WARNING!
Never use a Meade® RCX400™ 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 tele- scope 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.
®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
D422,610 Patent Pending.
© 2006 Meade Instruments Corporation.
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 |