Meade NGC-Series, NG-Series instruction manual Easy Alignment NGC Models Only

NOTE: Sometimes air gets trapped below the compass dial causing the compass to not work properly.

Gently tap the battery cover to insure that no air is trapped below the compass dial.

Note: If the horizontal and/or vertical move- ment of the optical tube seems to be too loose or too tight, you can adjust the amount of tension in the move- ment of the optical tube to suit your own preference. See

ADJUSTING THE

HORIZONTAL AND VERTICAL TENSION OF THE OPTICAL TUBE,

page 20.

NOTE: The control panel locates alignment stars based on the date, time, and location entered. The alignment stars may change from night to night.

7."Enter Time: 08:00:00AM" displays. The leftmost "0" is highlighted. Press UP/DOWN until "1" displays. Press ENTER.

8."8" is highlighted. Press UP/DOWN until "1" displays. Press ENTER.

9."0" is highlighted. Press UP/DOWN until "3" displays. Press ENTER.

10.Keep pressing ENTER until "AM" is highlighted. Press UP/DOWN until "PM" dis- plays. Press ENTER.

11.The time display now reads "11:30:00PM."

Easy Alignment (NGC Models Only)

1.Easy Align: Once the control panel is initialized, the control panel automatically begins the Easy Alignment procedure.

2.Set Home Position: The control panel prompts you to set the telescope in the home position. To set your telescope in the home position:

•Adjust the length of the legs of the tripod until the bubble in the bubble level is in the center of the compass.

•Rotate the base of the telescope until the arrow in the compass points in the same direction as the arrow etched into the base. The telescope is now pointing North.

•Push down the front end of the optical tube (the end with the dew shield) until it stops.

When you have finished setting the telescope in the home position, press

ENTER.

3.Star Alignment: After the home position is entered, the control panel searches its database for two alignment stars, and displays "Searching" while it does so. The control panel uses these stars to orient itself to the sky. Once it is oriented, it knows the location of any celestial object in its database.

For example, the control panel may search its database and choose Alkaid, the tail star of the Big Dipper, as the first alignment star. It displays "Ctr. Alkaid" on the top line and "Then Press Enter" flashes three times on the second line. This is a reminder that after you center a star in the eyepiece (see step 5 below), you need to press ENTER. But do not press ENTER yet.

After displaying "Then Press Enter," the control panel displays two numbers on the second line. For example: "Ctr. Alkaid: +35 -115." These two numbers are called "displacement numbers" and will assist you in locating a celestial object.

4.Move the telescope: Move the telescope tube to the right or left and you will notice the first displacement number getting larger or smaller. Move the tube in the direction that makes the number smaller. Keep moving the tube until the num- ber nears zero. As you near zero, bars appear on the display to make it easier to precisely reach zero. Use the horizontal slow motion control (20, Fig. 2) to move the tube in small increments.

After the first displacement number displays zero, move the tube upwards until the second displacement number also nears zero. As you near zero, bars appear on the display to make it easier to precisely reach zero. As you near zero, use the vertical slow motion control (F, Fig. 3) to move the tube. You probably will need to make fine adjustments with both displacement numbers as moving the optical tube may slightly shift one or the other displacement numbers.

After both number have reached zero, the first alignment star may not appear in the field of view of the eyepiece. However, the alignment star should be easily recognized and be the brightest star in the area of the sky where the telescope is pointing. Look for the star in the viewfinder to see if you can locate it. The viewfinder has a wider field of view than the eyepiece. See WHICH ONE'S THE ALIGNMENT STAR, page 13, for more information.

5.Center the Star: Once you locate the star, adjust the optical tube using the hor- izontal and vertical slow motion controls until the star is visible and centered in the eyepiece. When the star is centered, press ENTER.

6.Repeat the procedure for the second alignment star. If you have have followed the procedure correctly, "Align Successful" displays and the telescope is aligned. You may now use the control panel to locate other stars and objects in the sky. If your alignment was unsuccessful, "Align Unsuccessful" and then "Setup: Easy Align" displays. Press ENTER and repeat the procedure.

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