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5
ALIGNING THE STARPOINTER PRO FINDERSCOPE
The StarPointer Pro fi nderscope helps you aim your telescope by looking through its round glass window and covering your target with the
red reticle projected in the window. The fi rst time you assemble your telescope, you will need to align the fi nderscope with the main optics
of the telescope. Although this step can be done at night, it is signifi cantly easier during the day. Once you have completed the fi nderscope
alignment, you should not have to repeat this step unless the fi nderscope is bumped or the telescope is dropped.
1. Take the telescope outside during the day. Using your naked eye, fi nd an easily recognizable object, such as a streetlight, car license plate,
or tall tree. The object should be as far away as possible, but at least a quarter mile away.
2. Remove the main dust cover from the telescope and make sure your 20 mm eyepiece is installed.
3. Move the telescope left and right or up and down so that it is roughly pointing toward the object you chose in step 1.
4. Look through the telescope’s eyepiece and manually move the telescope until the object you chose lies in the center of the view. If the
image is blurry, gently turn the focus knobs until it comes into sharp focus.
5. Once the object is centered in your 20 mm eyepiece, turn on the fi nderscope by turning the on/off/brightness switch knob on the bottom
of the unit as far as it will go.
6. With your head positioned about a foot behind the fi nder, look through the round window and locate the red reticle. It will probably be
close to, but not on top of, the object you see when you are looking through the 20 mm eyepiece.
7. Without moving the telescope, use the two adjustment knobs on the side and underneath the fi nderscope. One controls the left-right
motion of the reticle, while the other controls the up-down motion. Adjust both until the reticle appears over the same object you are
observing in the 20 mm eyepiece.
Now choose some other distant targets to practice aiming your telescope. Look through the StarPointer Pro fi nderscope window and place
the red reticle over the target you are trying to view and verify that it appears in the eyepiece of the scope.
With your fi nderscope aligned, your telescope is fully assembled and you are ready to observe!
NOTE:
Be sure to turn off the StarPointer Pro fi nderscope when not in use to conserve battery power.
YOUR FIRST ASTRONOMICAL OBSERVING SESSION
THE MOON
Now you are ready to take your telescope out at night and do some real observing!
Let’s start with the Moon. The Moon takes about one month go through a complete phase cycle, from new Moon to full Moon and back
again. Try observing it at different points during this cycle.
While you can observe the Moon any time it is visible in the sky, the best time to view it is from two days after a New Moon up to a few days
before a Full Moon. During this period, you will be able to see the most detail in craters and lunar mountain ranges. Consult a calendar or
moon phase app to fi nd out when the next new Moon will be.
MOVING THE TELESCOPE
The Inspire altazimuth mount is simple to use. To move the scope
left and right, loosen the azimuth tension knob at the base of the
mount between two of the tripod legs. Grab the knob at the end
of the panning handle and move the scope to the desired location.
You can adjust the tension of the left and right motion by adjusting
the azimuth tension knob.
To move the scope up and down, loosen the altitude clutch by turning
the knob at the end of the panning handle counter-clockwise. Move the
handle up or down as required and turn the knob clockwise to lock
the scope on target.
