Meade telescop manual ds114at

7/28/2019 Meade telescop manual ds114at

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Instruction Manual

DS-114ATReflecting Telescope

Meade Instruments Corporation

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Reflecting Telescopes use a concave primary mirror to collect light

and form an image. In the Newtonian type of reflector, light is reflect-ed by a small, flat secondary mirror to the side of the main tube forobservation of the image. Light is collected by a concave mirror andbrought to a focus at F.

F

Eyepiece

ConcaveMirror

SecondaryMirror

Reflecting Telescope



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QUICK-START GUIDE

1. Remove the optical tube and tripod from the gift-box.

Perform this setup on a flat, stable surface. It is rec-ommended that you perform this operation in the day-

time or in bright light the first time you assemble the tel-escope.

The optical tube assembly is shipped with the cradlerings, yoke mount, and tripod attached. Carefully

remove the assembly from the box. Lay the assemblyon the floor.

2. Remove the optical tube from the mount.

The optical tube is shipped oriented the wrong directionin the yoke mount for observingyou must remove the

tube from the mount and turn it around 180.

Loosen the cradle ring lock knobs and move the knobsout of the way so that you can open the cradle rings.

Once the rings are open, remove the optical tube from

the cradle rings.

3. Stand the tripod and orient the cradle rings.

Stand the tripod on a flat surface and gently pull the

legs apart to a fully open position. Turn the cradle rings

so that the ring base is horizontal (parallel) to theground. Tighten the alt lock (A) to a firm feel, so the

rings remain in that position.

This Quick Start procedure explains how to set up your DS-114AT for manual viewing. If you wish to make observations

using the Autostar handbox, please turn to HOW TO ASSEMBLE YOUR TELESCOPE, page 10 and take the time and care

necessary to assemble allthe components that are supplied with this telescope.

2

1

3

A



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6. Adjust tripod.

Adjust the height of the tripod by lifting the clip on eachleg and extending the sliding inner section of each tri-

pod leg to the desired length. Then press the clip back

against the leg to lock in place.

4. Attach and balance the optical tube.

Turn the optical tube around and replace it into the cra-

dle rings. Fasten the cradle rings lock knobs so thatthey only hold the optical tube loosely; do not tighten

the lock knobs yet. Note the optical tube's and the

yoke's orientation in photo.

Slide the tube back and forth until you find a positionwhere the tube remains horizontal (i.e., without tipping

up or down). Then tighten the cradle rings lock knobs toa firm feel.

7. Sight along the tube.

Sight along the side of the telescope's main tube tolocate an object and then observe through the eye-

piece.

5. Insert the eyepiece.

Remove the supplied 25mm eyepiece (B) from its con-

tainer and place it into the eyepiece holder. Tighten thethumbscrews (C) to a firm feel only. Remove the dust

cover from the end of optical tube assembly. Use thefocus knobs (D) to bring objects into focus.

If you wish to attach the viewfinder, see page 10.

If you wish to initialize Autostar, see page 15.

If you wish to align the telescope, see page 17.

If you wish to use Autostar to automatically view

objects, see page 19 for some examples.

7

4

6

5

B

C

D



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1

2

9 5

11

10 6

16

20

13

15

7

3

23

Fig. 1: DS-114AT Series Telescope.

Fig. 1b (Inset): Computer Control Panel.

(A) LED

(B) 12V Port(C) Handbox Port

(D) AZ Port

(E) ALT Port

(F) AUX Port

12

14

19

18

21

4

Fig. 1c: Cradle Rings Lock

Knobs (on opposite side).

17

3

A C D E FB

8

22



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The DS-114AT telescope has a variety of useful features. Be sure to become acquainted with

all of these controls before you begin making observations through the telescope.

Focus Knobs: Move the telescopes focus drawtube in a finely-controlled motion to achieveprecise image focus.

Eyepiece Holder: Holds the eyepiece in place. Eyepiece Holder Thumbscrews (2): Tighten the eyepiece in place. Tighten to a firm feel only. Eyepiece: Place one of the supplied eyepieces into the eyepiece holder (2, Fig. 1). Viewfinder: Provides an easier way to initially sight objects than the main telescope eyepiece

which has a narrower field of view.

Viewfinder Alignment Screws (4): Adjust these screws to align the viewfinder. Viewfinder Alignment Bracket: Attaches the viewfinder to the telescope (11, Fig. 1). Alt Indicator: Displays the angle (in degrees) of the altitude of the optical tube. Cradle Rings (2): Hold optical tube securely in place. Cradle Ring Lock Knobs (2): Tighten to a firm feel to hold the optical tube securely in

place. Fig. 1c depicts a cradle ring clamped in place by one of the lock knobs and one of

the lock knobs hanging loose.

Optical Tube: The main optical component that gathers the light from distant objects andbrings this light to a focus for observation with the eyepiece.

Primary Mirror Cell: Contains the optical tube's primary mirror and 3 screws that are usedin a collimation adjustment. Note:Do not remove the piece of felt from the cell.

Alt (Vertical) Gear and Motor: Moves the telescope along the vertical axis. Battery Pack: Supplies power to the assembly. Install 10 user-supplied AA batteries. Autostar: Autostar is able to control nearly all the functions of the telescope. Tripod Legs: To use, spread the legs as far as they will open. Adjust the height of the tri-

pod by lifting the clip on each leg and extending the sliding inner section of each tripod leg

to the desired length. Then press the clip back against the leg to lock in place.

Accessory Tray: Conveniently holds extra eyepieces, Autostar, and other accessories. Az (Horizontal) Gear and Motor: Moves the telescope along the horizontal axis.

