 0.27°/sec) = 128x = 128 x sidereal (32 arc-min/sec or 0.25°/sec) = .5° = 45 arc-min/sec or .5°/sec = 1° = 60 arc-min/sec or 1°/sec = Max Slew Speed (2°/sec) 26 Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. Aligning for the First Time Important Note: First time you align the telescope, perform the following procedures to insure precision pointing: 1. Automatic Align 2. Drift Align 3. Collimation 4. OTA Align (if non -RCX model) 5. Calibrate home. If you wish to have precise pointing accuracy, the first time you align your telescope you will need to align it to using Automatic Alignment and Drift Alignment. You will then electronically collimate the telescope, square the OTA and finally calibrate home. Once you do this. you will need only to park your scope and you will keep this alignment. When you turn the telescope back on after parking, it will be very nearly perfectly aligned from this point on. To prepare your telescope for Automatic Alignment: 1. Connect Autostar II to the HBX port of the RA Control Panel (or Dec Control Panel). 2. 3. 4. 5. Flip the power switch of the RA Control Panel to the ON position. The Autostar II screen is activated and a copyright message displays briefly. "Press 0 to Align or Mode for Menu" displays. Press 0. The telescope will seek the home position. Autostar II initializes the Smart Drive. The R.A. and Dec. motors operate briefly and "Initializing: Smart Drive" displays. "Automatic Alignment" displays. Press ENTER. The system now performs the following routines (press any Autostar II key to abort Automatic Alignment) : Attempts a "GPS Fix." The RCX400's GPS receiver attempts to acquire and sync up with signals from GPS satellites. After performing these operations, Autostar II now knows: The telescope's limiting positions The observing site's location The date and time "CTR Polaris: Slewing" displays. When the telescope stops slewing, center Polaris in the eyepiece using only the latitude and azimuth adjust knobs (see Fig. 41a). DO NOT USE THE HANDBOX TO CENTER POLARIS. When Polaris is centered, press ENTER. Autostar II then chooses another star to align upon. "Searching...." displays. The telescope then slews to a bright star for alignment. If it does not appear in the field of view in the eyepiece, look through the viewfinder--in most cases, the star will be visible. Use the Arrow keys to move the telescope until the star is visible and centered in the eyepiece. The alignment star should be easily recognized and be the brightest star in the area of the sky where the telescope is pointing. Press ENTER. "Align Successful" displays. If "Align Unsuccessful displays," repeat the procedure. Next, you will drift align the telescope. 6. 9. Azimuth Adjust Knob Latitude Adjust Knob Fig. 41a: The latitude and azimuth adjust knobs. Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. 27 Note: See: http://www.astrocruise.com /polarnew.htm for a website dedicated to drift alignment of Meade telescopes. Site offers extensive tips from an experienced drift align specialist. How to Drift Align Max (Northern Hemisphere) Important Note: You will need a reticle to perform this procedure 1. 2. 3. Center your reticle on a bright star near the Eastern horizon. Look through the reticle while pressing Autostar's right and left Arrow keys. This will slew the mount back and forth in the R.A. axis. Loosen and rotate the reticle until one of the crosshairs matches the right-left path of the star as you press the Arrow keys. This crosshair is now on the R.A. axis. The other axis is therefore on the Dec. axis. Carefully secure the reticle in place (do not move the crosshairs). Observe the bright star you have chosen. If, over time, it drifts off the R.A. axis, use the latitude adjustment knob to bring it back past center. Experience will teach you how much to move the alt knob. If the star drifts slowly, use only a small amount of correction; if it moves quickly, use a much larger amount of correction. Use Autostar's up and down keys to bring the star back to center. Perform step 4 repeatedly until it does not drift on the Dec axis for a few minutes. Next, center on a bright, Southern star. This star should be within 10° to 20° of the celestial equator. If the star drifts above the RA axis, use the Azimuth adjustment knob to move the star to the right and down until the star is almost out of the field of view. If it drifts below the R.A. axis, use the Azimuth adjustment knob to move the star to the left and up. Use Autostar arrow keys to center the star again. Repeat steps 7 and 8 until the star no longer drifts off the R.A. axis for a few minutes. Go back and check the first star and see if it is drifting again. And then recheck the second star also. Keep repeating steps 4, 7 and 8, until there is no more drift in either of the stars you have chosen for a few minutes. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. Your telescope is now drift aligned. Next, collimate your telescope. Collimation This collimation procedure is for Meade RCX models only. The optical collimation (alignment) of any astronomical telescope used for serious purposes is important, but in the case of the RCX design, such collimation is absolutely essential for good performance. Take special care to read and understand this section well so that your telescope will give you the best optical performance. As part of final optical testing, every Meade RCX400 telescope is precisely collimated at the Meade factory before shipment. However, vibrations in shipping can cause the optical system to become misaligned. Re-aligning the optics is, however, a straightforward process with the RCX400. Test your Collimation Before collimating an RCX400 model, you will need to test your collimation. To test the collimation, center a bright star that is overhead, or use a "hot spot" of reflected Sunlight from a chrome car bumper, with the supplied 24mm eyepiece. Allow the telescope to adjust to the temperature of your observation site before proceeding; temperature differences between the optics and the outside air can cause distortion in the images. Autostar II offers two options in the Utilities menus that take temperature readings: "OTA Temperature" (the temperature of the corrector plate) and "Ambient Temperature" (the temperature of the air around the fork arms). When the star or hot spot is centered, de-focus the image. You will notice that the out of focus star image looks like a ring of light surrounding a dark central spot; the dark central spot is in fact the shadow of the secondary mirror. You may notice multiple rings; these are called diffraction rings. Focus until the diffraction rings fills about 10% of the eyepiece field-diameter. If the dark central spot is offset in (i.e., not concentric with) the diffraction rings, your telescope's optical system is misaligned and requires collimation. 