COMPUTERIZED TELESCOPE
COMPUTERIZED HAND CONTROL OPERATION
This section describes the basic Hand Control procedures needed to operate the NexStar.
These procedures are grouped into three categories: Alignment, Setup and Utilities. The alignment
section deals with the initial telescope alignment as well as finding objects in the sky; the setup section
discusses changing parameters such as tracking mode and tracking rate; finally, the last section reviews
all of the utility functions such as adjusting the telescopes slew limits and backlash compensation.
ALIGNMENT PROCEDURE
In order for the NexStar to accurately point to objects in the sky, it must first be aligned to known
positions (stars) in the sky. With this information, the telescope can create a model of the sky, which it
uses to locate any object with known coordinates. There are many ways to align the NexStar with the
sky depending on what information the user is able to provide:
SKYALIGN
uses your current date, time
and city to create an accurate model of the sky. Then the user can simply point the telescope to any
three bright celestial objects to accurately align the telescope with the sky. Auto Two-Star Align will ask
the user to choose and centre the first alignment star, then the NexStar will automatically select and
slew to a second star for alignment. Two-Star Align requires the user to identify and manually slew the
telescope to the two alignment stars. One-Star Align is the same as Two-Star Align. However, it only
requires you to align to one known star. Although not as accurate as the other alignment methods, One-
Star Align is the quickest way to find and track bright planets and objects in Altazimuth mode. Finally,
Solar System Align will display a list of visible daytime objects (planets and the Moon) available to align
the telescope. Each alignment method is discussed in detail below.
”Altazimuth” or “Alt-Az” refers to a type of mounting that allows a telescope to move in both
altitude (up and down) and azimuth (left and right) with respect to the ground. This is the
simplest form of mounting in which the telescope is attached directly to a tripod.
SKYALIGN
SKYALIGN
is the easiest way to get your NexStar aligned and ready to observe. Even if you do
not know a single star in the sky, the NexStar will have you aligned in minutes by asking for basic
information like the date, time and location. Then you simply need to aim the telescope to any three
bright celestial objects in the sky. Since
SKYALIGN
requires no knowledge of the night sky it is not
necessary to know the name of the stars at which you are aiming. You may even select a planet or the
Moon. The NexStar is then ready to start finding and tracking any of the objects in its 40,000+ object
database. Before the telescope is ready to be aligned, it should be set up in an outside location with all
accessories (eyepiece, diagonal and finderscope) attached and lens cover removed as described in the
Assembly section of the manual. To begin
SKYALIGN
:
1. Power on the NexStar by flipping the switch located on the side of the fork arm, to the
“on” position. Once turned on the Hand Control display will say “
NEXSTAR GT.”
Press
ENTER
to choose
SKYALIGN
. Pressing the
ALIGN
key will bypass the other alignment options and
the scrolling text and automatically begins SkyAlign.
2. Once SkyAlign has been selected, the Hand Control will display “enter if
OK,
” “
UNDO
to edit”
and
“Saved Site.”
The bottom line of the LCD will display either the current time or the time
when you last used the telescope. Since this is your first time using the NexStar, press
UNDO
to enter current time/site information.
13
Summary of Contents for NexStar 102GT
Page 1: ...INSTRUCTION MANUAL ...
Page 27: ...COMPUTERIZED TELESCOPE 27 NOTES ...
Page 29: ...MANUEL D INSTRUCTIONS TÉLESCOPE INFORMATISÉ ...
