User manual MEADE LX200 Instruction Manual

[. . . ] Instruction Manual 7" LX200 Maksutov-Cassegrain Telescope 8", 10", and 12" LX200 Schmidt-Cassegrain Telescopes Meade Instruments Corporation NOTE: Instructions for the use of optional accessories are not included in this manual. For details in this regard, see the Meade General Catalog. (2) (1) Ray (2) Ray (1) 8. 218" 8. 016" (2) (1) 8. 0" Focal Plane Secondary Mirror Primary Baffle Tube Field Stops Primary Mirror Correcting Plate (1) (2) 1/2° 8. 0" Secondary Baffle The Meade Schmidt-Cassegrain Optical System (Diagram not to scale) In the Schmidt-Cassegrain design of the Meade 8", 10", and 12" models, light enters from the right, passes through a thin lens with 2-sided aspheric correction ("correcting plate"), proceeds to a spherical primary mirror, and then to a convex aspheric secondary mirror. The convex secondary mirror multiplies the effective focal length of the primary mirror and results in a focus at the focal plane, with light passing through a central perforation in the primary mirror. The 8", 10", and 12" models include oversize 8. 25", 10. 375" and 12. 375" primary mirrors, respectively, yielding fully illuminated fieldsof-view significantly wider than is possible with standard-size primary mirrors. [. . . ] The core library, essentially a "greatest hits of the sky, " encompasses eight planets of our solar system from Mercury to Pluto, 351 stars (doubles, variables, pole stars), the entire Messier catalog of 110 objects, 7840 of the finest galaxies, diffuse and planetary nebulae, and globular and open star clusters The position epoch of these objects is for real time, updated each time you turn on your LX200. This not only qualifies the LX200 as the most accurate integrated object library available, it will never require updated software for precession of the stars or planetary orbital changes. You can directly access the library by using the M, STAR, or CNGC keys (see THE LX200 KEYPAD HAND CONTROLLER, page 14) and entering a specific catalog number, the START FIND option can be used to logically find objects in organized strips of the sky that can be custom tailored to only show the objects you wish to see with a selection of object types, size brightness, etc. , or you can scan the sky and have the Object Library tell you what is in the field of view in the eyepiece by using the FIELD option. Below is a description of the four OBJECT LIBRARY menu files and file options: To access the OBJECT LIBRARY menu file, move the arrow to the OBJECT LIBRARY display by pressing the PREV or NEXT key while in the TELESCOPE/OBJECT LIBRARY mode and press the ENTER key. Now you can access the four menu selections within the OBJECT LIBRARY by moving the arrow to the desired menu selection by using the PREV or NEXT keys and doing the following steps. OBJECT INFO: Press the ENTER key to read the type, brightness, size, and quality. Press ENTER once more to determine how far off the telescope is pointing from the entered object (this is displayed in LCD bars, each bar is ten degrees, or if it is on the object, no bars). This same information can also be accessed at any time by pressing the ENTER key for any object entered by the M, STAR, or CNGC keys. START FIND: The START FIND option resources the CNGC objects within the Object Library and begins a logical search starting wherever the telescope is positioned when activated. To cover the entire visible sky it will make 31 strip divisions about 12° wide, moving from West to East, from the North Pole to the South Pole, then South to North. Once it has found all of the CNGC objects it will repeat its sequence until new objects are visible. Objects: 5 Center: CNGC 4438 Press the ENTER button to reveal information about the object as shown in Display 29: Display 29 CNGC 4438 VG GAL MAG 10. 1 SZ 9. 3' Display 29 is interpreted; COMPUTERIZED NEW GENERAL CATALOG Object #4438, VERY GOOD, GALAXY, MAGNITUDE 10. 1, SIZE 9. 3' (in arc minutes). Press ENTER again to read the coordinate location of the object (notice the * legend next to RA coordinate number, it indicates the catalog coordinates of the object, not necessarily where the telescope is pointing) as shown in Display 30: Display 30 RA = 12:27. 