Instruction Manual
ETX-90AT Astro TelescopeETX-105AT Astro TelescopeETX-125AT Astro Telescope
Page 1: ...Instruction Manual ETX 90AT Astro Telescope ETX 105AT Astro Telescope ETX 125AT Astro Telescope ...
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Page 3: ...Deluxe Field Tripod 51 Equatorial Mounting Procedure 52 To Track a Star When Polar Mounted 52 Autostar Polar Alignment Modes 53 Locating the Celestial Pole 53 Setting Circles 54 Appendix B Latitude Chart 55 Appendix C Training the Drive 56 Appendix D Basic Astronomy 57 CONTENTS WARNING Never use a Meade ETX Astro Telescope to look at the Sun Looking at or near the Sun will cause instant and irreve...
Page 4: ...ce the ETX on its side and remove the battery compartment cover A from the under side of the drive base Insert eight user supplied AA size batteries into the battery compartment B oriented as shown in the battery compartment Replace the cover and return the telescope to an upright position if you wish to attach the telescope to the deluxe field tripod see page 12 Flip the Power Switch F on the com...
Page 5: ... the Setup menu to change this information See pages 28 29 and 31 for more information Sight along the side of the telescope s main tube to locate an object If you wish to learn how to attach and align the telescope s viewfinder see pages 13 to 14 Use the telescope s focus knob L to bring the object into focus If you wish to observe using Autostar s databases see Page 19 to learn how to perform an...
Page 6: ...B C D 8 12 14 18 17 1 Eyepiece 2 Viewfinder 3 Holder Thumbscrew 4 90 Eyepiece Holder 5 Optical Tube 6 Vertical Lock 7 Fork Arms 8 Focus Knob 9 Horizontal Lock 10 Computer Control Panel A ON OFF Switch B Auxiliary Ports 2 C Handbox Port D 12v E LED 11 Base Housing 12 Battery Compartment bottom of base 13 Right Ascension R A Horizontal Setting Circle 14 Flip Mirror Control Knobs 15 Photo Port 16 Dec...
Page 7: ...xis Turning the vertical lock clockwise to a firm feel only prevents the telescope from being moved manually but engages the vertical motor drive clutch for Autostar operation When polar aligned the vertical lock serves as the Declination or Dec lock Note The vertical lock knob is a knurled knob located on the fork arm to the right of the focus knob 8 Fig 1 Mounted beneath the knob is a cir cular ...
Page 8: ... control in the up position as shown in Fig 3a light is diverted to the eyepiece With the flip mirror control in the down position as shown in Fig 3b light proceeds straight out the photo port for photography See PHOTOGRAPHY page 40 Note The flip mirror control is in the up position when the control is vertical perpendicular to the telescope tube To place the flip mirror in the down position turn ...
Page 9: ...n night of the year Download the latest satellite data guided tours and software revisions directly from the Meade website www meade com and share software with other Autostar enthusiasts Requires optional 505 AstroFinder Cable Connector Kit See OPTIONAL ACCESSORIES page 43 Access a glossary of astronomical terms Calculate which eyepiece to use for optimum viewing of a celestial object Autostar pr...
Page 10: ...object Also press during the alignment or GO TO procedures to activate a spiral search f Arrow Keys The Arrow keys have several functions Press an Arrow key to slew the telescope in a specific direction up down left and right at any one of nine dif ferent speeds See SLEW SPEEDS page 17 Use the Up and Down Arrow keys to move the telescope vertically up and down The Left Arrow key rotates the telesc...
Page 11: ... 0 Key Press to turn on Utility light 12 Fig 4 1 Utility Light Use this built in red light to illuminate star charts and accessories without disturbing your eye s adaptation to darkness Press 0 to turn the light on and off ETX TIPS Join an Astronomy Club Attend a Star Party One of the best ways to increase your knowledge of astronomy is to join an astronomy club Check your local newspaper school l...
Page 12: ...ly power to Autostar 2 Assemble the 884 Deluxe Field Tripod Step a Spread the tripod 1 Fig 6 legs apart to a fully open position Step b Slide the spreader tray 2 Fig 7 onto the central threaded rod Step c Slide a washer followed by the spring another washer and the tension knob 3 Fig 8 onto the threaded rod Tighten the tension knob to a firm feel Step d Adjust the height of the tripod by loosening...
