Meade Optional #494 Autostar Computer Controller for DS-2000EC Users, Slew Speeds

Slew Speeds

The Electronic Controller has four slew speeds that are directly proportional to the sidereal rate (see page 16 for more information). Press the Speed key to change the slew speed. Note each slew speed corresponds to one of the four LED's of the Electronic Controller.

Light 1 (top LED): The fastest speed. Use to move the telescope quickly from one point in the sky to another.

Light 2: Best for centering an object in the viewfinder.

Light 3: Best for centering an object in the field of a low-to-moderate-power eyepiece, such as the standard SP 26mm.

Light 4: The slowest speed. Use to center an object in the field of view of high-power eyepieces, such as a 9mm eyepiece.

The four available speeds are:

Light 1	=	1200 x sidereal (300 arc-min/sec or 5°/sec)
Light 2	=	180 x sidereal	(45 arc-min/sec or 0.75°/sec)
Light 3	=	32 x sidereal	(8 arc-min/sec or 0.13°/sec)
Light 4	=	8 x sidereal	(2 arc-min/sec or 0.034°/sec)

The two slowest speeds (8x and 32x sidereal) can be used for pushbutton (manual) tracking of astro- nomical objects while observing through the eyepiece.

To move the telescope using the Electronic Controller:

1.Set the telescope on a level surface.

2.Insert a low-power eyepiece (e.g., 25mm) into the eyepiece holder (2, Fig. 1) or diagonal prism (3, Fig. 1) and tighten the eyepiece thumbscrew.

3.Tighten the Dec. lock (10, Fig. 1) and the tripod base lock knob (26, Fig. 1), if necessary.

4.Verify that the power switch (C, Fig. 1c) on the telescope’s Computer Control panel is OFF.

5.Plug in the Electronic Controller coil cord (4, Fig. 33) to the HBX port (A, Fig. 1c) on the Computer Control panel.

6.Flip the power switch to ON. The power indicator (B, Fig. 1c) on the Computer Control panel lights and all four speed indicators (2, Fig. 33) blink rapidly.

7.Press any key on the Electronic Controller and the telescope slews momentarily in the vertical and horizontal directions to test the motors.

8.When the test is complete, light 1 remains on; lights 2, 3, and 4 turn off.

9.Use the four Arrow keys (1, Fig. 33) to slew the telescope to the desired object. To change the slew speed, press the SPEED key.

10.Fine-adjust the position of the object with the Electronic Controller Arrow keys so that it is cen- tered in the viewfinder. The object is now ready to be viewed through the telescope’s eyepiece.

Optional #494 Autostar™ Computer Controller for DS-2000EC Users

One of the most important advances in telescope control in the past 25 years, the Meade #494 Autostar Computer Controller turns your DS-2000EC model into an automatic celestial object locat- ing system. Just plug Autostar into the telescope’s HBX port in place of the standard-equipment Electronic Controller, do a quick telescope alignment, and you are ready to observe any object in the Autostar’s 1400-object database.

Best of all, the Meade Autostar is easy to use. Even the most novice observer will locate dozens of fascinating celestial objects the very first night out. Study Saturn and its ring system; the primary cloud belts of Jupiter as well as its four major satellites; the moon-like phases of Mercury and Venus; prominent features on Mars. The Moon stands out in stark, almost three-dimensional detail — craters, mountain ranges, and fault lines. In our galaxy, the telescope displays hundreds of nebulae, star clusters, double and multiple stars, and variable stars — plus dozens of external galaxies in all their variation of form and structure.

Any of Autostar’s database objects can be called up and entered on the hand controller display in seconds. The observer then simply presses the GO TO pushbutton and watches as the telescope automatically slews to the object and places it in the field of view. Autostar brings into easy access objects that were previously unreachable for all but the most dedicated of amateur astronomers.

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