Az Lock: Controls the manual horizontal movement of the telescope. Turning the Alt lockcounterclockwise unlocks the telescope enabling it to be freely moved by hand on the hor-izontal axis. Turning the Alt lock clockwise (to a firm feel only) prevents the telescope from

being moved manually and engages the vertical motor drive clutch for Autostar operation.

Computer Control Panel (Fig. 1b)A. LED: The red power indicator light illuminates when power ( i.e., the battery pack)

is supplied to the Autostar handbox and to the telescopes motor drive.

B. 12V: Plug the battery pack into this port.

C. Handbox (HBX) Port: Plug the #494 Autostar handbox into this port.

D. Azimuth (AZ) Port: Plug the Az motor into this port.

E. Altitude (ALT) Port: Plug the Alt motor into this port.

F. Auxiliary (AUX) Port: Provides connection for Meade accessories.

Yoke Mount: Along with the cradle rings, holds the optical tube assembly (11, Fig. 1).

Alt Lock: Controls the manual vertical movement of the telescope. Turning the Alt lockcounterclockwise unlocks the telescope enabling it to be freely tilted by hand on the verti-

cal axis. Turning the Alt lock clockwise (to a firm feel only) prevents the telescope from

being moved manually and engages the vertical motor drive clutch for Autostar operation.

Dust Cap: Pull to remove the dust cap from the front lens of the telescope.Note:The dust cap should be replaced and the power turned off to the telescope

after each observing session. Verify that any dew that might have collected during

the observing session has evaporated prior to replacing the dust cap.

TELESCOPE FEATURES

Want to learnmore about the

viewfinder?

See pages 10

through 12.

Want to learnmore about

collimation?

See pages 29

and 30.

21

22

23


Autostar's

buttons?

See pages 8

and 9.Autostar's

menus?

See pages 22

through 27.



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Control of the DS-114AT Series Telescopes is throughthe operation of the #494 Autostar handbox. Nearly all

functions of the telescope can be operated with just a

few pushes of Autostars buttons. Some of the majorfeatures of Autostar are:

s Automatically move the telescope to any of the

1400 objects stored in the database or manually

enter the astronomical coordinates of any celestial

object.

s Take a guided tour of the best celestial objects to

view on any given night of the year.

s Access a glossary of astronomical terms.

s Calculate which eyepiece to use for optimum view-

ing of a celestial object.

Autostar has soft-touch keys and the LCD (LiquidCrystal Display) is backlit with a red LED (Light

Emitting Diode) for easy viewing in the dark.

NOTE:Autostar does not require batteries; the

telescopes batteries supply power to Autostar.

2-Line LCD: Displays Autostar menu and help information.

Top line: Displays the menu or category name. Bottom line: Displays a menu option or information about a subject.

ENTER Key: When an option is displayed, press ENTER to enable the choice. When amenu is displayed, press ENTER to access the next menu or data level in the Autostardatabase. ENTER is similar to the RETURN key on a computer. See MOVING THROUGHAUTOSTAR'S MENUS, page 15 and MENUS AND MENU OPTIONS, page 22.

NOTE: If ENTER is pressed for two seconds or more and then released, Autostaremits a beep and ENTER to Sync is displayed. If the "ENTER to Sync" feature is

accessed by mistake, press MODE to return to the previous screen. See HIGH

PRECISION, page 26, for more details about this feature.

MODE Key: When a menu is displayed, press MODE to return to the previous menu or datalevel in the Autostar database. MODE is similar to the ESCAPE key on a computer.

NOTE:Pressing MODE while in the Select Item level moves Autostar to the top-

most screen: Select Item: Object.

NOTE: If MODE is pressed and held for two seconds or more, the following infor-

mation is then available using the Scroll keys (6 and 7, Fig. 2):

Right Ascension and Declination (astronomical) coordinates Altitude (vertical) and Azimuth (horizontal) coordinates

Local Time and Local Sidereal Time (LST)

Timer and Alarm Status

Press MODE again to return to the previous menu.

GO TO Key: Moves the telescope to the currently selected object. While the telescope ismoving, the operation may be aborted at any time by pressing any key except GO TO.

Pressing GO TO again resumes the operation.

The GO TO key also allows you to perform a "spiral search." Aspiral search is useful whenthe telescope is commanded to go to an object, but that object is not visible in the eyepiece

after the telescope finishes its search. (This sometimes occurs during the alignment pro-cedure.) Press GO TO when the slew is finished and the telescope starts slewing in a spi-

ral pattern at a very slow speed around the search area. Look through the eyepiece and

when the object does become visible, press MODE to stop the spiral search. Then use theArrow keys to center the object.

Fig. 2: #494 Autostar Handbox.

AUTOSTAR FEATURES

DEFINITION:

Throughout this man-ual, you will notice

the term "Alt/Az."Alt/Az is frequently

used to refer to

Altitude (vertical) andAzimuth (horizontal).

Alt/Az is just one ofmany methods used

by amateur

astronomers to helplocate stars in the

night sky.

TIP:When a mes-

sage is scrollingacross the display,

press and hold the UpArrow key to increase

the scrolling speed or

press and hold theDown Arrow key to

decrease the scrollingspeed.



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Arrow Keys: Move the telescope in a specific direction (up, down, left, and right), at anyone of nine different slew speeds.

The Arrow Keys can also be used to scroll through the letters of the alphabet and numeri-cal digits. The Down Arrow key starts with the letter "A" and the Up Arrow key starts withthe digit "9." The Left and Right Arrow keys moves the cursor left and right across the LCDdisplay.

, Scroll Keys: Access options of the menu displayed on the top line of the screen.Options within the menu are displayed, one at a time, on the second line. Press the Scrollkeys to move through the options. Press and hold a Scroll key to move quickly through theoptions, or to change scroll speeds of text.

The Scroll keys also scroll through the letters of the alphabet and numerical digits.