Page 13: ...he viewfinder tube Using The Viewfinder As with most astronomical telescopes the ETX model telescopes present a fairly narrow field of view to the observer As a result it is sometimes difficult to locate and center objects in the telescope s field of view The viewfinder by contrast is a low power wide field sighting scope with crosshairs that let you easily center objects in the eyepiece of the ma...
Page 14: ...first be aligned with the main telescope so that both the viewfinder and the main telescope are pointing at precisely the same location To align the viewfinder 1 Turn the three rear alignment screws of the viewfinder bracket 4 Fig 20a so that the viewfinder tube is roughly centered within the viewfinder bracket Tip Do not overtighten the alignment screws When tightening one screw it may be necessa...
Page 15: ...ube would be more than four feet long instead of the ETX 90AT s compact 11 tube length Eyepiece Focal Length is the distance light travels inside the eyepiece before reaching focus Focal length is usually printed on the side of the eyepiece for example 26mm Low power eyepieces are typically available in 26mm 32mm and 40mm sizes see OPTIONAL ACCESSORIES page 43 The low power eyepiece provided with ...
Page 16: ...computer control panel s HBX port C Fig 2 3 Flip the Power Switch A Fig 2 on the computer control panel to the ON position A copyright message lights on Autostar s LCD display followed by a warning not to look at the Sun Press the Autostar key prompted by the message when you are done reading See page 9 to 11 for more information about Autostar s keys 4 A Getting Started message displays Press ENT...
Page 17: ... using the Arrow keys and the slew speeds to view different features The Moon contains many interesting features including craters mountain ranges and fault lines The best time to view the Moon is during its crescent or half phase Sunlight strikes the Moon at an angle during these periods and adds a depth to the view No shadows are seen during a full Moon making the overly bright surface appear fl...
Page 18: ...tire date has been entered 7 Autostar then requests the current time Use the Number keys to enter the time Use a 0 for the first digit if it is less than 10 Use the Arrow keys to move from one number to the next Press one of the Arrow keys to scroll to AM or PM If you select the blank choice that follows AM and PM the clock displays time in a 24 hour military time format Press ENTER to start the c...
Page 19: ...ome position if necessary To set your telescope in the Alt Az home position Loosen the telescope s vertical lock 6 Fig 1 Level the tripod head See Step 3g page 12 Level the optical tube by lining up 0 on the Dec setting circle 16 Fig 1 with the Dec pointer the small molded triangle under the setting circle Retighten the vertical lock 6 Fig 1 to a firm feel only Unlock the horizontal lock 9 Fig 1 G...
Page 20: ...cking motors several seconds to begin tracking When they do it may be necessary to once again center the star in the eyepiece The tracking motors will then keep the star you have chosen in the center of the eyepiece 6 Press and hold the ENTER key for a few seconds and then release to stop track ing You may repeat the procedure to locate another star or object using the Arrow keys Then press ENTER ...
Page 21: ... to observe 6 Press and hold down MODE for two seconds to leave the Guided Tour menu ETX TIPS Star Charts Even with the Autostar s large 30 000 object library star charts and planispheres are still useful for a variety of reasons In particular they are a great aid in planning a night of celestial viewing A wide variety of star charts are available in books in magazines on the inter net and on CD R...
Page 22: ...ODE key moves up a level until the top level Select Item is reached Once Select Item displays press MODE to return to the topmost level Select Item Object Autostar Navigation Exercise To demonstrate how the Autostar menu structure works the following exercise calculates Sunset time so an evening observing session can be planned NOTE To perform an accurate calculation Autostar MUST be properly init...
Page 23: ...Down key once to display the Sunset option in the Event menu 5 Press the ENTER key to choose the Sunset option and move down another level 6 Autostar calculates the Sunset time based on the current date time and location Autostar then displays the results of the calculation 7 Press MODE once to start moving back up through the Autostar levels The first level up is the Event menu 8 Press MODE again...
Page 24: ... Summer Solstice Tour Objects A Accretion Disk Etc B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z Timer Set Start Stop Alarm Set On Off Eyepiece Calc Field of View Magnification Suggest Display Options Sun Warning Getting Started Brightness Adj Contrast Adj Beep Battery Alarm Landmark Survey Sleep Scope Park Scope Cord Wrap Align Easy One Star Two Star Date Time Daylight Saving Telescope Telesc...