28 Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. Follow these steps for collimation of the optical system: The only adjustments possible, or necessary, on the RCX400 models is performed with the AutoStar handbox. No adjustment screws are necessary (or provided), as with traditional telescopes. A high-powered eyepiece, such as a 9mm eyepiece, or a 9mm eyepiece with a 2x barlow, is required for collimation. A good rule of thumb to follow is to select the highest power eyepiece you will use with your telescope, and double it (a 2x barlow is ideal for doubling). See Fig. 42a below, to see images of an aligned and misaligned image. a. Select the "Collimation" option in the Setup/Telescope menu. Once this option is selected, you will be able to use Autostar's Arrow keys to adjust the image of the star you have selected. While looking through the eyepiece, Use Autostar II's Arrow keys at the slowest slew speed, begin to move the defocused center ring so that the rings become more concentric. You will most likely need to press more than one Arrow key. You will notice that the star image will move across the field of view of the eyepiece. If while using the Arrow key, the defocused star image moves out of the eyepiece field, press MODE to temporarily leave the collimation menu. When you have left the "Collimation" menu, use the Arrow keys to bring the image back to the center of the eyepiece field. Press ENTER to select the "Collimation" option again. Use the Arrow keys to continue to adjust the image until it becomes concentric. If the image moves out of the eyepiece field, perform steps c through e as many times as necessary. Carefully examine the concentricity of the diffraction rings. Always double check the image in the center of the field of the eyepiece. The star point should appear as a small central dot (commonly referred to as an "Airy disc") with a diffraction ring surrounding it. You now have the best alignment of the optics possible with this telescope. b. c. d. e. f. g. Set Default and Restore Default Options: The factory has collimated your telescope and saved the settings in the Restore Default option. You may retain this setting and recall it if the telescope needs collimation. Or you may overwrite this setting using the Set Default option after performing precise collimation and recall it again when needed with the Restore Default option. 1 2 3 Fig. 42a: Defocused star images. Misaligned (1, 2), Aligned (3). Align (Squaring) the OTA: If you are using a non-RCX telescope or if you have changed your RCX collimation or mounting significantly from the factory defaults, you must align the OTA. When you select this menu, Autostar will ask you to center two stars in the telescope that are on opposite sides of the sky. OTA Alignment Bolts Fig. 42b: The OTA align bolt. Once you have centered them, the telescope will slew back to the first star. You will then be asked to center the star using the OTA align bolt. These are two bolts, with one in the center of the other. Using a 9/16 flat wrench, loosen the center bolt and hold this one so it doesn't move. Then place 13/16 open ended or combination spanner wrenches on the outer bolt. Turn the outer bolt until the star is centered. When centered, tighten just the center bolt. This will hold the bolts securely in that position. Note that there is a bolts on either side of the OTA align bolt (Fig. 42b). These bolts must be loosened during the procedure and tightened afterward. Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. 29 Calibrate Home: After aligning your telescope, select this menu and the alignment settings--North, time, alignment stars--are stored in Autostar II's memory and are remembered after you power off the telescope. After Calibrating Home, you may park your telescope any time you wish and the next time you turn on the telescope, you will be precisely aligned. Parking the Scope Designed for a telescope that is not moved between observing sessions. Align the telescope one time, then use this function to park the telescope. Once parked, the screen prompts to turn off power. The advantage of parking is that you do not need to align the telescope the next time you turn on Autostar; it remembers your alignment. Tip: When waking their telescope, some users select a bright star from the Objects menu and perform a Go To on that star. If the star is not in the exact center of the eyepiece, move the star to the center using the arrow keys and then hold ENTER down for more than two seconds. This activates the Enter to Sync function and fine tunes and improves the telescope's alignment. Important Note: When the "Park Scope" option is chosen and the display prompts you to turn off the telescope's power, Autostar II is unable to be returned to operation without turning the power off and then back on. Most users just need to place the telescope in the home position (default park position) and select Park from the Autostar II menu to park their scope. However if you are storing your telescope in a location where it cannot be stored in the home position, for example, such as an observatory with a top that slides back, just move your telescope to the position you want to store it. Choose "Park Position" from the Setup: Telescope menu. When "Park Position" displays, use the down arrow key to scroll through the choices. Select "Use Current" if your position is anything other than the Home Position. If you are using the Home Position, select "Use Default." 30 Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. BASIC AUTOSTAR II SETUP MENU Automatic alignment permits all telescope operations with only minimal setup. Select Item: Setup UTILITIES MENU Calculate eyepiece magnifications; set timer alerts; create your own landmark survey. Select Item: Utilities GLOSSA RY What is an elliptical galaxy? How far away is the Sun? Expand your knowledge of astronomy by displaying terms and definitions, and other information. Select Item: Object OBJECT MENU Want to see Mars? The Orion nebula? The Andromeda galaxy? Select from over 180,000 objects and press GO TO to move the telescope automatically to an object. Select Item: Event EVENT MENU Display the time of past, present, and future astronomical events, such as Moon phases or meteor showers. Select Item: Guided Tour GUIDED TOUR Autostar II escorts you on a tour of tonight's best celestial objects at your viewing location. Autostar I I Autostar The Universe o f Object Event Guided Tours Glossary Utilities Setup Select Item: Glossary Fig. 45: The Autostar II Universe: The six primary categories listed in the Select Item menu of Autostar II. Fig. 43: Menus set in a loop. It is important to understand that menu selections are set in a loop (Fig. 44). This means that pressing the Scroll Down key cycles down through all the available options within a given category, then returns to the first option. The Scroll Up key cycles up through the options in the opposite order. Note that this capability is a quick