Tip:When a message is scrolling across the display, press and hold the Up Scrollkey to increase the scrolling speed, or press and hold the Down Scroll key to

decrease the scrolling speed.

NOTE:The Scroll Down key and the Down Arrow key move forward through the

alphabet & digits (A to Z, 0 to 9). The Scroll Up key and the Up Arrow key move

backward (Z to A, 9 to 0). Common symbols are also available in the list.

Speed/? Key: Press the Speed/? key to cycle through the nine slew speeds that move the

telescope. Each time the Speed/? key is briefly pressed, the current speed will be shownfor about two seconds on the display.

The Speed/? key also accesses the "Help" file. "Help" provides on-screen information for

whatever task is currently active.

NOTE: Pressing the Speed/? key very briefly changes the slew speed. Holding

down the Speed/? key longer (one to two seconds) accesses the Help function.

If you have a question about an

Autostar operation (e.g., INITIALIZA-TION, ALIGNMENT, etc.), hold down

the Speed/? key and follow the direc-tions that scroll on the second line of

the LCD screen. When a word appearsin [brackets], press ENTER to access

the Autostar Glossary. A definition ormore detailed information is displayed.Press MODE to return to the scrolling

Autostar Help display.

When satisfied with the Help provided,

press MODE to return to the originalscreen and continue with the chosen

procedure.

Coil Cord: Plug the Autostar coil cordinto the HBX port (C, Fig. 1b) of the

computer control panel.

Join an Astronomy ClubAttend a Star Party

A fun way to learn more about astronomy is tojoin an astronomy club. Check your local news-paper, school, library, or telescope dealer to findout if theres a club in your area.

At club meetings, you will meet other astronomyenthusiasts with whom you will be able to shareyour discoveries. Clubs are an excellent way tolearn more about observing the sky, to find outwhere the best observing sites are, and to com-pare notes about telescopes, eyepieces, filters,tripods, and so forth.

Often, club members are excellent astrophotog-raphers. Not only will you be able to studyexamples of their art, but you may even be ableto pick up some tricks of the trade to try out onyour DS-114AT telescope.

Many groups hold regularly scheduled star par-ties at which you can observe with many differ-ent telescopes and examine other pieces ofastronomical equipment. Magazines such asSky & Telescopeand Astronomyprint schedulesfor many popular star parties around the UnitedStates and Canada.


slew speeds?

See page 14.



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Packing ListAssembling the telescope for the first time requires only a few minutes. When first opening thepacking box, note carefully the parts listed on your giftbox.

How to Assemble Your TelescopeThe telescope attaches directly to the tripod. The telescope in this way is "mounted" in anAltazimuth (Altitude-Azimuth, or vertical-horizontal) format. The telescope mounted this way

moves along the vertical and horizontal axes, corresponding to the astronomical axes known asDeclination (vertical) and Right Ascension (horizontal).

Perform this setup on a flat, stable surface. It is recommended that you perform this operation

in the daytime or in bright light the first time you assemble the telescope.

1. Remove the optical tube and tripod from the giftbox: The optical tube assembly is

shipped with the cradle rings (9, Fig. 1), yoke mount (21, Fig. 1), and tripod attached.Carefully remove the assembly from the box. Lay the assembly on the floor.

2. Remove the optical tube from the mount: The optical tube (11, Fig. 1) is shipped ori-

ented the wrong direction in the yoke mount for observingyou must remove the tube fromthe mount and turn it around 180.

Loosen and unlatch the cradle ring lock knobs (10, Fig. 1) so that you can open the cradlerings (9, Fig. 1). Once the rings are open, remove the optical tube from the cradle rings.

Carefully note the orientation of the tube, so that you can rotate it 180 later on when youreplace it in the rings.

3. Stand the tripod and adjust the cradle rings: Stand the tripod on a flat surface and gen-

tly pull the legs (16, Fig. 1) apart to a fully open position. Turn the cradle rings so that the

cradle ring base is horizontal (parallel) to the ground. Tighten the alt lock (22, Fig. 1), sothe rings remain in the horizontal position.

4. Attach the utility tray to the tripod: Place one of the tray's flanges around one edge of a

tripod leg and then pull the tray around until the other flange snaps in place (Fig. 5). Theutility tray (17, Fig. 1) can be pushed up or down the tripod leg to a convenient height.

5. Attach and balance the optical tube: Turn the optical tube around 180and replace it intothe cradle rings. Fasten the cradle rings lock knobs (10, Fig. 1) so that they only hold the

optical tube loosely; do not tighten the lock knobs yet.

Slide the tube back and forth until you find a position where the tube remains horizontal

(i.e., without tipping up or down). Then tighten the cradle rings lock knobs to a firm feel.6. Attach the Alt (vertical) motor to the Alt gear: Place the knurled ring of the motor assem-

bly over the Alt gear. Note that three small plastic tabs project outwards from the face of

the gear (Fig. 7). These "locator" tabs fit into the mating slots inside the knurled ring.Wiggle the motor assembly over the gear assembly until the motor slips into place. Thread

the knurled ring over the mating threads of the gear assembly to lock the motor. See Fig.8. Tighten to a firm feel only.

7. Attach the Az (horizontal) motor to the Az gear: Attach the Az motor assembly to thethe Az gear using the procedure described in step 6. See Fig. 9.

8. Connect the motor assembly cords: Plug the cord from the alt motor assembly into the Alt

port (E, Fig.1b) of the computer control panel. Plug the cord from the az motor assembly into

the Az port (D, Fig.1b) of the computer control panel.

9. Attach the viewfinder bracket: Use a Phillips-head screwdriver to thread the two attachment

screws in the viewfinder bracket (these screws are placed inside the bracket at the factory) intothe mating threads located on the optical tube (Fig. 10).