Page 25: ...use the Scroll keys to scroll through the constellation list 2 Press ENTER to select a constellation and to display the coordinates of the con stellation Press one of the Scroll keys and information about the constellation will scroll across the display screen 3 Press GO TO to display the list of stars in the constellation Use the Scroll keys to scroll through the list of stars in the constellatio...
Page 26: ... See DATE page 28 and also see ETX TIPS page 23 Moon Phases displays the date and time of the next Full New 1st Quarter and 3rd Quarter Moon Meteor Showers provides information on upcoming meteor showers such as the Perseids the Leonids etc Also lists the dates of the showers and when they reach maximum NOTE Meteors are fast moving objects that cover large areas of the sky and are usually best obs...
Page 27: ... alarm When the alarm time arrives Autostar beeps Press ENTER to deactivate the alarm Eyepiece Calc calculates information about an eyepiece for the specific telescope to which Autostar is connected Field of View Scroll through a list of available eyepieces When an eyepiece is selected the field of view is calculated Magnification Scroll through a list of available eyepieces When an eyepiece is se...
Page 28: ...ecting the blank option which follows the AM and PM options Daylight Saving is used to enable or disable Daylight Savings time NOTE Daylight Savings Time may be referred to by different names in various areas of the world Check local time to verify Telescope accesses the several options including Model Allows you to select the telescope model connected to Autostar Focal Length Displays the focal l...
Page 29: ...oking for a faint celestial object i e a nebula or galaxy Autostar first slews to a nearby bright star and displays ENTER to Sync Center the star in the eyepiece then press ENTER At that point the telescope has a high precision alignment to that part of the sky and it then slews to the object that was originally requested Targets switches between Astronomical targets and Terrestrial targets If Ast...
Page 30: ...e proceeding with observations See INITIALIZING AUTOSTAR page 18 Surf the Web One of the most exciting resources for astronomy is the internet The internet is full of websites with new images discoveries and the latest astronomical information For example When Mars made its closest approach in 60 000 years to our Sun in 2003 astronomers around the world posted new photos daily On the internet you ...
Page 31: ...ongitude of your location to perform this procedure This information is available on most maps 1 Using the Add option choose a site on the list that is closest to your observing site and press ENTER so that the site is added to your observing sites list Choosing a site already on the list as opposed to using the Custom feature makes it easier to edit as the Time Zone value may not need to be chang...
Page 32: ...Object Select displays Press the Scroll Down key once User Object Add displays Press ENTER 5 Name displays on the top line and a blinking cursor on the second line Use the Arrow keys as previously described to enter the name of the object you wish to add to the database When you are finished press ENTER 6 Right Asc 00 00 0 displays Use the Number keys to enter the digits for the Right Ascension co...
Page 33: ...tar If orbital parameters are more than one month old the satellite pass may not happen at the time predicted by Autostar Downloading requires the optional 505 AstroFinder Software and Cable Connector Kit See OPTIONAL ACCESSORIES page 43 Note Satellite observing is an exciting challenge Most satellites are in low orbit travelling at approximately 17 500 mph When visible they move quickly across th...
Page 34: ...ELL PLANET MOON SATELLITE ASTEROID COMET LUNAR ECLIPSE METEOR SHOWER DEEP SKY CONSTELLATION STAR LANDMARK DEFINE PICK ONE PICK END AUTO SLEW ON OFF END Description String Description of an object Must be surrounded by quotation marks If the description is longer than one line each line must end with a quotation mark and a hard return Begin the next description line with a quotation mark If quotati...
Page 35: ... the user with a description of the selected planet from its database For example PLANET Pluto MOON This command accesses information about the Moon from the Autostar database SATELLITE name Enter SATELLITE and then the name of the desired satellite in quotes Autostar displays information about the satellite from its database For example SATELLITE Intl Space Stn ASTEROID name Enter ASTEROID and th...
Page 36: ... clusters visible at this time PICK END AUTO SLEW ON AUTO SLEW OFF With AUTO SLEW ON enabled in the tour Autostar automatically slews the telescope to objects first before displaying the text description This feature is useful when designing tours in which observing certain objects is required For example an astronomy professor may require his students to observe six objects four of which Autostar...
