Meade LX200GPS instruction manual One-Star Alt/Az Alignment, To Set the Home Position Manually

Note:

Autostar II locates align- ment stars based on the date, time, and location entered. The alignment stars may change from night to night. All that is required is for the observer to center the selected stars in the eyepiece when prompted.

Tip:

Try a Spiral Search

The GO TO key also allows you to perform a "spiral search." A spiral search is useful when the telescope slews to an object, but that object is not visible in the eyepiece after the telescope finish- es its search. (This some- times occurs during an alignment procedure.) Press GO TO when the slew is finished and the telescope starts slewing in a spiral pattern at a very slow speed around the search area. Look through the eyepiece and when the object does become visible, press MODE to stop the spiral search. Then use the Arrow keys to center the object.

2.Select Alignment. Press the Scroll keys until "Align: Two Star" displays. Press

ENTER.

3.Set Home Position. Place the telescope in the home position.

To Set the Home Position Manually:

a.See Figs. 19 and 20, page 37. Loosen the telescope’s Dec. lock (17, Fig. 1). Set the optical tube to 0° on the Dec. setting circle (Fig. 20).

b.Tighten the Dec. lock (17, Fig. 1) to a firm feel only.

c.Level the tripod base.

d.Move the base of the telescope so that the computer control panel (13, Fig. 1) approximately faces South.

e.Unlock the R.A. lock (12, Fig. 1) and turn the telescope's optical tube hori- zontally until it points North. See Fig. 37, page 52, for more information.

f.Re-lock the R.A. lock (12, Fig. 1). Press ENTER.

g.Press ENTER.

4 . Star Alignment. "Select Star" displays. Autostar II then displays a library of stars for the observer to choose from. Use the Scroll keys to scroll to a star on the list that you wish to align upon. Select a star that you can easily locate in the night sky. Press ENTER.

5.Center Star. The telescope slews to the star. Use the Arrow keys to move the telescope until the star is centered in the eyepiece. Press ENTER.

6.Center Star. Repeat procedure for the second alignment star. The telescope is aligned and you are now ready to use Autostar II's GO TO capabilities for a night of observing.

One-Star Alt/Az Alignment

One-Star Alignment requires some knowledge of the night sky. Autostar II provides a library of bright stars. One-Star Alignment is identical to Two-Star Alt/Az: Alignment (see TWO-STAR ALT/AZ ALIGNMENT, page 37), except only one star from the data- base is chosen by the observer for alignment.

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