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EADE LX200-ACF Instruction manual

Manual is about: Advanced Coma-Free Telescopes with GPS and AutoStar II Hand Controller

Summary of LX200-ACF

  • Page 1

    Instruction manual 8", 10", 12", 14", 16" lx200 ® -acf advanced coma-free telescopes with gps and autostar ® ii hand controller.

  • Page 2: Warning!

    Warning! Never use a meade ® lx200 ® -acf telescope to look at the sun! Looking at or near the sun will cause instant and irreversible damage to your eye. Eye damage is often painless, so there is no warning to the observer that damage has occurred until it is too late. Do not point the telescope at...

  • Page 3: Contents

    Quick-start guide .......................................................... 4 how to attach the tripod to the telescope .................... 4 telescope features ...................................................... 7 autostar ® ii features ......................................................10 ...

  • Page 4: Quick-Start Guide

    2 4 - 4 - it is recommended that you attach the supplied tripod to the lx200-acf for observing. Perform the telescope and autostar ii setup indoors in the light so that you become familiar with the parts and operation before moving the telescope outside into the dark for observing. The setup is the ...

  • Page 5

    Battery compartment remove the covers of the battery compartments located on the fork arms (one on each fork arm) and carefully lift the battery holders from their compartments, being mindful of the connector wires. Insert four (user- supplied) c-cell batteries into each battery holder, oriented as ...

  • Page 6

    Tighten, to a firm feel only, the r.A. And dec. Locks. Remove the dust cover from the end of the telescope tube. Sight along the side of the telescope’s main tube to locate an object. Rotate the mirror lock knob ( fig. 1, 9 ) towards the “unlock” position, until it feels loose—the telescope is shipp...

  • Page 7: Telescope Features

    Telescope features autostar ii hand controller. See page 10. (not shown, on left fork arm) fig. 1 : the lx200-acf telescope; computer control panel (inset); autostar ii handbox (inset). B c d f e g h i j 1) 1! 1@ 1# 1$ 1% 1^ 1& 1* 1( 2) 2! 2@ 2# (not shown) 2$ - 7 - (not shown).

  • Page 8: Lx200-Acf: Your Personal

    Lx200-acf: your personal window to the universe the meade lx200-acf models are extremely versatile, high-resolution telescopes. With pushbutton controls, precision gps alignment, true-level and north electronic sensors, automatic tracking of celestial objects, periodic error correction for both axes...

  • Page 9

    1# computer control panel (see fig. 1 inset): a. On/off switch : turns the computer control panel and autostar ii on or off. The red power indicator led next to the switch illuminates when power is supplied to the autostar ii handbox, the microfocuser, and to the telescope’s motor drives (the led ca...

  • Page 10: Autostar II Features

    Fig. 2: the autostar ii handbox. Autostar ii features 쐅 쐈 want to learn more about downloading the latest updates of autostar ii software from the meade website ? See page 32. Tour the cosmos with just the push of a button control of the lx200-acf telescope models is through the operation of the sta...

  • Page 11

    The autostar ii system provides control of virtually every telescope function. The autostar ii handbox has soft-touch keys designed to have a positive feel. The lcd (liquid crystal display) is backlit with red leds (light emitting diodes) for easy viewing in the dark. The backlit display, key arrang...

  • Page 12

    5 ss : press to display the solar system library. 6 star: press to display the star library. 7 ret (reticle): press to display the reticle control menu. 8 ic : press to display the index catalog library. 9 ngc (new general catalog): press to display the ngc catalog library. 0 light : press to turn o...

  • Page 13: Getting Started

    Parts listing getting the telescope ready for first observations requires only a few minutes. When first opening the packing box, note carefully the following parts: 쎱 lx200-acf telescope with fork mount system 쎱 autostar ii handbox and interface coil cord; handbox holder 쎱 8 x 50mm viewfinder assem...

  • Page 14

    Sc optional accessory users: if using any of the optional accessories (such as the off-axis guider, t-adapter, etc.; see page 44) with the lx200-acf sc models, slide the supplied sc accessory adapter ( fig. 8, l ) into the microfocuser. Line up the groove on the side of the adapter with either of th...