Page 37: ...o add more landmarks repeat steps 5 through 7 To Select a landmark from the database 1 Make sure the telescope is located and aligned exactly as when the desired landmark was entered into memory 2 Display the Landmark Select menu option Press ENTER 3 Use the Scroll keys to scroll through the list of objects you have previously entered When the desired object displays press ENTER to select the obje...
Page 38: ...d in APPENDIX A page 51 Two Star Alt Az Alignment Two Star Alignment requires some knowledge of the night sky Autostar provides a database of bright stars and two stars from this database are chosen by the observer for alignment 1 Perform steps 1 through 7 as described in EASY TWO STAR ALIGN page 19 2 With Align Easy displayed use the Scroll keys to display Align Two Star Press ENTER 3 Place the t...
Page 39: ...h Next displays again Press ENTER and the next item matching the parameters displays Repeat this procedure to display all the objects 8 Press MODE repeatedly to leave this menu ETX TIPS Observing Considerations Try to pick an observing site away from street and house lights and car headlights While this is not always possible the darker the site the better Give your eyes about ten minutes to adjus...
Page 40: ...T 1250mm at f 13 8 ETX 105AT 1640mm at f 15 6 ETX 125AT 1900mm at f 15 Format 1 utilizes only the short section of the 64 T Adapter to permit close coupling of a camera body to the telescope In this format vignetting will occur the photographic image will appear on film with a slight darkening at the corners of the 35mm frame see Fig 30 Format 2 Camera Body T Mount Sections 1 and 2 of the 64 T Ada...
Page 41: ...mera meter should be acceptable If used for astrophotography the meter probably will not provide good results since camera meters are not made to compensate for a dark sky 5 Terrestrial photography through an ETX model is sensitive to heat waves rising from the Earth s surface Long distance photography is best accomplished in the early morning hours before the earth has had time to build up heat 6...
Page 42: ...times called self timer which is available with most digital cameras The timer may also minimize vibration Photography with Meade s Autostar Suite The Autostar Suite with Meade LPI Lunar Planetary Imager and Planetarium software turns your Meade ETX telescope Autostar and PC into even more powerful and easy to use astronomical instrument LPI Lunar Planetary Imager Fig 32 combines the power of an e...
Page 43: ...nd 6 7mm eyepieces present the widest obtainable fields of view at high powers and are well suited for observing the Moon and planets Powers obtained with each eyepiece are shown in the following table 126 2x Barlow Lens An amplifying lens the multi coated 126 2x Barlow Fig 35 doubles the power of all eyepieces with which it is used Insert the 126 into the telescope s eyepiece holder first followe...
Page 44: ...mobile cigarette lighter plug by using the 607 Power Cord a 25 ft cord that plugs into the telescope s control panel and supplies 12vDC directly from the car battery 1244 Electric Focuser for the ETX 90AT and ETX 105AT and 1247 Electric Focuser ETX 125AT Meade engineered for smooth rapid focusing with any ETX model each electric focuser Fig 40 includes coarse and micro fine speeds The standard equ...
Page 45: ...ide surface of the correcting lens leave the lens mounted in its metal cell throughout the process Do not remove the lens from its metal housing or optical alignment of the lens will be lost necessitating a return of the telescope to the Meade factory 5 If your ETX model is used outdoors on a humid night telescope surfaces may accumulate water condensation While such condensation does not normally...
Page 46: ...ator light on the telescope does not come on or there is no response when pressing the Autostar Arrow keys Verify that the Computer Control panel power switch A Fig 2 is in the ON position Verify that the Autostar coil cord is firmly connected to the HBX port C Fig 2 If using internal power batteries verify that the batteries are installed correctly and that they have sufficient charge see HOW TO ...
Page 47: ...to pass without notice The optics within the telescope need time to adjust to the outside ambient temperature to provide the sharpest image To cool down the optics set the telescope outside for 10 to 15 minutes before observing begins Telescope moves off a terrestrial object while observing Verify that the vertical and horizontal locks are tight see TELESCOPE FEATURES page 6 Telescope does not mov...
Page 48: ...mpact ABS aluminum reinforced Primary mirror Pyrex glass Correcting lens BK7 optical glass Grade A Telescope dimensions 38cm x 18cm x 22cm 15 x 7 x 9 Telescope net weight incl Autostar batteries 3 5kg 7 8 lbs Telescope shipping weight 5 8kg 12 8 lbs Battery Life approx with Autostar 20 hrs Specifications ETX 105AT Astro Telescope Optical design Maksutov Cassegrain Primary mirror diameter 116mm 4 5...
