Meade ETX-90PE instruction manual Observe a Star using the Automatic Tracking Feature

Fig. 24 [top view]: Rotate the telescope tube counterclock- wise until it stops.

Important Note: The

home position for Automatic Alignment is different than the home position used with One Star and Two Star Alt/az alignments. See page 36 for setting the Home Position during One Star and Two Star Altaz

Alignment

Star

Fig. 25: During alignment, the alignment star is always the brightest star in the area of the sky at which the telescope is pointing.

Important Note:

While performing the automatic tracking procedure, only use the Arrow keys to move the telescope. Once the telescope has been aligned, do not loosen the telescope’s vertical or horizontal locks (6 and 9, Fig. 1a and 1b) or move the base manually or alignment will be lost.

•Grasp the telescope by a fork arm and rotate the telescope counterclockwise until it stops (Fig. 24).

•Re-lock the horizontal (9, Fig. 1a) and vertical locks (6, Fig. 1b).

2.Level, Tilt and Find North: Next your telescope begins to move. AutoStar moves your telescope so that it can calculate the level position and tilt of your tel- escope, and also calculate the location of True North. While it is performing these functions, the following messages will appear on AutoStar’s display: “Calc Level,” “Calc North” and “Calc Tilt.”

Note: During this step in the procedure, the telescope may not become level or actually point to North. AutoStar is merely moving the telescope about so that it can calculate these positions.

3 . Star Alignment: Next, AutoStar continues to move the telescope (you don’t need to press any buttons) in order to choose two stars for alignment. AutoStar will display a name of a star and the word “Slewing” as it moves to the first star. It will then prompt you to center the star.

However, when the telescope slews to the first star, it may not appear in the field of view in the eyepiece. Use the SmartFinder (2, Fig. 1a) to locate the star. The alignment star will be easy to recognize—it will be the brightest star in the area of the sky where the telescope is pointing. Look through the SmartFinder and use the Arrow keys to move the telescope until the star is visible. Then look through the eyepiece and center the star using the Arrow keys. Press ENTER. Repeat the procedure for the second alignment star.

When the procedure is performed correctly, "Alignment Successful" displays. If AutoStar does not display this message, perform this procedure again.

NOTE: 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.

Observe a Star using the Automatic Tracking Feature

In this example, the AutoStar Arrow keys are used to find a star and then AutoStar's tracking feature automatically keeps the star centered in your telescope's eyepiece. Make sure you have initialized and aligned your telescope before you try out this feature (see page 17).

1.Once your telescope has been aligned, “Align Successful” and then “Select Item: Object” display. Push the Scroll Up key once and “Select Item: Setup” displays

2.Press ENTER. “Setup: Align” displays.

3.Press the Scroll Down key repeatedly until "Setup: Targets" displays. Press

ENTER.

4."Targets: Terrestrial" displays. Press one of the Scroll keys once. "Targets: Astronomical" now displays.

ETX TIPS

Which One’s the Alignment Star?

If you’re not familiar with objects in the night sky, how can you be sure if the star in your eyepiece is really the alignment star?

The rule of thumb is that an alignment star is usually the brightest star in that area of the sky. If you perform a GO TO to an alignment star and you're not sure if you have located the alignment star or it isn't in the eyepiece, look through your smartfinder. When you view an alignment star in the SmartFinder, it stands out dramatically from the rest of the stars in that portion of the sky. The SmartFinder will help you locate a star more quickly than the eyepiece. Using AutoStar, set the slew speed to 6 (press Number key 6) or higher and use the Arrow keys to center the alignment star in the SmartFinder. If your SmartFinder has been aligned with the telescope, the alignment star should now be in the eyepiece. Set the slew speed to 4 or less and center the star in the eyepiece. Also see the SPIRAL SEARCH tip, page 19.

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