  • Page 15

    Choosing an eyepiece a telescope’s eyepiece magnifies the image formed by the telescope’s main optics. Each eyepiece has a focal length, expressed in millimeters, or “mm”. The smaller the focal length, the higher the magnification. For example : an eyepiece with a focal length of 9mm has a higher ma...

  • Page 16

    Fig. 9: viewfinder assembly. Collimation screws mounting slot viewfinder eyepiece track fig. 10: viewfinder collimation screws and eyepiece. Fig. 11a & 11b: jupiter; examples of the right amount of magnification and too much magnification. Thumb- screws mounting and adjusting the viewfinder to align...

  • Page 17: Observing

    Important note: objects appear upside- down and reversed left-for- right when observed in the v i e w f i n d e r. Objects viewed through the telescope eyepiece when inserted into the diagonal prism and microfocuser assembly appear right-side-up, but reversed left-for- r i g h t . This image inversi...

  • Page 18

    9. Bring the object into focus (see below). Focusing the eyepiece using the microfocuser (16" model) the l x 2 0 0 - a c f zero image-shift microfocuser ( pg. 7 fig. 1, 24 ) allows you to obtain the most precise image focus possible during visual, photographic, and ccd applications, maintaining prec...

  • Page 19

    Observe the moon point your telescope at the moon (note that the moon is not visible every night) and practice using the arrow keys, the microfocuser and the slew speeds to view different features. The moon contains many interesting features, including craters, mountain ranges, and fault lines. The ...

  • Page 20

    5. “automatic alignment” displays. The system now performs the following routines (press any autostar ii key to abort automatic alignment; see important note , at the bottom left of page 19.) : caution: as the telescope performs the following operations, it will swing and rotate. Keep a safe distanc...

  • Page 21

    6. The telescope now slews to the second alignment star. Autostar displays “center brightest star: press enter” displays. Use the arrow keys to center the alignment star in the eyepiece. When the second alignment star is centered, press “enter”. 7. “alignment successful” displays. If “alignment unsu...

  • Page 22

    5. Press mode to return to the tour list. Press the scroll keys to scroll through the list. Press enter when you find the next object you wish to observe. 6. Press and hold down mode for two seconds to leave the guided tour menu. Other guided tours are available, such as “how far is far” and “a star...

  • Page 23: Basic Autostar Ii

    It is important to understand that menu selections are set in a loop ( fig. 14 ) . This means that pressing the scroll down key ( pg. 10, fig. 2, 7 ) cycles down through all the available options within a given category, then returns to the first option. The scroll up key ( fig. 2, 7 ) cycles up thr...

  • Page 24

    3. Press the enter key to choose the “event” option and move down a level. “event: sunrise” is displayed. 4. Press the scroll 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 ii calculates th...

  • Page 25: Autostar Ii’S Menus

    Autostar ii’s menus - 25 -.

  • Page 26

    Object menu almost all observing with autostar ii is performed using the object menu category. ( note: exceptions include guided tour and landmark survey. ) see goto saturn , page 21, for an example of observing using the object menu. Also see using the guided tour , page 21. Autostar ii contains ma...

  • Page 27

    Identify: an exciting feature for an observer who wants to scan the night sky and start exploring. After the telescope has been properly aligned, use the autostar ii arrow keys to move about in the sky. Then follow this procedure: important note: only use the arrow keys to move the telescope during ...

  • Page 28

    Glossary menu the glossary menu provides an alphabetical listing of definitions and descriptions for common astronomical terms and autostar ii functions. Access directly through the glossary menu or through hypertext words embedded in autostar ii. A hypertext word is any word in [ brackets ], usuall...

  • Page 29

    Sleep scope: a power saving option that shuts down autostar ii and the telescope without forgetting its alignment. With “sleep scope” selected, press enter to activate the sleep function. Autostar ii goes dark, but the internal clock keeps running. Press any key, except enter, to re-activate autosta...

  • Page 30

    (note that it does not prevent you from performing a manual slew past this limit.) this is useful when you have a camera or other peripheral attached to the telescope—you can prevent it from striking the telescope base. 90 (straight up) is the maximum value that can be entered. 쎱 mount lower limit: ...

