Orion 10066 StarSeeker III 90mm Mak-Cass GoTo Instruction Manual Download Page 10

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alignment methods provide the same level of precision. The
only difference is that for the Brightest Star alignment, the
hand controller will prompt you to select the first alignment star
from a directional region of the sky and will provide a short list
of the brightest stars in that region. With the 2-Star alignment
procedure the list of eligible stars is not grouped by region of
sky.
For the novice stargazer unfamiliar with the night sky or the
names of brighter stars, some might find the Brightest Star
Alignment to be the easier of the two methods. The 2-Star
method is for users who know the names of at least some
stars in the night sky. To assist you in performing the align-
ment by either method, we have included in

Appendix C a set

of star charts with the names of some bright alignment stars
indicated for easy reference.
Note: Before performing any of the alignment methods,
be sure that your finder scope is precisely aligned with
the telescope tube.

To get the most accurate star alignment:
• The two alignment stars you choose should be at least 60

degrees apart. (For reference, your fist held at arm’s length
spans about 10 degrees.)

• The two stars should be roughly at the same altitude.
• Use a high-power eyepiece, such as the 10mm focal length

eyepiece included with the StarSeeker III.

• When centering an alignment star in the eyepiece, always

end the procedure by using the UP and RIGHT direction
keys.

• If there is overshoot when centering an alignment star in

the eyepiece with the UP and RIGHT keys, use the LEFT
or DOWN keys to pull the star back to the edge of the field
of view and then use the RIGHT and UP keys to center the
star again.

Brightest Star alignment

Aligning the 1st Star
1. Select “Brightest Star” as your Alignment Method. Press

ENTER.

2. The hand controller will prompt you to “Select Region.”

Referring to

Figure 13, choose the region that

corresponds with where you see the brightest star in the
sky. There are eight overlapping regions to choose from,
each covers a 90-degree span in azimuth. The direction
you choose will only affect your alignment star selection;
you will still be able to choose objects to view across the
entire sky once the alignment is complete. Referring to
the included compass may be helpful during this process.
The red portion of the pointer points North, so orient the
compass so that the “N” (0 degrees) is directly under the
red tip.

3. After you have selected a region of the sky, the hand

controller will generate a list of the brightest stars in that
region. Only stars or planets brighter than magnitude
1.5 will appear in the list, and only if they are between
10 and 75 degrees in elevation. If none is found meeting

those criteria, the hand controller will display “No object
found in this region.” Press ENTER or ESC and select
another region of sky.

4. Now, use the Scroll keys to scroll through the list of bright

stars. There will only be a few stars, at most, on the list,
and sometimes only one star. The hand controller will
display the name and magnitude of the bright star on the
first line, and its position on the second line (

Figure 14).

On the second line, the first number is the star’s azimuth
angle, or E-W coordinate, in degrees, and the second
number is its altitude above the horizon in degrees.
These coordinates provide a simple way to identify the
bright star you have chosen. When you are confident the
hand controller is displaying the name of the bright star
you wish to align on, press ENTER.

5. The mount will NOT slew to the first selected bright star

automatically. Instead, you will use the direction keys to
slew the telescope to the 1st alignment star selected in
the previous step. Center the 1st align ment star in the
field of view of the EZ Finder II first, then center it in the
telescope eyepiece. Press ENTER to proceed to the next
step.

NOTE: You can change the slew speed by pressing the
RATE key, and then select a number between 0 (slowest)
and 9 (fastest). Generally, a slewing rate of 5 or 6 is best
for centering the star in the EZ Finder II, and a rate of 2

Figure 13.

Directional regions of the sky used in the

“Brightest Star” alignment method.

Figure 14.

Alignment star information displayed on LCD.

N OR TH

E A