14
to use your hand controlon a different NexStar model, the Select Model utility feature allows you to re-select the proper
NexStarmodel from the displayed list (see Select Model later in this section).
2. Usethe Up and Down scroll keys to select AutoAlign if it is not already displayed,and press ENTER.
3. The telescope will then ask you to use the direction keys(3) to level the telescope tube and point the front of the
telescopetowards north. North can be found by finding the direction of the North Star (Polaris) or by using a compass.
Youdo not need to point at the North Star, onlythe north horizon. Alignmentonly needs to be approximate, however a
closeal ignment will make the auto alignment more accurate. Once th e telescope is in the north and level position, press
ENTER.
4. Thehand control display will then ask for the following information:
Location- The NexStar will display a list of cities to choosefrom. Choose the city from the database that is closestto
yourcurrent observing site. The city youchoose will be remembered in the hand controls memory so that
it will be automaticallydisplayed the next time an alignment is done. Alternatively, if you know the exact
longitude and latitude of your observing site, it can be entered directlyinto the hand control and
remembered for future use as well. Tochoose a location city:
Use theUp and Down scroll keys to choose between City Database and Custom Site. City Database willallow
youto select the closest city to your observing site from a list of either international or U.S. location. Custom Site
allows you to enter the exact longitude and latitude of your observing site. Select City Database and press
ENTER.
The hand control will allow you to choose from either U.S. or international locations. For a listing of U.S.
locationsby state and then by city, press ENTER while United S tates
United StatesUnited States
United States isdisplayed. For international locations,
usethe Up or Down scroll key to select International
InternationalInternational
Internationaland press ENTER.
To display a list of local cities, first select your state fromthe alphabetical listing (or a list of countries if
Internationallocations wasselected) and press ENTER.
Choosethe closest city to your location from the displayed list and press ENTER.
Time - Enter the current time for your area. You can en ter either the local time (i.e. 8:00), or you can enter military
time(i.e. 20:00).
SelectPM or AM. Ifmilitary time was entered, the hand control will bypass this step.
Choose between Standard timeor Daylight Savings time. Use the Up and Down scroll buttons (10) to toggle
betweenoptions.
Selectthe time zone that you are observing from. Again, use the Up and Down buttons (10)to scroll through the
choices.For time zone information, refer to the Time Zone map in theappendix of this manual.
Date - Enter the month, day and year of your observingsession. The display will read: mm/dd/yy.
If the wrong informationhas been input into the hand control, the UNDO buttonwill act as a backspace allowing
theuser to re-enter information.
The next time that your NexStar is Auto Aligned, the hand control will automatically display the last location
(either a cityor longitude/latitude) that was entered. Pressing the UNDO button will allow you to goback and
selecta new city location or longitude/latitude.
Basedon this information, the NexStar will automaticallyselect a bright star that is above the horizon and slew towards it. At
this point the telescope is onlyr oughlyaligned, so the alignment star should only be close to the field of view of the Star
Pointerfinder. Once finished slewing, the display willask you to use the arrow buttons to align the selected star with the red
dotin the center of the Star Pointer. If for some reason the chosenstar is not visible (perhaps behind a tree or building) you
can press UNDO to select and slew to a different star. Once centered in the finder, press ENTER. The display will then
instruct you to center the star in the field of view of the eyepiece. When t he star is centered, press ALIGN to accept this star
as your first alignment star. (There is no need to adjust the slewing rate of the motors after each alignment step. The NexStar
automatically selects the best slewing rate for aligning objects in both the Star Poi nter and the eyepiece). After the first
alignment star has been entered the NexStar will automatically slew to a second alignment star and have you repeat the same
Helpful
Hints