way to get to an option that is near the bottom of the list. The following example demonstrates this capability. Example: To navigate to the "Select Item: Setup" menu option when the "Select Item: Object" menu is displayed: 1. Press the Scroll Down key five times or the Scroll Up key once. The screen in Fig. 44a displays two lines of information. The top line shows the current menu, "Select Item." The second line displays an option within that menu, "Object." Some options are choices that select the next menu level down. The Scroll keys move up and down within the list of available options, showing one option at a time. The example in Fig. 44a shows the Select Item menu with the Object option displayed on the second line. When the desired option (Object) is displayed on the second line, press the ENTER key to choose that option and move down one menu level. In the example, press Enter and the display now reads "Object: Solar System." You have moved down to the Object menu level. See Fig. 44b. You can now use the up and down keys to scroll through the other options available for the Objects menu: Constellations, Deep Sky, etc. Press the MODE key to leave a menu level; e.g., the wrong menu option is chosen. Important Note: No matter how many levels into Autostar II are traveled, each press of the MODE key moves up a level, until the top level, "Select Item," is reached. Once in the Select Item level, press MODE to return to the topmost level, "Select Item: Object." Select Item Objects Event Guided Tour Glossary Utilities Setup Fig. 44a: The menu displays on the top line and Menu options display on the second line. Use the Scroll keys to move up or down through the list of options. Press ENTER to select the desired option. Objects Solar System Constellations Deep Sky Star Satellite User Objects etc. Autostar II Navigation Exercise Fig. 44b: Object menu is selected by pressing ENTER. Use the Scroll keys to move up or down through the list of options for the Object menu. Press ENTER to select the desired option. To demonstrate how the Autostar II menu structure works, the following exercise calculates Sunset time so an evening observing session can be planned. To Calculate Sunset time: 1. Press the MODE key several times, until "Select Item: Object" is displayed. 2. 3. Press the Scroll Down key once to display the "Event" option in the "Select Item" menu. Press the ENTER key to choose the "Event" option and move down a level. "Event: Sunrise" is displayed. Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. 31 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. Display Press the Scroll Down key once to display the "Sunset" option in the Event menu. Press the ENTER key to choose the "Sunset" option and move down another level. Autostar II calculates the Sunset time based on the current date, time, and location. Autostar II then displays the results of the calculation. Press MODE once to start moving back up through the Autostar II levels. The first level up is the Event menu. Press MODE again to move up another level. This is the top level, "Select Item." Press MODE again to return to the starting point of "Select Item: Object." Example of Locating a menu As you typically will be using menus after you initialize and align your telescope, this example will assume you have just completed aligning your scope. AutoStar II displays "Select Item: Object" after the alignment procedure; this will be our starting point. In this example, we will locate the "Owner Info" option. See Fig. 45 for the location of the Autostar II keys used in this example. 1. 2. "Select Item: Object" displays. As the Owner Info option is in the Setup menu, you will have to use one of the Scroll keys to navigate through the list of menus. Press the Scroll Down Key. "Select Item: Event" displays Keep pressing the Scroll Down key. Notice that all the menus display as you press the key: Guided Tour, Glossary, Utilities, Setup. Stop when "Select Item: Setup" displays. If you press the Scroll Down key one more time, "Select Item: Object" will display again. This is because the list of menus or options cycles through each choice over and over again when you press one of the Scroll keys. With "Select Item: Setup" displayed, press ENTER. Pressing ENTER selects the menu or option currently displayed. "Setup: Align" displays. Press the Scroll Down key again. "Select Item: Telescope" displays. Press ENTER. Autostar II will now display all the choices that are available with the Telescope menu. Continue to press the Scroll Down key until "Setup: Owner Info" displays. Press ENTER. "Owner Info: Name" displays. Press ENTER again. "Name" displays, with the second line blank. On this line you may enter your first and last name into Autostar II's memory. Press the Up or Down Arrow key. Notice that a letter of the alphabet displays. Continue to press one of the Arrow keys until the first letter of your name displays. Use the Right Arrow key to move to the next position so you can choose the second letter of your name. Continue to use the Arrow keys to enter your full name. Press ENTER when you are finished. Your name is now entered into AutoStar II's memory. "Owner Info: Name" displays again (if you wish, you can press the Scroll Down key--"Owner Info: Address" will display and you can enter your address if you wish). Press MODE and "Setup: Owner Info" displays. Press MODE again. "Select Item: Setup" displays. MODE allows you to backup and exit through the menu structure. MODE ENTER Arrow keys 3. 4. Scroll Up Scroll Down 5. 6. 7. 8. Fig. 45: Some of the features of the Autostar II handbox. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. Navigating Autostar II Autostar II's menus are organized for quick and easy navigation: Press ENTER to go deeper into Autostar II's menu levels. Tip: When multiple choices are available within a menu option, the current option is usually displayed first and highlighted by a right pointing arrow (>). Press MODE to move back toward the top menu level. Press Number key "1" to engage the Speed mode, and then press Number keys 1 through 9 to change speeds. Press Number key "4" to access the Focus menus. Press Number key "7" to access the Reticle menu. Press the Scroll keys to move up and down through the options or lists. Press the Arrow keys to move the cursor across the display. Press the Help (?) key to access on-line help. 32 Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. Select Item Object Solar System Mercury Venus etc. Moon Asteroids Comets Constellations Andromeda etc. Deep Sky Named Objects Galaxies Nebulas Planetary Neb. etc. Star Named SAO Catalog etc. Satellite Select Add Delete Edit Identify Browse Start Search Edit Parameters Select Item Guided Tour Tour Objects Tonight's Best How Far is far etc. Select Item Glossary A Accretion Disk etc. B C etc. Select Item Utilities Balance OTA OTA Fan Dew Heater OTA Temperature Ambient Temperature