10. Attach the viewfinder tube: Carefully remove the rubber eyecup from the viewfinder

before sliding the viewfinder into the bracket. Then slide the viewfinder, eyepiece-end first(the end to which the rubber cup was attached) into the viewfinder bracket. Replace the

rubber eyecup. Tighten the four alignment thumbscrews (6, Fig. 1 and Fig. 11) to a firm-feel to hold the viewfinder in the bracket.

11. Insert the eyepiece: Remove the supplied 25mm eyepiece from its container and place it

into the eyepiece holder (2, Fig. 1). Tighten the thumbscrew (3, Fig. 1) to a firm feel only.

GETTING STARTED

Fig. 4: Adjust the cradlerings.

Fig. 6: Attach and bal-ance the optical tube.

Fig. 3 Remove assemblyfrom the giftbox.

Fig. 5 Attach tray to thetripod:

Fig. 7: Motor (left) andgear (right) assembly.Note the slots and thelocator tabs.



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12. Connect Autostar: Plug the coil cord of the Autostar Controller into the HBX port (C,

Fig.1b) of the computer control panel.

WARNING:Make sure you plug in Autostarbeforeyou plug in the battery pack.

NOTE:Autostar does not require batteries; the telescopes batteries supply power

to Autostar.

13. Insert batteries: Install 10 AA user-supplied batteries into the battery pack (Fig.12), ori-ented as shown on the diagram on the battery slots of the battery holder.

CAUTION: Use care to install batteries as indicated by the battery compartment.

Follow battery manufacturer's precautions. Do not install batteries backwards ormix new and used batteries. Do not mix battery types. If these precautions are not

followed, batteries may explode, catch fire, or leak. Improperly installed batteriesvoid your Meade warranty. Always remove the batteries if they are not to be used

for a long period of time.

14. Connect battery pack: Plug the battery pack into the 12V port (B, Fig.1b) of the comput-

er control panel. Attach the pack to one of the tripod legs using the Velcro fastener or setit on the utility tray.

15. Adjust tripod: Adjust the height of the tripod to a convenient viewing height by lifting the

clip on each leg and extending the sliding inner section of the leg to the desired length.

Then press the clip back against the leg to lock in place.

15. Remove the dust cover: Pull out the dust cover (23, Fig. 1) from the optical tube.

Assembly of the telescope is now complete.

Some Notes About the Dual-Motor System

For the motors to be operational, the Az and Alt lock-knobs (19, Fig. 1) and (22, Fig. 1)

must be in their locked positions. Firm-feel tightening of these locks is sufficient. Do notovertighten. If these are not sufficiently tightened, Autostar may display a motor fault mes-

sage.

When setting up the telescope, alwaysplug in the battery pack to the control panel last,

after plugging in the two motors and Autostar. Connecting the battery pack to the controlpanel before the motors and Autostar are connected may result in false electrical signals

being sent to the motors, causing them to malfunction. In this case unplug the battery pack

from the control panel, wait a few seconds, and plug the battery pack back into the controlpanel. This operation clears the motors of any false signals.

Take care that cords do not become wrapped around the telescope; keep the cords looseat all times. Do not allow the telescope to slew into the tripod or other fixed object. Do not

touch or hold the telescope tube while it is moving.

If the motors stall or do not have sufficient power to move the telescope, place fresh bat-

teries in the battery pack. Long-life alkaline batteries are recommended.

The first time you initialize your system, make sure you train the drives. This allows

Autostar to move the telescope precisely to objects. See page 16 for detailed infofrmation.

The Viewfinder

Because the main telescope has a fairly narrow field of view, locating objects directly in the

main telescope can sometimes be difficult. The viewfinder (5, Fig. 1) is a small, wide-field tele-

scope with crosshairs that permits you to locate objects more easily. When the viewfinder andoptical tube are aligned to each other, both point to the same position in the sky. An object locat-

ed in the viewfinder is therefore also positioned within the field of the main telescope. Beforealigning the viewfinder to the optical tube, focus the viewfinder.

Focusing the Viewfinder:

1. Turn the viewfinder eyepiece on its internal thread. Generally a few turns are sufficient to

achieve proper focus.

Fig. 9: Attach Az motor.

Fig. 11: Attach the viewfind-er tube to bracket and tight-en thumbscrews.

Fig. 10: Attach the viewfind-er bracket to the opticaltube.

Fig. 12: Insert 10 AA batter-ies into battery pack.

Fig. 8: Attach Alt motor.



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DEFINITION:

A capital "X" is used to

denote an eyepiece's(or a Barlow's) power or

magnification. For exam-ple, "40X" is read as

"40-power."

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Aligning the Viewfinder:

It is recommended that you perform steps 1 through 4 of this procedure during the daytime and

step 5 at night.

1. Loosen the Az lock (19, Fig. 1) and the Alt lock (22, Fig. 1) by turning the locks about one

turn counterclockwise, permitting the telescope to move freely on its axes.

2. If you have not already done so, place a low-power (e.g., 25mm) eyepiece in the eyepiece

holder of the main telescope (2, Fig. 1) and point the telescope at an easy-to-find landobject (e.g., the top of a telephone pole). Turn the focuser knob (1,Fig. 1) so that the imageis sharply focused. Center the object precisely in the main telescope s field of view.

3. Re-tighten the Az lock (19, Fig. 1) and the Alt lock (22, Fig. 1).

4. Now, looking through the viewfinder, turn some or all of the viewfinders alignment screws

(6, Fig. 1) until the viewfinders crosshairs point precisely at the same object as centeredin the main telescope. The viewfinder is now aligned to the main telescope. The right-hand

image in Fig. 13A shows an object centered in the main telescope before the viewfinder(the left-hand image) has been aligned to the main telescope. Fig. 13B shows these same

images after the viewfinder and main telescope are aligned.