  • Page 31

    쎱 reverse l/r: reverses the functions of the left and right arrow keys for controlling the telescope’s motion ( i.E. , the right key moves the telescope to the left ). 쎱 reverse u/d: reverses the functions of the up and down arrow keys for controlling the telescope’s motion ( i.E. , the up key moves...

  • Page 32

    쎱 software: sends only the basic autostar ii software. This is useful if one user has downloaded a new version of autostar ii software from the meade website ( www.Meade.Com ) and wants to pass this software along to friends. 쎱 all: everything—user-defined information and autostar ii software—is sen...

  • Page 33

    A d vanced autostar ii feat u r e s before trying out the examples in this section, familiarize yourself with the basic operations of autostar ii described earlier in this manual. The following examples assume that you have a basic knowledge of autostar ii and understand how to scroll to a desired m...

  • Page 34

    11. Press mode. “site: edit” displays. 12. Using the arrow keys, scroll to “site: select”. The site you have just edited displays. Press enter to select the site. Creating user objects in this procedure, you will enter coordinates of celestial objects that do not appear in any of the autostar ii lib...

  • Page 35

    Observing satellites in this procedure, you will prepare your telescope to observe a satellite pass. 1. Navigate to the “object: satellite” menu option and press enter. 2. Use the scroll keys to scroll through the list of satellites. 3. Select a satellite from the list and press enter. 4. “calculati...

  • Page 36

    As those in the landmark database. Be sure to change this option back to “astronomical” when you wish to view celestial objects again. 3. Press mode once. “select item: setup” displays. 4. Press the scroll down key once and “select item: object” displays. Press enter. “object: solar system” displays...

  • Page 37

    In this procedure, you will center an object you wish to have identified by autostar ii in the telescope eyepiece and use the “identify” menu to find out information about the object or the nearest object to it in the autostar ii database. 1. Center the object you wish to have identified in the tele...

  • Page 38

    Alternate alt/az alignments if you would rather set up your telescope without using automatic alignment, autostar ii offers alternative alignment methods for both alt/az and equatorial mounting. During the one-star and two-star alt/az alignment procedures, you will (unlike the automatic and easy ali...

  • Page 39

    Note: autostar ii locates alignment stars based on the date, time, and location entered. The alignment stars may change from night to night. All that is required is for the observer to center the selected stars in the eyepiece when prompted. Tip: try a spiral search the go to key also allows you to ...

  • Page 40

    Periodic error correction (pec training) if you wish to perform high-precision astrophotography, you may wish to “train” your telescope in order to keep objects that you are imaging dead center in the telescope’s mirror during the photographic exposure. Periodic error correction (pec) helps to remov...

  • Page 41

    2 fig. 19: lx200-acf with #62 t-adapter: (1) camera adapter, (2) t- mount, (3) camera body. Fig. 20: example of vignetting. 1 photography & digital imaging 3 you may perform through-the-telescope imaging with any camera body with a removable lens. You may connect a camera to a #62 t-adapter which is...

  • Page 42

    Photography with a digital camera some digital cameras present problems for the astrophotographer: many models have lenses that cannot be removed, difficulties in attaching to a telescope, possible vignetting, lack manual focusing and shorter exposure times. Shorter exposure times is one of the bigg...

  • Page 43

    • magic eye software-assisted focusing. • automatic and manual exposure control from .001 seconds to 1 hour. • automatically takes multiple exposures. The autostar suite software includes powerful tools to help you get the most from your meade lx200-acf telescope: • sophisticated planetarium program...

  • Page 44: Optional Accessories

    Optional accessories a wide assortment of professional meade accessories is available for the lx200-acf telescope models. The premium quality of these accessories is well-suited to the quality of the instrument itself. Consult the meade general catalog for complete details on these and other accesso...

  • Page 45

    Series 4000 8 - 24mm zoom eyepiece: the internal zoom optics of this eyepiece move on smooth, precisely machined surfaces which maintain optical collimation at all zoom settings. A scale graduated in 1mm units indicates the zoom focal length in operation. An excellent addition to any eyepiece set. #...