Timer Set Start and Stop Eyepiece Calc Field of View Magnification Suggest Brightest Star Brightness Adjust. Contrast Adjust. Panel Light Aux. Port Power Beep Temperature Battery Alarm Sleep Scoope Park Scope Select Item Event Sunrise Sun Transit Sunset Moonrise Moonset Moon Phases Next Full Moon Next New Moon Next 1st Qtr Next 3rd Qtr Meteor Showers Quadrantids etc. Solar Eclipse Lunar Eclipse Autumn Equinox Vernal Equinox Winter Solstice Summer Solstice AUTOSTAR II's MENUS Moon Overview Landing Sites Apollo 11 etc. Craters Abbot etc. Mountains Mons Bradley etc. Mare, Lakes Lacus Aestatis etc. Valley, Rills Rima Agatharchid etc. Hold down MODE for two seconds and the following data displays: · Right Ascension and Declination coordinates · Altitude and Azimuth coordinates · Local Time and Local Sidereal Time (LST) · Timer and Alarm Status · Date · Site coordinates · Battery status Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. Hot Buttons Press the following keys to display the corresponding menu: Key 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Menu Speed Caldwell catalog (C) Messier catalog (M) Focus Solar System (SS) Star library Reticle (RET) Index catalog New General catalog (NGC) Select Item Setup Align Easy One-Star Two-Star Align on Home Telescope Telescope Model Collimation Max Past Meridian Focal Length Max Slew Rate Park Position Calibrate Home Anti-Backlash Train Drive Tracking Rate Guiding Rate Dec Guiding North and South Off North Only South Only Reverse L/R Reverse U/D Home Sensors GPS Alignment RA PEC High Precision Targets Astronomical Terrestrial Date Time GPS-UTC Offset Smart Mount Configuration Off On Train Load Save As Delete Erase Owner Info Clone Download Statistics Reset 33 Figure 46: The Complete Autostar II Menu Tree Structure. Object Menu Almost all observing with Autostar II is performed using the Object menu category. (Note: Exceptions include Guided Tour and Landmark Survey.) Autostar II contains many libraries of viewable objects, such as stars, planets, comets, nebulae and so forth. When one of these objects is selected from a library, Autostar II moves your telescope (if properly aligned) and points it at the selected object. Six of the most popular libraries can be accessed directly using the hot buttons. The Object Menu options include: Solar System: A library of the eight planets (Earth is not included) in order out from the Sun, followed by the Moon, asteroids, and comets (Number key "5"). Constellation: A library of all 88 Northern and Southern Hemisphere constellations. When this menu option is chosen and a constellation name appears on the first line of the screen, press GO TO and the telescope goes to the center of the constellation and will display coordinates. Then, use the Scroll keys to cycle through the list of the most significant stars in the constellation. Then it will display deep space objects and so forth in the constellation. Deep Sky: A library of objects outside our Solar System such as nebulae, star clusters, galaxies, and quasars. Star: A catalog of stars listed in different categories such as named, double, variable, or nearby. Also included are the Hipparcos, SAO, HD, and HR catalogs. The Star catalog may also be accessed directly by pressing Number key "6." Satellite: A library of Earth-orbiting objects such as the International Space Station, the Hubble Space Telescope, Global Positioning System (GPS) satellites, and geosynchronous orbit satellites. Other Catalogs are accessed directly using the Autostar II "hot keys": Caldwell (key "2"), Messier catalog ("3"), Solar System ("5"), IC ("8"), and NGC ("9"). To slew the telescope to catalog objects: Enter the catalog number of the object using the Number keys and then press ENTER. For example: To slew to NGC 6720, press Number Key "9," then using the Number keys, enter the digits "6-7-2-0." Then press ENTER. Autostar II displays the common name and alternate names of the object, if available. Press one of the Scroll keys to display some or all of the following information about that object: Type of object (galaxy, nebula, etc.), Dec. and R.A. coordinates, constellation it is located within, magnitude, size, distance, and star-type classification, if the object is a star. If further information is available, it displays as scrolling text. Press GO TO. The telescope, if aligned, will slew to that chosen object. Press MODE repeatedly to return to previous menu levels. User Objects: Allows the user to define and store in memory deep-sky objects of specific interest that are not currently in the Autostar II libraries. See CREATING USER OBJECTS, page 42, for more information. Identify: An exciting feature for an observer who wants to scan the night sky and start exploring. After the telescope has been properly aligned, use the Autostar II Arrow keys to move about in the sky. Then follow this procedure: Important Note: Only use the Arrow keys to move the telescope during the Identify procedure. Do not loosen the telescope locks or move the base or alignment is lost. 1. 2. 3. 4. When a desired object is visible in the eyepiece, keep pressing MODE until the "Select Item: Object" menu is displayed. Press ENTER to select this menu. Scroll through the Object menu options until the "Object: Identify" screen appears. Press ENTER. Autostar II searches the libraries for the identity of the object being observed. If the telescope is not directly on an Autostar II library object, the nearest library object is located and displayed on the screen. Press GO TO and the telescope slews to that object. 34 Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. Browse: Allows you to search the library for objects with certain parameters, much like a search engine. "Edit Parameters" lets you set various parameters for the search, such as: Object Type, Minimum Elevation, Largest, etc. Once you have set the parameters of the search, select "Start Search" and press ENTER. Autostar II will display the results of the search. Event Menu The Event menu provides access to dates and times of astronomical events. The Event database includes: Sunrise, Sun Transit, and Sunset: Calculate the time of Sun rise, Sun transit, or Sun set on the current date. Find rise and set times for other dates by entering a new date into the "Setup: Date" menu. Moonrise, Moon Transit, and Moonset: Calculate the time of Moon rise, Moon transit, or Moon set on the current date. Find rise and set times for other dates by entering a new date into the "Setup: Date" menu. Moon Phases: Displays the date and time of the next Full, New, 1st Quarter, and 3rd Quarter Moon. Meteor Showers: Provides information on upcoming meteor showers, such as the Perseids, the Leonids, etc. Also lists the dates of the showers and when they reach maximum. Note: Meteors are fast moving objects that cover large areas of the sky and are usually best observed with the naked eye. Solar Eclipse: Lists