Celestron NexStar HC Hand Control Operation, Alignment Procedure, Auto-Align, Alignment Stars

Messier – Complete list of all Messier objects.

NGC – Complete list of all the deep-sky objects in the Revised New General Catalog. Caldwell – A combination of the best NGC and IC objects.

Planets - All 8 planets in our Solar System plus the Sun and moon. Stars – A compiled list of the brightest stars from the SAO catalog.

List – For quick access, all of the best and most popular objects in the NexStar database have been broken down into lists based on their type and/or common name:

Alignment Stars	Common name listing of the brightest stars in the sky.
Named Objects	Alphabetical listing of over 50 of the most popular deep
	sky objects.
Double Stars	Numeric-alphabetical listing of the most visually stunning
	double, triple and quadruple stars in the sky.
Variable Stars	Select list of the brightest variable stars with the shortest
	period of changing magnitude.
Asterisms	A unique list of some of the most recognizable star
	patterns in the sky.

5.Info: Displays coordinates and useful information about objects selected from the NexStar database.

6.Tour: Activates the tour mode, which seeks out all the best objects for a given month and automatically slews the NexStar to those objects.

7.Enter: Pressing Enter allows you to selects any of the NexStar functions and accept entered parameters.

8.Undo: Undo will take you out of the current menu and display the previous level of the menu path. Press Undo repeatedly to get back to a main menu or use it to erase data entered by mistake.

9.Menu: Displays the many setup and utilities functions such as tracking rate and user defined objects and many others.

10.Scroll Keys: Used to scroll up and down within any of the menu lists. Using these keys will scroll through those sub-menus.

11.Rate: Instantly changes the rate of speed of the motors when the direction buttons are pressed.

12.RS-232 Jack: Allows you to interface with a computer and control the NexStar remotely.

Hand Control Operation

This section describes the basic hand control procedures needed to operate the NexStar. These procedures are grouped into three categories: Alignment, Setup and Utilities. The alignment section deals with the initial telescope alignment as well as finding objects in the sky; the setup section discusses changing parameters such as tracking mode and tracking rate; finally, the last section reviews all of the utilities functions such as cordwrap and backlash compensation.

The first time that the NexStar is used, it will request information to help identify the model of telescope. Once initialized (powered on), the hand control will display the message Select Model. Use the Up and Down menu keys (10) to scroll through the different NexStar models. Press ENTER when your NexStar model is displayed on the hand control. This information will be retained for future use and will not be displayed again. Note: your hand control may have been pre set at the factory to operate with your NexStar model. If so, there will be an addendum packaged with the hand control. If your hand control has been pre-set, the display will read NexStar Ready – Custom, and you can simply press ENTER and continue to follow the Auto Align procedures below.

Alignment Procedure

In order for the NexStar to accurately point to objects in the sky, it must first be aligned to two known positions (stars) in the sky. With this information, the telescope can create a model of the sky, which it uses to locate any object with known coordinates.

Auto-Align

Auto-Align is the easiest way to get the NexStar aligned and ready to observe. Even if you do not know a single star in the sky, the NexStar will align itself by guiding the user through the alignment procedure by asking for basic information about the date, time and location. The NexStar will then automatically choose two stars for alignment and roughly center the stars in the field of view of the Star Pointer. Before the telescope is ready to be aligned, it should be set up in an outside location

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