  • Page 46

    Fig. 30: illuminated reticle eyepiece. Errors with an illuminated reticle eyepiece; position corrections can then be effected using autostar ii. Piggyback brackets: piggyback photography is one of the most popular and easiest ways to get started in astrophotography. Attach your 35mm camera, with its...

  • Page 47: Maintenance

    Maintenance lx200-acf telescopes are precision optical instruments designed to yield a lifetime of rewarding applications. Given the care and respect due any precision instrument, your lx200-acf will rarely, if ever, require factory servicing. Maintenance guidelines include a. Avoid cleaning the tel...

  • Page 48

    With the star or hot spot centered, de-focus the image. You will notice that the out of focus star image looks like a ring of light surrounding a dark central spot; the dark central spot is in fact the shadow of the secondary mirror. Turn the focus knob until the ring of light fills about 10% of the...

  • Page 49

    I. As a final check of alignment, examine the star image in focus with the higher power eyepiece as suggested (h), under good viewing conditions. The star point should appear as a small central dot (commonly referred to as an “airy disc”) with a diffraction ring surrounding it. To give a final preci...

  • Page 50: Specifications

    8" f/10 lx200-acf specifications optical design ..............................................Advanced coma-free clear aperture..............................................203mm (8") focal length ................................................2000mm focal ratio (photographic speed) ..................

  • Page 51

    12" f/10 lx200-acf specifications optical design ..............................................Advanced coma-free clear aperture..............................................305mm (12") focal length ................................................3048mm focal ratio (photographic speed) ................

  • Page 52

    16" f/10 lx200-acf specifications optical design ..............................................Advanced coma-free clear aperture..............................................406.4mm (16") focal length ................................................4064mm focal ratio (photographic speed) ..............

  • Page 53: (Polar) Alignment

    Equatorial alignment in equatorial (or “polar”) alignment, the telescope is oriented so that the horizontal and vertical axes of the telescope are lined up with the celestial coordinate system. In order to equatorial align your telescope, it is essential to have an understanding of how and where to ...

  • Page 54

    Fig. 38 section of right ascension setting circle. Fig. 37: declination setting circle. Fig. 39a: equatorial wedge for 8" lx200-acf models. Fig. 39b: the ultrawedge is available for larger lx200-acf models. Using setting circles requires a developed technique. When using the circles for the first ti...

  • Page 55

    Lining up with the celestial pole objects in the sky appear to revolve around the celestial pole. (actually, celestial objects are essentially “fixed”. Their apparent motion is caused by the earth’s rotation). During any 24 hour period, stars make one complete revolution about the pole, making conce...

  • Page 56

    Setting circle and slightly loosen the two bolts located under the knob. Now turn the circle unit until it reads 89.2°, the declination of polaris. Then tighten down the two bolts and replace the knurled knob. Should you wish to use the manual setting circles, the r.A. Setting circle ( fig. 38 ) mus...

  • Page 57

    Autostar ii polar alignment autostar ii provides three different (manual) methods for polar alignment: easy, one- star and two-star. Easy polar alignment two alignment stars are chosen by autostar ii based on the date, time, and location. First, choose “polar” from the “setup: telescope: mount” menu...

  • Page 58: Appendix B: Latitude Chart

    Appendix b: latitude chart latitude chart for major cities of the world to aid in the polar alignment procedure (see page 53), latitudes of major cities around the world are listed below. To determine the latitude of an observing site not listed on the chart, locate the city closest to your site. Th...

  • Page 59: Appendix C: Create

    Appendix c: create your own guided tour creating your own guided tour can be an extremely useful tool. You can preprogram a script of objects you wish to view and study on any given night. You can also create a viewing script for students or for a friend. More commands will be added from time-to-tim...

  • Page 60

    Title text user ngc ic sao messier caldwell 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 ...

  • Page 61

    Planet “name” enter planet and then the name of the desired planet in quotes. Autostar ii provides 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 ii database. Satellite “name” e...

  • Page 62

    “they contain 50,000 to 100,000 stars and are located on the fringes of our “galaxy”.” pick one auto select messier 13 auto select messier 15 auto select messier 92 auto select messier 4 auto select messier 68 auto select ngc 1234 auto select text “none available” “i’m sorry. There are no bright glo...