5. Check this alignment on a celestial object, such as the Moon or a bright star, and makeany necessary refinements.

Choosing an EyepieceA telescopes eyepiece magnifies the image formed by the telescopes main optics. Each eye-piece 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 highermagnification than an eyepiece with a focal length of 25mm.

Your telescope comes supplied with a low-powered 25mm eyepiece which gives a wide, com-

fortable field of view with high image resolution.

Low power eyepieces offer a wide field of view, bright, high-contrast images, and eye relief dur-

ing long observing sessions. To find an object with a telescope, always start with a lower power

eyepiece such as a 25mm. When the object is located and centered in the eyepiece, you maywish to switch to a higher power eyepiece to enlarge the image as much as practical for pre-

vailing seeing conditions.

NOTE:Viewing conditions vary widely from night-to-night and site-to-site.

Turbulence in the air, even on an apparently clear night, can distort images. If animage appears fuzzy and ill-defined, back off to a lower power eyepiece for a morewell-resolved image.

The power (or magnification) of a telescope is determined by the focal length of the telescopeand the focal length of the eyepiece being used. To calculate eyepiece power, divide the tele-

scope's focal length by the eyepiece's focal length. For example, you may wish to use a 25mm

eyepiece. Look up the focal length of the telescope under "Specifications," page 30. The focallength is listed as 910mm.

Telescope focal length divided by Eyepiece focal length = Eyepiece power

910 25 = 37

The eyepiece power, or magnification is therefore 37X (approximately).

The Barlow LensSome Meade telescopes include a power multiplier called a Barlow lens. The Barlow suppliedwith the DS-114AT triples the power obtained by an eyepiece alone. In the example above, a

25mm eyepiece results in 37X magnification. When used with the supplied Barlow, the tele-

scope optics result in a 111X magnification. To use the Barlow, insert it into the eyepiece hold-er, followed by the eyepiece (Fig. 15).

Fig. 13: Aligning theviewfinder. Note that objectsappear upside-down andreversed left-for-right whenobserved in the viewfinder.

TelescopeViewfinder Eyepiece

A. Not aligned

B. Aligned

Fig. 14: Eyepiece andfocuser assembly.

Fig. 15: Eyepiece andBarlow lens.



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OBSERVINGObserving by Moving the Telescope ManuallyIf you wish to observe a distant land object, such as a mountain top or a bird, you can observe

by merely pointing the telescope and looking through the eyepiece.

1. Loosen the telescopes Az lock (19, Fig. 1) and Alt lock (22, Fig. 1).

2. Move your telescope to point at distant street signs, mountains, trees, and other structures.

Use your viewfinder to help site-in on an object.3. Center the object in the viewfinders crosshairs and then in the telescope eyepiece. When

the object is centered in your eyepiece, remember to re-tighten the Az and Alt locks.

4. Practice focusing objects with the focus knob (1, Fig. 1).

5. Once you get a feel for how your telescope moves and focuses, try to view something

more challenging, like a bird or a distant moving train.

You can also observe stars and objects in the night sky using this method, but note that objectsbegin to slowly drift across the eyepiece field. This motion is caused by the rotation of the Earth.

As you become familiar with the Autostar handbox operation, you can counteract the drift using

the automatic tracking feature in the Autostar Setup menu (see TRACKING AN OBJECT AUTO-

MATICALLY, page 14), or by using Autostar's GO TO capabilities (see GO TO SATURN, page 19).

Terrestrial Observing

DS-114AT telescopes are excellent high-resolution, terrestrial (land) telescopes. Viewing ter-restrial objects requires looking along the Earth's surface through heat waves. These heat

waves often cause degradation of imagequality. Lower power eyepieces, such as

a 25mm eyepiece, magnify these heat

waves less than higher power eyepieces.Therefore, lower power eyepieces provide a

steadier, higher quality image. If the imageis fuzzy or ill-defined, reduce to a lower

power eyepiece, where the heat waves donot have such an effect on image quality.

Observing in early morning hours, before

the ground has built up internal heat, pro-duces better viewing conditions than during

late afternoon hours.

Observing Using Autostar'sArrow KeysYou may observe land and astronomical

objects using Autostar's Arrow keys to move

the telescope.

1. Tighten the Alt lock (22, Fig. 1) and Azlock (19, Fig. 1).

2. Verify that Autostar is properly connect-ed to your telescope.

3. Plug the battery pack into the 12V port.

The Autostar screen is activated and acopyright message displays briefly, fol-lowed by a short beep. Then Autostartakes a few moments to start up thesystem.

4. A message displays that warns not tolook at the Sun. At the end of this mes-sage, press the key prompted byAutostar to signify that the messagehas been read and understood.

13

NEVERpoint the

telescopedirectly at

or near the Sun at any

time! Observing theSun, even for the

smallest fraction of asecond, will result in

instant and irre-

versible eye damage,as well as physical

damage to the tele-scope itself.

Too Much Power?Can you ever have too much power? If the

type of power youre referring to is eyepiece

magnification, yes, you can! The most com-

mon mistake of the beginning observer is to

overpower a telescope by using high magni-

fications which the telescopes aperture and

atmospheric conditions cannot reasonably

support. Keep in mind that a smaller, butbright and well-resolved image is far superior

to one that is larger, but dim and poorly

resolved (see below). Powers above 200X

should be employed only under the steadiest

atmospheric conditions.

Autostar can calculate the best eyepiece for

you to use. Try out the Eyepiece Calc fea-

ture in the Utilities menu.

Most observers should have three or four

additional eyepieces to achieve the full range

of reasonable magnifications possible with

the DS-114AT telescopes. See OPTIONAL

ACCESSORIES, page 31.