upcoming Solar Eclipses, including the date and type (total, annular, or partial) of eclipse. Use the Scroll Up and Down keys to display the available data. This option is dependent on your location. Lunar Eclipse: Lists upcoming Lunar Eclipses, including the date and type (total, partial, penumbral) of eclipse. Use the Scroll Up and Down keys to display the available data. Min. (Minimum) of Algol: Displays the minimum brightness of the dramatic eclipsing binary star system, Algol. It is relatively close at a distance of 100 light years. Every 2.8 days during a 10-hour period, Algol undergoes a major change in apparent magnitude as one of the two stars passes behind the other. The combined magnitude of the two stars thus dips from +2.1 to a minimum of +3.4 halfway through the eclipse as the second star is hidden. Autostar II calculates minimum magnitude time at mideclipse. Autumn and Vernal Equinox: Calculate the time and date of the fall or spring equinox of the current year. Winter and Summer Solstice: Calculate the time and date of the winter or summer solstice of the current year. Glossary Menu The Glossary menu provides an alphabetical listing of definitions and descriptions for common astronomical terms and Autostar II functions. Access directly through the Glossary menu or through hypertext words embedded in Autostar II. A hypertext word is any word in [brackets], usually found when using the Autostar II Help function or when reading a scrolling message such as a description of a planet or star. Press ENTER whenever a hypertext word is on screen and Autostar II goes to the glossary entry for that word. To access directly from within the Glossary menu, use the Scroll keys to scroll through the alphabet. Press ENTER on the desired letter. Scroll to the desired entry and then press ENTER to read the description. Utilities Menu The Utilities menu provides access to several extra features within Autostar II, including a countdown timer and an alarm. The Utilities functions include: Balance OTA: Use while you're balancing the OTA (see pages 22 - 23 for complete procedure). Allows to balance on both axes. Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. 35 OTA Fan: Allows you to turn the fan off or on if you have an RCX model. The fan assists with the stabilization of the optics. The fan should be activated at the beginning of an observing session and run until the optics have achieved an equilibrium with the environment. Fan operation time should range from about 5 to 25 minutes. Note that the fan may introduce a slight vibration and this may cause noticeable movement observed with sensitive optics. Dew Heater: Allows you to adjust heater level, setting from 0 to 100. OTA Temperature: Provides a temperature reading at the edge of the corrector plate. Ambient Temperature: Provides a temperature reading at the fork arm. Timer: Selects a countdown timer. This feature is useful for functions such as astrophotography and tracking satellites. To use the Timer, press ENTER, then choose "Set" or "Start/Stop." Set: Enter the time to be counted down, in hours, minutes, and seconds, then press ENTER. Start/Stop: Activates the timer set previously. Use the Scroll keys to toggle between ON and OFF. When ON is displayed, press ENTER to activate the timer. When the timer runs out, four beeps sound and the timer is deactivated. Alarm: Selects a time for an alarm signal to sound as a reminder. To use the Alarm, press ENTER, then choose "Set" or "Start/Stop." Set: Enter the time of day for the alarm to sound, in hours, minutes, and seconds, then press ENTER. Start/Stop: Activates the alarm set previously. Use the Scroll keys to toggle between ON and OFF. When ON is displayed, press ENTER to activate the alarm. When the alarm time arrives, Autostar II beeps. Press ENTER to deactivate the alarm. Eyepiece Calc: Calculates information about an eyepiece for the specific telescope to which Autostar II is connected. Field of View: Scroll through a list of available eyepieces. When an eyepiece is selected, the field of view is calculated. Magnification: Scroll through a list of available eyepieces. When an eyepiece is selected, the magnification is calculated. Suggest: Autostar II calculates and suggests the best eyepiece for viewing, based on the telescope and the object being viewed. Tip: The Contrast Adjustment feature is usually only required in very cold weather. If you adjust the contrast so that you can no longer read the display, turn off the power and turn it on again. When Version appears on the display (the initial display screens are not affected by the Contrast control), press MODE. Brightest Star: Gives you a choice of Autostar displaying "CTR Bright Star" or identifying the star by name during alignment. Contrast Adj: Adjusts the contrast of the display using the Scroll keys. When complete, press ENTER. Panel Light: Allows you to turn off LED panel light. Aux Port Power: Allows you turn off and on the 12vDC OUT power port. Beep: Turns the beep alerts on or off. Temperature: Gives a temperature reading of the ambient air. This reading is not always available. Sleep Scope: A power saving option that shuts down Autostar II and the telescope without forgetting its alignment. With "Sleep Scope" selected, press ENTER to activate the Sleep function. Autostar II goes dark, but the internal clock keeps running. Press any key, except ENTER, to re-activate Autostar II and the telescope. Park Scope: Designed for a telescope that is not moved between observing sessions. Align the telescope one time, then use this function to park the telescope. The next time it is powered up, pressing ENTER causes the telescope to move to its predetermined Park position. Once parked, the screen prompts to turn off power. 36 Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. Important Note: When the "Park Scope" option is chosen and the display prompts you to turn off the telescope's power, Autostar II is unable to be returned to operation without turning the power off and then back on. Setup Menu There are numerous other features available within the Setup menu, including: Align: Let's you choose a method of alignment. Align on Home: If Calibrate Home has been performed, power up your telescope and select this menu to return the previously calibrated home position. In other words, the telescope is fully aligned according to the setting that were stored in Autostar II's memory during the Calibrate Home procedure. See CALIBRATE HOME, below, for more information. Telescope: Accesses several options, including: Telescope Model: Allows you to select the type of OTA mounted on Max. Collimate: Allows you use the Arrow keys to collimate the telescope. See pages 28 - 29 for more details. Align OTA: Allows you to align the OTA properly if you are not using an RCX model or if you have changed your RCX collimation or mounting significantly from the factory defaults. When you select this menu, Autostar will ask you to center two stars in the telescope that are on opposite sides of the sky. Once you have centered them, the telescope will slew back to the first star. You will then be asked to center the star using the OTA align bolt. These are two bolts, with one in the center of the other. Using a flat wrench, loosen the center bolt. Then place open ended or combination spanner wrenches on each bolt and turn them together. Turn them in the direction that centers the star. When centered, tighten just the center bolt. This will hold the bolts securely in that position. Max Past Meridian: Allows you to set how far the OTA axis can tilt past the meridian. 