C
ongratulations! Your Orion Sky Wizard Model 1 will put the fun back in your telescope observing. It
provides a digital readout of celestial coordinates, a database of the more than 110 of the most interest-
ing deep-sky subjects, and the ability to guide the observer to astronomical objects. It’s designed to work
with both Altazimuth (including Dobsonian) and Equatorial type telescope mounts.
Sky Wizard is designed for ease of use. Simply turn it on, sight two stars, and let it guide you to celestial
objects. There is no need to polar align the telescope and no need to input latitude, longitude, date or
time (date needed for planets). It provides virtually any telescope with a continuous digital display of
celestial coordinates. The unique method of alignment by two star sightings provides excellent pointing
accuracy over the entire sky.
Sky Wizard is connected to your telescope through two optical encoders. The encoders detect the move-
ment of the telescope and relay the positional information to Sky Wizard. The encoders are attached by
various methods depending on your telescope model. Installation kits and encoders are sold separately
from Sky Wizard to allow for this variation in attachment method.
Powered by a single 9-volt alkaline battery, Sky Wizard provides over 24 hours of operation with the display
fully dimmed. It can also operate from an external 12-volt DC power supply connected to the battery snap.
table of contents
1. Installation ............................................................................................................................. 2
2. Operation .............................................................................................................................. 5
3. Sample Observing Session .................................................................................................. 7
4. Specifications ........................................................................................................................ 9
5. Catalog Listings .................................................................................................................. 10
6. The SETUP Star List .......................................................................................................... 11
7. Troubleshooting Your Sky Wizard .......................................................................................... 12
8. Quick Reference ................................................................................................................... 13
2
1. installation
The
INSTALL mode is used when Sky Wizard is first installed
on your telescope.
INSTALL tells Sky Wizard what kind of
telescope you are using, the desired scroll rate for the subject
description display, and the resolution or gear ratio of the
encoders. You will only need to input this information once,
unless you use Sky Wizard with another telescope.
To start: Turn on Sky Wizard. The start up message “ORION
SKY WIZARD V 1.14.” will start scrolling by, then the display
will stop with another message (DEC=0, LEVEL ME, or
VERTICAL). Press MODE. Scroll UP or DOWN until the dis-
play reads
INSTALL and press ENTER.
a. telescope Mount type
The display first prompts you to select the type of telescope
mount used. Press UP or DOWN to select the desired tele-
scope type.
Mount type choices:
For telescopes such as Celestron and Meade Schmidt-
Cassegrains with fork mounts (not counterweighted
German-type mounts):
Equatorial fork mount:
SCOPE EQ
For all telescopes on German-type equatorial mounts
(mounts with a counterweight on a shaft balancing the weight
of the optical tube) including Orion GP telescopes:
German-type equatorial mount:
SCOPE GQ
For altazimuth telescopes, including Dobsonian and other
telescopes which move in vertical & horizontal planes:
(Choice of vertical or horizontal index is based on your prefer-
ence, not on the telescope itself.
Altazimuth, horizontal index:
SCOPE AZ
Altazimuth, vertical index:
SCOPE AV
For a motor driven “Poncet”-type equatorial table such as that
sometimes used with a Dobsonian telescope:
Equatorial Table:
SCOPE ET
When you have selected the correct type of mount, press
ENTER to advance to the next step.
