User manual ORION TELESCOPES & BINOCULARS OBSERVER 70 AZ

[. . . ] INSTRUCTION MANUAL Orion Observer 70mm AZ TM ® #9881 Altazimuth Refractor Telescope Customer Support (800) 676-1343 E-mail: support@telescope. com Corporate Offices (831) 763-7000 Providing Exceptional Consumer Optical Products Since 1975 P. O. A 10/02 2 ® Welcome to the exciting world of amateur astronomy. Your new Observer 70 Altazimuth Refractor is a quality optical instrument that will deliver countless hours of exciting stargazing, from magnified views of the Moon, star clusters and nebulas to glimpses of Jupiter's moons and Saturn's rings. The Observer 70 includes everything you need to go from box to backyard in less than half an hour. [. . . ] Replacing the EZ Finder II Battery Should the battery ever need replacing, 3-volt lithium batteries are available from many retail outlets. Remove the old battery by inserting a small flat-head screwdriver into the slot on the battery cover (Figure 3) and gently prying open the cover. Then carefully pull back on the retaining clip and remove the old battery. Slide the new battery under the battery lead with the positive (+) side facing down and replace the battery cover. Azimuth adjustment wheel Altitude adjustment wheel Power knob Battery cover Thumbscrews Figure 6. Figure 7. EZ Finder II superimposes a tiny red dot on the sky, showing right where the telescope is pointed. If at all possible, escape the light-polluted city sky and head for darker country skies. You'll be amazed at how many more stars and deep-sky objects are visible in a dark sky!"Seeing" and Transparency Atmospheric conditions vary significantly from night to night. "Seeing" refers to the steadiness of the Earth's atmosphere at a given time. In conditions of poor seeing, atmospheric turbulence causes objects viewed through the telescope to "boil". If, when you look up at the sky with your naked eyes, the stars are twinkling noticeably, the seeing is bad and you will be limited to viewing with low powers (bad seeing affects images at high powers more severely). In conditions of good seeing, star twinkling is minimal and images appear steady in the eyepiece. Also, seeing generally gets better after midnight, when much of the heat absorbed by the Earth during the day has radiated off into space. Especially important for observing faint objects is good "transparency"--air free of moisture, smoke, and dust. Using Your Telescope Choosing an Observing Site When selecting a location for observing, get as far away as possible from direct artificial light such as street lights, porch lights, and automobile headlights. The glare from these lights will greatly impair your dark-adapted night vision. Set up on a grass or dirt surface, not asphalt, because asphalt radiates more heat, which disturbs the surrounding air and degrades the images seen through the telescope. Avoid viewing over rooftops and chimneys, as they often have warm air currents rising from them. Similarly, avoid observing from indoors through an open (or closed) window, because the temperature difference between the indoor and outdoor air will cause image blurring and distortion. 12 Light Pollution Most of us live where city lights interfere with our view of the heavens. As our metropolitan areas have become more developed, the scourge of light pollution has spread, washing out many stars and nonstellar celestial objects from our sight. Faint deep sky objects become difficult or impossible to see through the murk of light pollution. Even bright nebulas like the Orion and Lagoon Nebulas lose much of their delicate detail. The Moon and planets are not affected; they require steady air more than dark skies, so they remain good targets for city-dwelling observers. [. . . ] Small components like eyepieces and other accessories should be kept in a protective box or storage case. Keep the dust cover on the front of the telescope and on the focuser drawtube when not in use. Your Observer 70 telescope requires very little mechanical maintenance. The optical tube is aluminum and has a smooth painted finish that is fairly scratch resistant. [. . . ]