2° is the default setting. Focal Length: Displays the focal length of the selected telescope. Max Slew Rate: Sets the upper limit for the slew rate. 2.4° degrees per second is the fastest setting. Park Position: After aligning your telescope, select this menu and power down the telescope. The alignment settings--North, time, alignment stars--are stored in Autostar II's memory and are remembered after you power off the telescope. When you power on the telescope, "Automatic Alignment" displays after the start up routine. Press MODE (do not press ENTER). The telescope remembers its alignment and you can continue viewing or performing other operations without aligning the telescope again. Park Position provides two options. Use Current Position uses the last position set by the user. Default Position places scope in the home position. Calibrate Home: For permanently mounted telescopes only. After aligning your telescope, select this menu and the alignment settings--North, time, alignment stars--are stored in Autostar II's memory and are remembered after you power off the telescope. You can enable Autostar II to retrieve and automatically align your telescope using these settings the next time you power up by choosing the Align on Home menu. This menu helps improve auto alignment. Anti-Backlash: This option allows you to change the backlash along either the R.A. and the Dec. axes by entering a number from 0% to 199%. This sets the backlash in the way the Arrow keys move the telescope along an axis. If you enter a value near 199%, telescope responds more quickly as you hold down an Arrow key. If you enter a value near 0%, it takes longer for the tube to respond as you hold down an Arrow key. Experiment with this option: Try changing the values until the motion of the telescope (while holding down an Arrow key) feels comfortable to you. Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. 37 Train Drive: All telescopes have a certain amount of "backlash" (looseness in the interplay of gears). This menu allows you to compensate for the backlash in the the R.A. and Dec motors--which helps locate objects with more precision. Tracking Rate: Changes the speed at which the telescope tracks targets in the sky. a. Sidereal: The default setting for Autostar II; sidereal rate is the standard rate at which stars move from East to West across the sky due to the rotation of the Earth. Lunar: Choose this option to properly track the Moon over long observing sessions. Solar: Choose this option when observing the Sun. Custom: Allows entry of user-defined tracking rates. Note: Custom Tracking Rate allows you to enter values from -999.999 to 999.999. The lower the number, the slower the rate; the higher the number the faster the rate. If you enter -999, the telescope will move so slow as to appear to be stopped. If you enter 999, the telescope will be moving at approximately twice the tracking rate. b. c. c. Guiding Rate: Allows you to change the base slew speed, 1x. Enter a percentage of the speed (less than 100%) and press ENTER. This function may be useful in guiding the telescope during CCD and long-exposure photography. See SLEW SPEEDS, page 26, for more information. Dec Guiding: Allows a user using an autoguider to disengage autoguider inputs. Allows you to select N & S, North only, South only, and off. Reverse L/R: Reverses the functions of the Left and Right Arrow keys for controlling the telescope's motion (i.e., the Right key moves the telescope to the left). Reverse U/D: Reverses the functions of the Up and Down Arrow keys for controlling the telescope's motion (i.e., the Up key moves the telescope down). Home Sensor: Turns off or on the True North sensor, if preferred, for Easy, OneStar, and Two-Star alignment. The default setting for this menu is "On." GPS Alignment: Allows three options. Select "Off" if you wish to align the telescope manually (turns off GPS). Select "On" (default setting) if you wish to automatically align your telescope and want the telescope to get the GPS fix when it is needed during alignment. Select "At Start Up" if you want the telescope to get a GPS fix when the telescope is powered up. R.A. PEC: Allows you to perform periodic error correction on the R.A. drive worm gear. Must be performed with a high-power reticle (eg., 9mm). You may restore the factory default setting by selecting "On." High Precision: If High Precision is turned on, when looking for a faint celestial object (e.g., a nebula or galaxy), Autostar II first slews to a nearby bright star and displays "ENTER to Sync." Center the star in the eyepiece, then press ENTER. At that point the telescope has a high precision alignment to that part of the sky and it then slews to the object that was originally requested. Time: Changes the time entered into Autostar II. Setting the correct time is critical for Autostar II to properly calculate locations and events. Time may be set to "AM," "PM," or 24-hour mode (military time). To select the 24-hour mode, press ENTER when the the "blank" option displays (i.e., neither "AM" nor "PM" is displayed). Tip: If the "ENTER to Sync" feature is accessed by mistake (holding the ENTER key for more than 2 seconds), press MODE to return to the previous screen. Targets: Switches between Astronomical targets and Terrestrial targets. If "Astronomical" is selected, the telescope tracking motor is activated and any object you observe in the sky will remain centered in the eyepiece. If "Terrestrial" is selected, the tracking motor is turned off. Date: Changes the date used by Autostar II. This function is useful to check events in the past or future. For example: Set the Date menu for a day three months in the future. Then check the "Select Item: Event" menu for the Sunset time on that date. See EVENT MENU, page 35. 