Fig. 17a & 17b:Jupiter; example of toomuch magnification.

Fig. 16: Autostar's Arrowkeys.



14/38

Fig. 18: Alt/Az Home Position.

North

Level the opti-cal tube

14

5. The Arrow keys are now activated. Press the Arrow keys (5, Fig. 2) to slew (move) the tel-escope up, down, right, or left.

6. Press the SPEED/? key (8, Fig. 2) to change the telescopes slew speed. See SLEW

SPEEDS, below, for more information.

7. Use the viewfinder (5, Fig. 1) to locate an object and practice using the Autostar s Arrow

keys to center the object in the telescope eyepiece's field of view.

8. Use the telescopes focus knob (1, Fig. 1) to bring the object into focus.

Slew SpeedsAutostar has nine slew speeds that are directly proportional to the sidereal rate (see TRACKING

AN OBJECT AUTOMATICALLY below for a definition of "sidereal rate") and have been calculat-

ed to accomplish specific functions. Pressing the SPEED/? key changes the slew speed, which

is shown for about two seconds on Autostars display.

The nine available speeds are:

s Speed 1 = 2x = 2 x sidereal (0.5 arc-min/sec or 0.008/sec)

s Speed 2 = 8x = 8 x sidereal (2 arc-min/sec or 0.033/sec)




s Speed 6 = 0.5= 120 x sidereal (30 arc-min/sec or 0.5/sec)s Speed 7 = 1/s = 240 x sidereal (60 arc-min/sec or 1/sec)

s Speed 8 = 2/s = 480 x sidereal (120 arc-min/sec or 2/sec)

s Speed 9 = Max = (Maximum speed possible, dependent on battery power)

Speeds 1, 2, or 3: Best used for fine centering of an object in the field of view of a higher power

eyepiece, such as a 12mm or a 9mm eyepiece.

Speeds 4, 5, or 6: Enables centering an object in the field of a low-to-moderate power eye-

piece, such as a standard 25mm eyepiece.

Speeds 7 or 8: Best used for rough centering of an object in the eyepiece.

Speed 9: Moves the telescope quickly from one point in the sky to another.

Observe the MoonPoint your telescope at the Moon (note that the Moon is not visible every night) and practice

using the Arrow keys and the slew speeds to view different features. The Moon contains manyinteresting features, including craters, mountain ranges, and fault lines. The best time to viewthe Moon is during its crescent or half phase. Sunlight strikes the Moon at an angle during these

periods and adds a depth to the view. No shadows are seen during a full Moon, causing theoverly bright surface to appear flat and rather uninteresting. Consider the use of a neutral den-

sity Moon filter when observing the Moon. Not only does it cut down the Moon's bright glare,

but it also enhances contrast, providing a more dramatic image.

Astronomical ObservingUsed as an astronomical instrument, your telescope has many optical and electromechanicalcapabilities. It is in astronomical applications where the high level of optical performance isreadily visible. The range of observable astronomical objects is, with minor qualification, limit-ed only by the observer s motivation.

Tracking an Object Automatically

As the Earth rotates beneath the night sky, the stars appear to move from East to West. Thespeed at which the stars move is called the sidereal rate. You can set up your telescope tomove at the sidereal rate so that it automatically "tracks" the stars and other objects in the nightsky. If the telescope is not tracking an astronomical object, the object will drift out of the eye-piece field of view. The tracking function automatically keeps an object more or less centeredin the telescopes eyepiece.

To automatically track objects, you must first set the telescope in the home position, then ini-tialize Autostar, train the drive, and finally select "Targets: Astronomical" from the AutostarSetup menu. You must also learn how the Autostar keypad operates in order to move throughthe Autostar menus.

WARNING:

Do not look throughthe telescope's eye-

piece or viewfinderwhile it is rapidly

moving. Childrenshould always have

adult supervision

while observing.



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DEFINITION:

Initializationis aprocedure thatensures Autostar

operates correctly.

When you first useAutostar, it doesn't

yet know where theobservation site is or

the time or date of

the observation ses-sion.

During the procedure,you will enter infor-

mation, such as the

current time anddate, and observa-

tion location. Autostaruses this information

to precisely calculatethe location of celes-

tial objects (such as

stars and planets)and to move your tel-

escope correctly forvarious operations.

15

The "Alt/Az" Home Position1. Loosen the telescopes Alt lock (Fig. 19).

2. Level the optical tube and tripod base.

3. Tighten the Alt lock (Fig. 19) to a firm feel only.

4. Loosen the Az lock (Fig. 20) and turn the telescope horizontally until it points North. SeeLOCATING THE CELESTIAL POLE, page 32 for more information.

5. Tighten the Az lock. Press ENTER.

Moving Through Autostars MenusThe Autostar database is organized in levels for quick and easy navigation.

s Press ENTER to go deeper into Autostar's menu levels.

s Press MODE to move back toward the top menu level.

s Press the Scroll keys to move up and down through the options available for each level.

s Press the Arrow keys to enter characters and digits.

The Arrow keys are also used to move the telescope.

Initializing AutostarThis section describes how to initialize Autostar. Perform this procedure the first time you useAutostar or after performing a RESET (see RESET, page 27).

1. Tighten Locks: Make sure that the Alt lock (22, Fig. 1) and Az lock (19, Fig. 1) are secured.

2. Connect Autostar: Verify that Autostar is properly connected to your telescope.

3. Supply Power: Plug the battery pack into the 12V port.

The Autostar screen activates and a copyright message displays briefly, followed by a shortbeep. Then Autostar takes a few moments to start up the system.

4. Sun Warning: A message displays that warns you not to look at the Sun. At the end of thismessage, press the key prompted by Autostar to signify that the message has been readand understood.

