User manual ORION TELESCOPES & BINOCULARS SKYQUESTXT6XT8XT10

[. . . ] INSTRUCTION MANUAL Orion SkyQuest IntelliScope XT6, XT8, XT10 ® TM ® #9985, #9986, #9987 Customer Support (800) 676-1343 E-mail: support@telescope. com Corporate Offices (831) 763-7000 Providing Exceptional Consumer Optical Products Since 1975 P. O. E 03/05 Secondary mirror holder with 4-vane spider (not visible) Finder scope Finder scope bracket Eyepiece Navigation knob Focuser Optical tube Tensioning knob IntelliScope Controller Port modular jack Retaining knob (opposite side) Computerized Object Locator (optional) Right side panel Eyepiece rack Primary mirror cell Front brace Handle Top baseplate Ground baseplate Figure 1. The SkyQuest XT8 IntelliScope Left side panel Foot (3) 2 Congratulations on your purchase of an Orion SkyQuest XT IntelliScope Dobsonian. It is a high-performance astronomical instrument designed to provide dazzling views of celestial objects and unprecedented ease of use. [. . . ] The process of aligning the primary and secondary mirrors with each other and with the mechanical axis of the telescope is called collimation. Your telescope's optical system was collimated at the factory and will probably not need any further adjustment. But rough handling during shipment can knock the optics out of alignment, in which case you will need to recollimate the system. It is a good idea to check the collimation of your telescope before each observing session and make any necessary adjustments. To check collimation, remove the eyepiece and look down the focuser drawtube. You should see the secondary mirror centered in the drawtube, as well as the reflection of the primary mirror centered in the secondary mirror, and the reflection of the secondary mirror (and your eye) centered in the reflection of the primary mirror, as depicted in Figure 18a. If anything is off-center, as in Figure 18b, proceed with the following collimation procedure. The Collimation Cap and Mirror Center Mark Your SkyQuest telescope comes with a quick collimation cap. This is a simple cap that fits on the focuser drawtube like a dust cap, but has a hole in the center and a reflective inner surface. The cap helps center your eye so that collimation is easier to perform. As an additional aid in collimation, the primary mirror of every SkyQuest telescope has a tiny adhesive ring marking its exact center. This center ring will not affect the images you see when observing with the telescope in any way (since it lies directly in the shadow of the secondary mirror), but will greatly facilitate collimation when using the supplied collimation cap or other, more sophisticated collimation devices such as the Orion LaserMate Laser Collimator. Preparing the Telescope for Collimation Once you get the hang of collimation, you will be able to do it quickly even in the dark. For now, it is best to collimate in daylight, preferably in a brightly lit room and with the telescope aimed at a white wall. This will prevent any parts from the secondary mirror from falling down onto the primary mirror and causing damage, should something come loose when you are making adjustments. Place a sheet of white paper inside the optical tube directly opposite the focuser. This will provide a bright "background" when viewing into the focuser. When properly set up for collimation, your telescope should resemble Figure 19. drawtube Reflection of primary mirror clip b. c. a. Note: 10" model has 4 mirror clips d. e. Figure 18. (a) When the mirrors are properly aligned, the view down the focuser drawtube should look like this. (b) With the collimation cap in place, if the optics are out of alignment, the view might look something like this. (c) Here, the secondary mirror is centered under the focuser, but it needs to be adjusted (tilted) so that the entire primary mirror is visible. (d) The secondary mirror is correctly aligned, but the primary mirror still needs adjustment. [. . . ] Loosen the screws and remove the clips. You may now remove the mirror from the mirror cell. Do not touch the surface of the mirror with your fingers; lift it carefully by the edge. Fill a clean sink free of abrasive cleanser with room-temperature water, a few drops of liquid dishwashing detergent, and if possible a capful of rubbing alcohol. Submerge the mirror (aluminized face up) in the water and let it soak for a few minutes (or hours if it's a very dirty mirror). [. . . ]