38 Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. Daylight Saving: Enables or disables the Daylight Savings time setting. Note: Daylight Savings Time may be referred to by different names in various areas of the world. Check local time to verify. Smart Mount: See page 55 for detailed information. GPS-UTC Offset: Universal Time (UTC) allows you to add leap seconds to its time calculations, GPS does not. The offset is the number of leap seconds added since the establishment of GPS. Site: Site provides access to several options including: Select: Displays the currently selected observing site. Use the Scroll keys to cycle through all available sites (see ADD below). Press ENTER when the site you wish to select displays. Use this option when you move to a different geographic location. Add: Allows you to add new observing sites to the database. Scroll through the list of Countries/States. Press ENTER when the site you wish to add displays. Then choose the desired city in the same manner. However, when the GPS signal is received, the site is normally selected automatically and the site list is updated automatically. Use of this option is not necessary and is included for the convenience of those users who may wish to enter a site manually. You may edit the name of a site using the Edit option (see below). Delete: Deletes a stored site from the database. Edit: Edits a selected site, including: the name, latitude, longitude, and time zone. Time Zone refers to the Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) time zone shift. Users West of Greenwich, England use "-" hours, East of Greenwich use "+" hours. For the United States, look up the time zone shift in Table 1. Note: Autostar II compensates for daylight savings time, if selected. See SETUP MENU: DAYLIGHT SAVING, above. Owner Info: Accesses the owner information menu, including: Name: Users may enter both their first and last names using the Up and Down Arrow keys to cycle through the alphabet. Use the Right and Left Arrow keys to move through the text. Press ENTER when the entry is complete. Address: Use the Up and Down Arrow keys to enter your street address, city, state, and zip code. Press ENTER when the entry is complete. Note: The Download function requires the USB cable supplied with the RCX telescope. See page 49 for more information on how to download. Time Zone Atlantic Eastern Central Mountain Pacific Alaska Hawaii Shift -4 Hours -5 Hours -6 Hours -7 Hours -8 Hours -9 Hours -10 Hours Table 1: Time Zone Shift. Calculations are for standard time. Clone: Uploads information from one Autostar II handbox to another. Three options are available: Catalogs: Sends only user-defined object information, such as new satellite orbits or comet data to another Autostar II handbox. Software: Sends only the basic Autostar II software. This is useful if one user has downloaded a new version of Autostar II software from the Meade website (www.meade.com) and wants to pass this software along to friends. All: Everything--user-defined information and Autostar II software--is sent to another Autostar II. Download: Transfers information from another Autostar II. During the operation, the warning "Downloading Do Not Turn Off" appears. Catalogs: Receives only user-defined object information, such as new satellite orbits or comet data to another Autostar II handbox. Software: Receives only the basic Autostar II software. This is useful if one user has downloaded a new version of Autostar II software from the Meade website (www.meade.com) and wants to pass this software along to friends. All: Everything--user-defined information and Autostar II software--is received by another Autostar II handbox. Important Note: If your download fails in the middle of the download attempt (e.g., your PC crashes), turn off the telescope. Turn the telescope back on and as soon the Autostar II display lights up, press "999." Then attempt the download again. Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. 39 Statistics: Provides basic statistical data about Autostar II, including: Characters Free: Displays how much room is available in user-defined object memory. Version: Displays the current version of the Autostar II software. Serial Number: Displays the unit's serial number. Reset: Completely resets Autostar II. Most values entered into the menus revert to factory defaults. Autostar II requires initialization again after a Reset before proceeding with observations. "Hot Button" Menus Two menus, six object libraries and two functions can be accessed directly using the Number keys (commonly referred to as "hot buttons"). The two functions, the Speed mode and the Utility light are described earlier in the manual. Focus Control Menus: Press Number key "4" to select these menus directly from Autostar II's keypad. Each time you press Focus, the key toggles between focus/focus speed menus and the preset control menus. When "Focuser: Fast" displays, press the Up or Down Scroll keys to select a focus speed (fast, medium, slow or fine). When "Focuser: Position" displays, use the Up or Down Arrow keys to achieve fine focus of the object. You can toggle the Focus key to display the "Focuser: Preset" menus. The Focuser preset menu allows you to assign nine focus positions. If you "park" the telescope, you can set your own focus, focus for your observing partners and the focus for your camera or imager. Other Preset menus allow you to select a focus you have assigned and also to Sync on a Focus Preset. The Sync on a Focus Preset allows you retrieve focus positions when you do not park your telescope. See page 37 for information about parking your telescope. Reticle Control Menu: Press Number key "7" to select this menu directly from Autostar II's keypad. "Reticle Control: Set Intensity" displays. Press ENTER. The Intensity menu allows you to change the intensity of the Reticle Eyepiece Illuminator. Use the Scroll keys to change the value. As you change the value, look through the reticle to note how the Intensity changes. Note: You may continue to change the values using the Scroll keys (and thus changing the intensity) until you press ENTER again. This allows you to experiment with the intensity level until you decide which intensity level works best for you. This feature operates in the same manner in the Rate and Duty Cycle menus. When you have finished adjusting the intensity, press ENTER. Press Number key "7" again and the Rate menu displays. Press ENTER again. Use the Scroll keys to change the value of the the rate at which the Reticle Eyepiece blinks. As you change the value, look through the reticle to note how the Blink Rate changes. When you have finished adjusting the rate, press ENTER. Next, Press Number key "7" again and the Duty Cycle menu displays. Press ENTER again. The Duty Cycle menu controls how long the Reticle Eyepiece Illuminator is on during a blink cycle. Use the Scroll keys to change the value. As you change the value, look through the reticle to note how the Duty Cycle changes. When you have decided on a Duty Cycle value, press ENTER. To exit the Reticle menu, press MODE once. 40 Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. ADVANCED AUTOSTAR II FEATURES Before trying out the examples in this section, familiarize yourself with the basic operations of Autostar II described earlier in this manual. The following examples assume that you have a basic knowledge of Autostar II and understand how to scroll to a desired menu or menu option, and how to enter numbers and text. It also assumes that you have initialized and aligned your telescope. Adding Observing Sites If you plan to observe using Autostar II at different geographic locations, you can store observation sites in Autostar II's memory to help simplify your telescope setup. Perform these procedures using the Site options (Add, Select, Delete, Edit) of the Setup menu. To Add a Site to the user-defined site list: Important Note: The Site information is stored in the Site menu. If you move the telescope more than 5 miles of your initial observing location, Autostar II automatically determines your location when it gets a GPS Fix, and adds the new location to the Site menu. In this example, you will choose a city and add it to the database list. You will then select the site to enable it. 1. 