User manual MEADE MEADE114STEQ-D

[. . . ] INSTRUCTION MANUAL Meade 114ST EQ-D 4. 5" Equatorial Reflecting Telescope Meade Instruments Corporation ­2­ WARNING!LOOKING AT OR NEAR THE SUN WILL CAUSE INSTANT AND IRREVERSIBLE DAMAGE TO YOUR EYE. EYE DAMAGE IS OFTEN PAINLESS, SO THERE IS NO WARNING TO THE OBSERVER THAT DAMAGE HAS OCCURRED UNTIL IT IS TOO LATE. CHILDREN SHOULD ALWAYS HAVE ADULT SUPERVISION WHILE OBSERVING. Meade Limited Warranty Every Meade telescope, spotting scope, and binocular is warranted by Meade Instruments Corp. [. . . ] (If the telescope were perfectly aligned with the pole, no Declination tracking of stellar objects would be required). For the purposes of casual visual telescopic observations, lining up the telescope's polar axis to within a degree or two of the pole is more than sufficient: with this level of pointing accuracy, the telescope can track accurately by slowly turning the telescope's R. A. flexible cable control and keep objects in the telescopic field of view for perhaps 20 to 30 minutes. 1a and 1e) of the Azimuth base, so that the entire telescopewith-mounting may be rotated in a horizontal direction. Level the mount, if necessary, by adjusting the heights of the three tripod legs. Little Dipper Little Dipper Polaris Polaris Big Dipper Big Dipper Cassiopeia Cassiopeia 3. 1a and 1e) and tilt the telescope mount so that the star "Polaris" is centered in the telescope's viewfinder eyepiece, then re-tighten the latitude lock. If steps (1) - (3) above were performed with reasonable accuracy, your telescope is now sufficiently well-aligned to the North Celestial Pole for visual observations. Once the mount has been polar-aligned as described above, the latitude angle need not be adjusted again, unless you move to a different geographical location (i. e. The only polar alignment procedure that you need to perform each time you use the telescope is to point the polar axis due North, as described in step 1 above. USING THE TELESCOPE With the telescope assembled, balanced and polar aligned as described above, you are ready to begin observations. Decide on an easy-to-find object such as the Moon, if it is visible, or a bright star to become accustomed to the functions and operations of the telescope. For the best results during observations, follow the suggestions below: · To center an object in the main telescope, loosen the telescope's R. A. Use the aligned viewfinder to first sight-in on the object you wish to observe; with the object centered on the viewfinder's crosshairs, re-tighten the R. A. locks. ­ 10 ­ · Always start an observation with a low power eyepiece (the MA 25mm eyepiece); get the object wellcentered in the field of view and sharply focused. Next, insert the MA 12mm eyepiece to try the next step up in magnification. If the image starts to become fuzzy as you work into higher magnifications, then back down to a lower power; the atmospheric steadiness is not sufficient to support high powers at the time you are observing. Keep in mind that a bright, clearly resolved but smaller image will show far more detail than a dimmer, poorly resolved larger image. The MA 25mm eyepiece included with the Meade 114ST EQ-D presents a wide field of view, ideal for general astronomical observing of star fields, clusters of stars, nebulae, and galaxies; it is also probably the best eyepiece to use in the initial finding and centering of any object. Once centered, the object can be focused by turning one of the knobs of the focusing mechanism (21, Fig. You will notice that the astronomical object in the field of view will begin to slowly move across the eyepiece field. To keep astronomical objects centered in the field of the polar aligned telescope, simply turn the R. A. These objects will appear to move through the field more rapidly at higher powers. Likewise, avoid observing sites where ground-based vibrations may resonate the tripod. [. . . ] 8) until you develop a feel for which way to turn each screw to center the reflection of your eye. 8) to relock the tilt-angle adjustment. Diagonal Monture Assembly Diagonale Miroir Diagonal Diagonal Mirror PrimaryPrimaire Miroir Mirror Focused Image Image Focalisée Vis D'inclinaison Primary Mirror-Tilt Screws du Miroir Primaire Fig. 6: The Newtonian Reflecting Telescope. ­ 13 ­ Remove With the collimation performed, you will want to test the accuracy of the adhesive alignment on a star. Use the MA 25mm eyepiece and point the telescope at backing a moderately bright (second or third magnitude) star, then center the star image in the telescope's field-of-view. [. . . ]