5. Getting Started: The Getting Started menu displays a scrolling message. Press ENTER(2, Fig. 2) to bypass the Help tutorial and continue with initialization.

6. Enter Date: Autostar then requests the current date. Use the Up and Down Arrow keys (5,Fig. 2) to enter the digits for the date. Use the Right Arrow key (5, Fig. 2) to move right from

one number to the next in the day display, and also to move to the month (use the LeftArrow key if you wish to move left). Then, use the Scroll keys (6 or 7, Fig. 2) to cyclethrough the list of months.

When the current month is displayed, use the Right Arrow (5, Fig. 2) to move to the year.Use the Up and Down Arrow keys to enter all four digits of the current year. Press ENTERwhen the date has been entered.

7. Enter Time: Autostar then requests the current time. Use the Up and Down Arrow keys toenter the time. (Use a "0" for the first digit if less than 10.) Use the Right (or Left) Arrow keyto move from one number to the next. Press either the Up or Down Arrow keys ( 5, Fig. 2)to scroll to "AM" or "PM." If you select the "blank" choice that follows "AM" and "PM," theclock displays time in a 24-hour (military time) format. Press ENTER to start the clock.

8. Daylight Savings Time: The next screen requests the status of Daylight Savings Time.Pressing a Scroll key toggles between the YES/NO settings. Select the desired setting bypressing ENTER.

NOTE: Daylight Savings Time may be referred to by a different name in variousareas of the world.

NOTE:When multiple choices are available within a menu option, the current optionis usually displayed first and highlighted by a right pointing arrow (>).

9. Select Country: The next screen asks for the country or state of the observing site. Usethe Scroll keys to cycle through the database of countries, states, and provinces (listedalphabetically). Press ENTER when the correct location displays.

Fig. 19: The Alt lock (motor

attached).

Fig. 20: The Az lock (motornot attached).



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16

10. Select City: The next screen asks for the city closest to the observing site. Use the Scrollkeys to cycle through the database of cities (listed alphabetically). Press ENTER when thecorrect city appears on screen.

11. Select Model Number: The next screen asks for the telescope model. Use the scroll keysto locate your telescope model number. Press ENTER when your model number displays.

12. Initialization Complete: System initialization is complete and the screen reads "Align:Easy."

Training the DriveAfter you initialize Autostar for the first time you need to train the drives of the telescope.Training the drive allows the telescope to point accurately at astronomical objects. Perform thisprocedure every 3 to 6 months to maintain the highest level of pointing accuracy.

1. Verify that Autostar initialization is complete.

2. Press MODE until "Select Item: Object" displays.

3. Press the Scroll Up key once. "Select Item: Setup" displays.

4. Press ENTER to access the Setup menu. "Setup: Align" displays.

5. Press either Scroll key several times until "Setup: Telescope" displays.

6. Press ENTER to access the Telescope menu. "Telescope: Telescope Model" displays.

7. Press either Scroll key several times until "Telescope: Train Drive" displays.

8. Press ENTER. "Train Drive: Az Train" displays. The next four steps are the prodedure fortraining the Az or horizontal drive.

9. Press ENTER. "Drive Setup" and a scrolling message displays. The scrolling messageasks you to center a terrestrial object in the eyepiece. Use a terrestrial object, such as atelephone pole or lamp post, as your reference object. Press ENTER after reading themessage.

10. "Center reference object" displays. Center the object ONLY using the Arrow keys and thenpress ENTER.

11. "Slewing" displays and the telescopes moves left. "Press until it is centered" displays.Bring the reference object back to the center of the eyepiece using ONLY the Right Arrowkey. When the reference object is centered, press ENTER.

Important Note: If you overshoot the center of the eyepiece as you perform the"press [Arrow key] until it is centered" steps (steps 11, 12, 16, 17), you must start this

procedure over again. ONLY use thepromptedArrow key to center the referenceobject. For example, if the display reads ""Press (Left Arrow key) until it is cen-tered," do not use the Right Arrow key to return to the center of the eyepiece if youovershoot the center. If you do overshoot, press Mode until "Select Item: Object"displays and begin the procedure again.

12. "Slewing" displays and the telescopes moves right. "Press until it is centered" displays.Bring the reference object back to the center of the eyepiece using ONLY the Left Arrowkey. When the reference object is centered, press ENTER.

13. "Train Drive: Az Train" displays again. Press the Scroll Down key once. "Train Drive: AltTrain" displays. The next four steps are the prodedure for training the Alt or vertical drive.

14. Press Enter. "Drive Setup" and a scrolling message displays. The scrolling message onceagain asks you to center a terrestrial object in the eyepiece. Press ENTER after readingthe message.

15. "Center reference object" displays. Center the object using ONLY the Arrow keys and thenpress ENTER.

16. "Slewing" displays and the telescopes moves down. "Press until it is centered" displays.Bring the reference object back to the center of the eyepiece using ONLY the Up Arrowkey. When the reference object is centered, press ENTER.

17. "Slewing" displays and the telescopes moves up. "Press until it is centered" displays.Bring the reference object back to the center of the eyepiece using ONLY the Up Arrowkey. When the reference object is centered, press ENTER.

18. Drive training is now complete. Press MODE to exit the Train Drive menus.



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17

Observe a Star using the Automatic Tracking FeatureIn this example, the Autostar Arrow keys are used to find a star, and then Autostar's trackingcapability automatically keeps the star centered in your telescope's eyepiece.

1. Set in Home Position: Level the optical tube and point it North. Make sure that the Alt lock (22,Fig. 1) and Az lock (19, Fig. 1) are secured as described previously.

2. Connect Autostar: Verify that Autostar is properly connected to your telescope. See HOW

TO ASSEMBLE YOUR TELESCOPE page 10.3. Supply Power: Plug the battery pack into the 12V port.