2. 3. 4. Navigate to the "Setup: Site" menu. Press ENTER, Scroll through the options until "Site: Add" displays. Press ENTER. Scroll through the list of countries/states. Press ENTER when the country/state you wish to add displays. Scroll through the list of cities. Press ENTER when the city you wish to add displays. The Site is now added to the database. You may add sites using this method. To choose a site, navigate to "Setup: Select." Press ENTER. Scroll through the list of sites. When the desired site displays, press ENTER. 5. To Edit a Site: In this procedure, you will enter a location that is not available in the Autostar II database by editing data of a nearby site. You will edit the location's name, latitude, longitude, and the time zone shift. You will then select the site to enable it. You will need to know the latitude and longitude of your location to perform this procedure. 1. Using the Add option, choose a site on the list that is closest to your observing site and press ENTER so that the site is added to your observing sites list. Choosing a site already on the list (as opposed to using the "Custom" feature) makes it easier to edit, as the "Time Zone" value may not need to be changed. Scroll to "Site: Edit" and press ENTER. "Edit: Name" displays. Press ENTER. The name of the site you have just entered to your list displays; if it does not, scroll to the site. Using the Arrow keys, change the name of the site so that it now reads the name of your observing location. Press ENTER. "Edit: Name" displays again. Press the Scroll Down key and "Edit: Latitude" displays. Press ENTER. Using the Number Keys, enter the latitude of your observing site and then press ENTER. "Edit: Latitude" displays again. Press the Scroll Down key and "Edit: Longitude" displays. Press ENTER. Using the Number Keys, enter the longitude of your observing site and then press ENTER. "Edit: Longitude" displays again. Press the Scroll Down key and "Edit: Time Zone" displays. Press ENTER. (If the site you chose from the list in step 1 has the same Time Zone as the site you are editing, just press ENTER again to go on to the next step.) "Time Zone" refers to the Greenwich Time Zone shift. Users West of Greenwich, use "-" hours (one hour per time zone) and users East of Greenwich use "+" hours. For the United States, look up the shift in TABLE 1, page 39. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. After entering the shift, press ENTER. "Edit Time Zone" displays. Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving. 41 11. Press MODE. "Site: Edit" displays. 12. Using the Arrow keys, scroll to "Site: Select." The site you have just edited displays. Press ENTER to select the site. Creating User Objects In this procedure, you will enter coordinates of celestial objects that do not appear in any of the Autostar II libraries.You will enter the object's name and R.A. and Dec. coordinates (required information). You may also enter the object's magnitude and size (optional information). Although Autostar II contains an extensive database of celestial objects (stars, nebulae, planets, etc.) that you can observe, you may eventually want to view objects that are not part of a library. Autostar II provides a feature that allows you to enter an object's R.A and Dec. coordinates in the "User: Objects" option of the Object menu and allows automatic slewing of the telescope to the user-entered coordinates. In order to use this menu option, you first need to look up the R.A and Dec. coordinates of the object or objects you wish to observe. Check your local library, computer store, or bookstore for astronomy books, CD Roms, or magazines (such as Sky & Telescope or Astronomy), to find coordinates of celestial objects. The objects/coordinates you enter become part of your own permanent database, called "User Objects." To enter coordinates of an object into the "User: Objects" option of the Object menu: 1. 2. Make sure Autostar II has been initialized and the telescope has been aligned. After the telescope is aligned, "Select Item: Object" displays. (If necessary, use the Scroll keys to scroll through the menus, as previously described, to find this option.) Press ENTER. "Object: Solar System" displays. Keep pressing the Scroll Up key until "Object: User Object" displays and press ENTER. "User Object: Select" displays. Press the Scroll Down key once. "User Object: Add" displays. Press ENTER. "Name" displays on the top line and a blinking cursor on the second line. Use the Arrow keys, as previously described, to enter the name of the object you wish to add to the database. When you are finished, press ENTER. "Right Asc.: 00.00.0" displays. Use the Number keys to enter the digits for the Right Ascension coordinate of your object. When you are finished, press ENTER. "Declination: +00°.00'" displays. Use the Number keys to enter the digits for the Declination coordinate of your object. If necessary, use the Scroll Keys to change "+" to "-." When you are finished, press ENTER. Autostar II then prompts you to enter the size of the object. This step is optional. Use the Number keys to enter the size (in arc-minutes), if so desired, and press ENTER to go to the next display. If you do not wish to enter this information, simply press ENTER. Autostar II then prompts you to enter the magnitude of the object. This step is also optional. Use the Number keys to enter this information, if so desired, and press ENTER to go to the next display. "User Object: Add" displays again. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. To GO TO a user-entered object: In this procedure, you will choose an object from the User Object list and GO TO the object. 1. 2. 3. 4. With "User Object: Add" displayed, press the Scroll Up key once. "User Object: Select" displays. Press ENTER. Use the Scroll keys (if necessary) to scroll to the desired object. Press ENTER. The name of the object and the Right Ascension and Declination coordinates display. Press GO TO and the telescope slews to the object.