  • Page 63

    Train the telescope motors using autostar ii. Perform this procedure if you are experiencing any pointing accuracy problems. Fig. 43 depicts the complete drive training procedure. Note: use a terrestrial object, such as a telephone pole or lamp post, to train the drive. Complete this exercise once e...

  • Page 64: Appendix E: The Moon Menu

    Appendix e: the moon menu the moon option of the object menu allows you to observe the moon in a way never possible before. You will be able locate many specific features of the lunar surface, including hundreds of craters, mare, valleys, and mountains. One special feature allows you to view all six...

  • Page 65: Appendix F:

    Appendix f: 16" lx200-acf features figure 45: 16" lx200-acf computer control panel. 16" lx200-acf unique features the 16" lx200-acf contains, for the most part, the same features (covered earlier in this manual) as all other lx200-acf telescope models. The following features are unique to the 16" mo...

  • Page 66

    Caution: next to the focus assembly are two red slot-head bolts, used only for safety reasons in shipment. Remove these bolts before attempting to turn the focus knob. In its place, insert the rubber plugs provided as a dust protector (these rubber plugs are included with your hardware package). The...

  • Page 67

    To collapse the tripod (after removing the telescope) for storage, follow these steps: a. Loosen the tension knob and rotate the spreader bar 60° from its assembled position, so that one spreader bar arm is located between each adjacent pair of tripod legs. B. Move the spreader bar to the top of the...

  • Page 68

    C. Lock the ota in place using the four 3/8"-16x3/4" bolts. Thread up the four bolts into the bottom of the dec. Castings, two on each side. Using the supplied hex key, tighten to a firm feel only ( fig. 55 ). Attaching the power and data cords several power and data cords are supplied with the 16" ...

  • Page 69: Appendix G:

    Appendix g: 14" lx200-acf features 14" lx200-acf unique features the 14" lx200-acf contains, for the most part, the same features (covered earlier in this manual) as all other lx200-acf telescope models. The following features are unique to the 14" model: battery compartment on newer models, the bat...

  • Page 70: Appendix H:

    Appendix h: de-rotator and microfocuser assembly for lx200-acf telescopes equiped with a zero image-shift microfocuser when using a de-rotator, it is important to attach the microfocuser so that it is backed off slightly from the de-rotator. If the microfocuser is flush against the de-rotator, the a...

  • Page 71: Appendix I:

    Appendix i: smart mount introduction smart mount improves the pointing accuracy of your lx200-acf telescope’s “go to” system. Despite careful efforts to calibrate and align telescopes, they may fail to precisely center objects. Smart mount allows your telescope to learn about, and then correct for, ...

  • Page 72

    Permanently mounted scopes for permanently mounted telescopes, it is not necessary to have more than one model unless the weight and balance of auxiliary equipment introduces balance or flexure changes that significantly affect pointing. The best practice is to train the smart mount and then run a c...

  • Page 73: Appendix J:

    1. Remove the field tripod from the shipping carton. Stand the tripod vertically with the tripod feet down and with the tripod still fully collapsed. Grasp two of the tripod legs and, with the full weight of the tripod on the third leg, gently pull the legs apart to a fully open position. 3. Remove ...

  • Page 74: Basic Astronomy

    In the early 17th century italian scientist galileo, using a telescope smaller than your lx200-acf , turned it skyward instead of looking at the distant trees and mountains. What he saw, and what he realized about what he saw, has forever changed the way mankind thinks about the universe. Imagine wh...

  • Page 75

    Planets planets change positions in the sky as they orbit around the sun. To locate the planets on a given day or month, consult a monthly astronomy magazine, such as sky and telescope or astronomy . You can also consult autostar ii for information about planets. Scroll to the “object: solar system”...

  • Page 76

    14-7206-02 0309 meade limited warranty every meade telescope, spotting scope, and telescope accessory is warranted by meade instruments corporation (“meade”) to be free of defects in materials and workmanship for a period of one year from the date of original purchase in the u.S.A. And canada. Meade...