2* DEC = +13'03 Press ENTER once more to see physically how far your telescope will have to move to acquire the object entered. The display will show LED bars, each bar represents ten degrees of movement as shown in Display 31: Display 31 IIII I 2. If you are centered on the object already, such as if you are in the FIELD menu selection, or if you have already made a GO TO command in one of the other methods for finding an object, the above display will be blank. To review any of the data of an object, continue to press ENTER until the desired field appears. You can use these commands at any time that you have an object entered in the keypad, while directly entering in specific objects by pressing the M, STAR, or CNGC keys, in the START FIND - 21 menu selection, the OBJECT INFORMATION menu selection, or the FIELD menu selection. PARAMETERS: It is here that you can edit the Press ENTER to find eight options which can be reviewed by scrolling through this menu selection using the PREV or NEXT key. To edit an option, move the arrow to the desired option and press and hold ENTER until a double beep is heard and a blinking cursor appears (except in the BETTER option) Where numerical values are to be input, simply type them in from the keypad. If you make a mistake, you can move the cursor backward using the W key, then re-enter the data. TYPE GPDCO: This menu file option allows you to select the type of CNGC objects that you wish to locate. GPDCO represent: OBJECT SYMBOL LEGEND SYMBOL G P D C O DESCRIPTION GALAXIES PLANETARY NEBULAE DIFFUSE NEBULAE GLOBULAR STAR CLUSTERS OPEN STAR CLUSTERS e. Enter the number of degrees above the horizon that will clear the obstructions in the sky. To roughly judge how many degrees the obstruction is taking up of the sky, merely hold your fist at arms length. [. . . ] Motorola 68HC05 microcontroller; 2 line x 16 alphanumeric character display; 19 button keypad, red LED backlit 16 MHz 68000 microprocessor; 1 Meg program memory 16K RAM; 512 byte non-volatile memory (EEROM) 9. 25" x 16" x 25" 1. 55° x 1. 08° 9. 7" x 13. 6" 9. 4' x 13. 3' 56. 3' x 79. 7' 9. 1" x 13. 3" 7. 7' x 14. 1' 48' x 70' 37# 7# N/A 20# 8# 64# (w/ case) 9# N/A 26# N/A 5# 10" LX200 f/6. 3 Schmidt-Cassegrain Catadioptric 254mm (10") 263. 5mm (10. 375) 1600mm (63") f/6. 3 . 45 arc sec Standard 14. 5 17. 0 0. 91°/inch 625X 50' 11. 75" Dia. x 22" Long 4. 0" (16. 0%) Heavy-Duty Fork-Type Double Tine Dec. : 6"; R. A. : 8. 75" 9-speed, microprocessor controlled 12v. DC servo motor; 5. 75" worm gear with Smart Drive North and South switchable 9-speed, DC servo controlled 5. 75" worm gear with Dec drift software 5-3/4" Worm Gear Dec. Motorola 68HC05 microcontroller; 2 line x 16 alphanumeric character display; 19 button keypad, red LED backlit 16 MHz 68000 microprocessor; 1 Meg program memory 16K RAM; 512 byte non-volatile memory (EEROM) 12" x 19" x 31" 1. 24° x 0. 86° 7. 75" x 10. 9" 7. 5' x 10. 7' 45. 0' x 63. 8' 7. 3" x 10. 6" 6. 1' x 9. 0' 39' x 56' 61# N/A 26# 20# 8# 69# N/A 38# 26# N/A 5# Hemispheres of Operation Declination Control System Motor Drive Gear Diameter Manual Slow-Motion Controls Hand Controller Main Controller Telescope Size, Swung Down 35mm Angular Film Coverage 35mm Linear Film Coverage @: 50" 500" 3000" Tele-Extender Used Without Eyepiece @: 50' 500' 3000' Net Telescope Weights (approx) Telescope Optional Equatorial Wedge Optional Super Wedge Field Tripod Accessories Shipping Weights (approx) Telescope Equatorial Wedge (optional) Super Wedge (optional) Field Tripod Case (for 10" models) Accessories - 63 - Telescope Optical Design Clear Aperture Primary Mirror Diameter Focal Length Focal Ratio Resolution Super Multi-Coatings Limiting Visual Magnitude (approx) Limiting Photographic Magnitude (approx) Image Scale (°/inch) Maximum Practical Visual Power Near Focus Optical Tube Size Secondary Mirror Obstruction Telescope Mounting Setting Circle Diameters RA Motor Drive System 8" LX200 f/10 Schmidt-Cassegrain Catadioptric 203mm (8") 209. 6mm (8. 25) 2000mm (80") f/10 . 56 arc sec Standard 14. 0 16. 5 0. 72°/inch 500X 25' 9. 1" Dia. 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