Care and Maintenance of Your Telescope

There are many conditions that may affect your ability to focus or observe celestial objects clearly.

• Brightly lit areas (light pollution) will make it difficult to see faint objects in the sky. It will also make it difficult for your eyes to adjust to the dark. You should try and find a dark area and allow your eyes to adjust to the dark before making observations. Using a red filtered flashlight to view charts and your telescope components is recom- mended to preserve your night sight. The best viewing conditions are when the sky is inky black.

• Hazy skies, pollution, clouds and moisture can all affect the clarity of your viewing image.

• Avoid touching the eyepiece or optical tube while looking through the telescope. The vibrations caused by this contact will cause the object you are looking at to move. You should also make sure that the surface you place your telescope on does not vibrate or move as this will also cause your viewing object to move.

• You should avoid setting up your telescope inside a room looking through an open window. The difference in air temperatures may result in a blurry image.

• Viewing through a closed window might also result in a distorted im- age due to the varying densities of window glass.

• Avoid viewing objects that are low on the horizon. Objects that are higher up in the sky will appear much sharper.

• Sudden changes in temperature may cause condensation to appear on the optical components of the telescope. It is best to set up your telescope ahead of time and then wait while the telescope adjusts to the new temperature before using it.

	Care and Maintenance of Your Telescope:
	Cleaning:
	• Always replace dust covers and lens caps when not in use. This will
	minimize the amount of dust and debris that gets into your telescope.
	• Cleaning should be performed only if absolutely necessary. If dust
	has built up on the optics use a soft camel’s hair brush or pressurized
	air to gently remove it.
	• If dew collects on the optics of your telescope or moisture condenses
	inside the optics, remove all accessories and place the telescope in a
	dry, dust free environment and point the telescope downward. This
	should help eliminate the moisture.
	• Avoid touching the surface of the mirror.
18	• Do not attempt to take apart your telescope to clean it.
18

Collimation of the Optics:

The internal optics of the telescope have already been “collimated” or “aligned” at the factory. However, rough handling of the telescope may knock the optics out of collimation, resulting in poor optical performance. Please refer to Fig. 10 to better understand the internal layout of your telescope. To determine if your telescope needs collimation perform the following steps:

• Remove the eyepiece (Fig. 1-3) from the focuser (Fig. 1-2) and turn the focusing knob (Fig. 1-4) until the tube is at its innermost position.

• Point the telescope at a plain background and then peer through the empty focuser. You should see a series of concentric circles (See Fig. 11). The outer most circle being a reflection of the primary mir- ror (with three mirror clips). The inner circle is the diagonal mirror, which should be precisely centered inside the primary mirror. You should see the reflection of your eye in the diagonal mirror.

Fig.10Fig.11

Adjusting the Diagonal Holder:

If the telescope is properly collimated you should see the primary mirror (See Fig. 10) and three clips in their entirety. If the primary mirror is not centered properly (See Fig. 12) you will need to adjust the diagonal mirror (See Fig. 10) to correct this. Loosen the diagonal mirror so that you can move the diagonal holder (See Fig. 10) with your hand. Tilt the diagonal holder until the entire primary mirror is visible and carefully retighten the screws to lock it into place. If necessary, turn the three screws slightly to make fine adjustments.