8
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 alignment
by either method, we have included in
Appendix G a set of
star charts with the names of some bright stars indicated for
easy reference.
Rules for choosing alignment stars:
• It is recommended that the two alignment stars be 15-60
degrees above the horizon and their altitudes differ by
10-30 degrees.
• The two alignment stars should be separated by 45-135
de grees in azimuth, preferably around 90 degrees.
Note: Before performing either of the alignment methods, be
sure that the finder scope or reflex sight is precisely aligned
with the telescope tube.
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 2, choose the region
that corresponds with where you see the brightest
star in the sky. It may be helpful to have a compass
for reference during this process. 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.
3. After you have selected the region of the sky
containing the brightest star, the hand controller will
generate a list of the brightest stars in that region
sorted by the brightness of the star, with the brightest
stars at the top of the list. Only stars brighter than
magnitude 1.5 will appear in the list. If there is no star
brighter than magnitude 1.5 in the selected region,
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 will be on
the list. The hand controller will display the name
and magnitude of the bright star on the first line,
and the approximate position of the star (based on
the time and date entered during the initial setup)
on the second line
(Figure 3). The first coordinate
on the second line is an E-W coordinate, and the
second coordinate on the second line indicates
degrees above the horizon. 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 selected bright star
automatically. Instead, the screen will display “Point
scope to RR ZZ.Z’ TT.T’ ,” where RR is the region
(e.g., NE, SW, etc.) ZZ.Z is the azimuth angle in
degrees, and TT.T is the altitude in degrees. Use
the direction keys to move the mount and point the
telescope to the 1st alignment star selected in the
previous step. Center the 1st align ment star in the
FOV of the finder scope or the red dot finder, and then
press ENTER to proceed to the next step.
If the mount has clutches on its axes, you can loosen the
clutches to move the mount manually to point the telescope
to the target.
Note: Generally, a slewing rate of 5 or 6 is best for centering
the star in the finder scope, and a rate of 2 or 3 works best
for centering the star in the telescope’s eyepiece. The slewing
speed can be adjusted by pressing the RATE/2 key. Choose a
desired rate between 0 (slowest) and 9 (fastest).
6. Now the screen will display “Ctr. Star NNNN,” where
the NNNN is the name of the selected 1st alignment
Figure 2.
Directional regions of the sky used in the
“Brightest Star” alignment method.
Figure 3.
Alignment star information displayed on LCD.
N OR TH
E A
ST
S
K
Y
S
O
U
TH
EA
ST S
KY
SO
UT
HW
ES
T
SK
Y
N
O
R
TH
W
E S
T S
K Y
N O
R T H E R N S K Y
E
A
S
T
E
R
N
S
K
Y
SO
UT
HE
RN
S
KY
W
E
S
T
E
R
N
S
K
Y
N (0˚)
E (90˚)
S (180˚)
(225˚)
W (270˚)
(315˚)
(135˚)
(45˚)
1. Capella
NE 35.3
0.1
15.7
Magnitude
Altitude Angle
Star Name
Azimuth Angle
Orientation
Brightness Order