Page 49: ... power 0 9 arc secs Super multi coatings EMC standard Limiting visual stellar magnitude approx 12 5 Image scale 0 76 inch Maximum practical visual power 500X Optical tube dimensions dia x length 14 6cm x 36cm 5 75 x 14 2 Viewfinder 8 x 25mm right angle Secondary mirror obstruction dia 39 4mm 1 6 9 6 Telescope mounting fork type double tine Setting circle diameters Dec 4 3 R A 9 Input voltage 12 vo...
Page 50: ...ad 20 key alphanumeric Display 2 line 16 character LCD Backlight Red LED Utility Light Yes RS 232 Yes Coil Cord 24 Database 30 223 objects Autostar Dimensions Length 6 56 16 6cm Width LCD end 3 19 80cm Width Connector end 2 25 57cm Depth 0 81 21cm Autostar net weight 1 12 lbs 0 51kg ...
Page 51: ...on a 24 hour clock similar to how Earth s time zones are determined by longitude lines The zero line was arbitrarily chosen to pass through the constellation Pegasus a sort of cosmic Greenwich merid ian R A coordinates range from 0hr 0min 0sec to 23hr 59min 59sec There are 24 primary lines of R A located at 15 degree intervals along the celestial equator Objects located further and further East of...
Page 52: ...head Retighten the latch 6 If you have not already done so orient the tripod leg see Step 3 and 5 Fig 47 so that it is pointing due North if the location of Polaris the North Star is known point the telescope directly at Polaris Observers located in the Earth s Southern Hemisphere must point the telescope due South 7 The telescope is now equatorially mounted the tripod must not be moved or else th...
Page 53: ...y Autostar based on the date time and location First choose Polar from the Setup Telescope Mount menu The rest of the procedure is identical to the Alt Az EASY TWO STAR ALIGN page 19 One Star Polar Alignment Polar One Star Alignment requires some knowledge of the night sky Autostar provides a database of bright stars and one star from this database is chosen by the observer for alignment Polaris i...
Page 54: ...ligned It is advisable that the motor drive be turned on and that a low power eyepiece e g a 26mm eyepiece be employed Then use the following procedure 1 Identify the celestial coordinates R A and Dec of a bright easy to find object such as a bright star Avoid using Polaris or any object near Polaris Coordinates of bright stars are listed in astronomy magazines text books or star charts Center thi...
Page 55: ...w York New York 41 N Oklahoma City Oklahoma 35 N Ottawa Ontario 45 N Philadelphia Pennsylvania 40 N Phoenix Arizona 33 N Portland Oregon 46 N Salt Lake City Utah 41 N San Antonio Texas 29 N San Diego California 33 N San Francisco California 38 N Seattle Washington 47 N Washington District of Columbia 39 N EUROPE City Country Latitude Amsterdam Netherlands 52 N Athens Greece 38 N Bern Switzerland 4...
Page 56: ...stronomy If you are interested in pursuing further studies in astronomy a few topics are suggested below that are worth reading up on some of the topics are easy and some are quite challenging Try looking up some of these in the Autostar glossary Also included below is a small sampling of books magazines and organizations that you might find helpful Topics 1 How is a star born How does a solar sys...
Page 57: ...credible discovery Autostar Glossary Be sure to make use of Autostar s Glossary feature The Glossary menu provides an alphabetical listing of definitions and descriptions of common astronomical terms Access directly through the Glossary menu or through hypertext words embedded in Autostar See GLOSSARY MENU page 26 for more information The Moon The Moon is on average a distance of 239 000 miles 380...
Page 58: ...cope did not understand that what he was seeing were rings Instead he believed that Saturn had ears Saturn s rings are composed of billions of ice particles The major division in Saturn s rings called the Cassini Division is generally visible through all three ETX models Titan the largest of Saturn s moons can also be seen as a bright star like object near the planet Deep Sky Objects You can use s...
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Page 60: ...rization RGA number must be obtained from Meade by writing or calling 949 451 1450 Each returned part or product must include a written statement detailing the nature of the claimed defect as well as the owner s name address and phone number This warranty is not valid in cases where the product has been abused or mishandled where unauthorized repairs have been attempted or performed or where depre...