The Autostar display activates and a copyright message appears briefly, followed by ashort beep. Then Autostar takes a few moments to start up the system.

4. Sun Warning: A message displays that warns not to look at the Sun. At the end of thismessage, press the key prompted by Autostar to signify that the message has been readand understood.

5. Enter Date and Time: Enter these values as previously described.

6. Select Setup: Align Option: Press MODE (3, Fig. 2). "Setup: Align" displays.

7. Select Setup: Targets Option: Press the Scroll Down key (7, Fig. 2) repeatedly until"Setup: Targets" displays. Press ENTER (2, Fig. 2).

8. Select Targets: Astronomical Option: "Targets: Terrestrial" displays. Press either of the

Scroll keys once (6 or 7, Fig. 2). "Targets: Astronomical" now displays.9. Locate a Bright Star: Use the Arrow keys (5,Fig. 2) to locate a bright star in the night sky.

Use the viewfinder (5, Fig. 1) to help line up on the star. You may choose any unobstruct-ed, bright star for the purposes of this excercise. Use Autostar's Arrow keys to center thestar in the eyepiece.

10. To Start Tracking: Once the star is centered, press ENTER to select "Astronomical." Thetelescope's tracking motors then engage. It may take the tracking motors several secondsto begin tracking. When they do, it may be necessary to once again center the star in theeyepiece. The tracking motors will then keep the star you have chosen in the center of theeyepiece.

If you wish to track another star, use the Arrow keys to slew the telescope to the star.Center the star. The tracking motors will then keep that star in the center of the eyepiece.

11. To Stop Tracking: Press ENTER. "Setup: Targets" displays. Press ENTER. "Targets:Astronomical" now displays. Press either of the Scroll keys once. "Targets: Terrestrial" dis-plays. Press ENTER. Tracking is now turned off.

Easy (Two-Star) AlignThe fastest and easiest way to locate objects with Autostar's GO TO capabilities is to use theEasy Align menu option.

Autostar automatically picks two stars from its database for the Easy Align procedure. Duringthis procedure, Autostar slews the telescope to a first alignment star. The user is asked to ver-

ify that the telescope is pointed at the chosen star and then prompted to center the star in the

eyepiece. The process is repeated with a second star to complete the alignment.

NOTE:Before aligning the telescope, first verify thatINITIALIZING AUTOSTAR, page15, has been performed. SeeMOVING THROUGH AUTOSTARS MENUS, page

15, if you wish to learn how to operate Autostars keys.

How to Easy Align Your TelescopeIf you have just applied power to Autostar, perform steps 1 through 5. If you have already per-formed the initialization procedure, go to step 6.

1. Sun Warning - Press the key prompted by Autostar to accept.

2. Getting Started - Press ENTER to continue.

3. Enter Date - Enter the current date as previously described, then press ENTER.

4. Enter Time - Enter the current time as previously described. Select "AM," "PM," or 24-hourclock (blank). Then press ENTER.

IMPORTANT

NOTE:While performing

the automatic track-ing procedure, use

ONLY the Arrow

keys to move thetelescope. Once the

telescope has beenset in the Alt/Az

home position, donot loosen the az

and alt locks (19

and 22, Fig. 1), ormove the base man-

ually, or alignmentwill be lost.

IMPORTANTNOTE:

Autostar requests

the Country/State,City, and Telescope

Model information

only the first timeAutostar is activat-

ed. If you wish tochange this informa-

tion, use the "Site"and "Telescope

Model" options inthe Setup menu.

See page 26 for

more information.



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18

5. Daylight Savings - Select Yes or No, then press ENTER.

6. Alignment Option Screen - Setup: Align displays. Press ENTER.

7. Select Alignment - Align: Easy displays. Press ENTER.

8. Set Alt/Az Home Position - Autostar then prompts you to set the telescope in the Alt/AzAlignment home position. To set your telescope in the "Alt/Az" home position (Fig. 18):

Loosen the telescopes Alt lock (22, Fig. 1).

Level the tripod base and the optical tube.

Tighten the Alt lock (22, Fig. 1) to a firm feel only.

Loosen the Az lock (19, Fig. 1) and turn the telescope horizontally until it pointsNorth. See LOCATING THE CELESTIAL POLE, page 32 for more information.

Tighten the Az lock (19, Fig. 1). Press ENTER.

9 . Star Alignment - Autostar then chooses two stars to align upon. When the telescopeslews to the first star for alignment, it may not appear in the field of view in the eyepiece.The alignment star should be easily recognized and be the brightest star in the area of thesky where the telescope is pointing. Use the Arrow keys to move the telescope until thestar is visible and centered in the eyepiece. Press ENTER. Repeat procedure for the sec-ond alignment star.

When the procedure is performed correctly, "Alignment Successful" displays. If Autostardoes not display this message, perform this procedure again.

NOTE: Autostar locates alignment stars based on the date, time, and location

entered. The alignment stars may change from night to night. All that is required isfor the observer to center the selected stars in the eyepiece when prompted.

NOTE:The GO TO key also allows you to perform a "spiral search." A spiral searchis useful when the telescope slews to an object, but that object is not visible in the

eyepiece after the telescope finishes its search. (This sometimes occurs during an

alignment procedure.) Press GO TO when the slew is finished and the telescopestarts slewing in a spiral pattern at a very slow speed around the search area. Look

through the eyepiece and when the object does become visible, press MODE tostop the spiral search. Then use the Arrow keys to center the object.

Two other methods of alignment are available to the observer: Two-Star and One-Star. Thesemethods are included in case the observer prefers to pick out his or her own alignment stars.

Two-Star Alt/Az AlignmentTwo-Star Alignment requires some knowledge of the night sky. Two-Star Alignment is identicalto Easy Align (see EASY (TWO-STAR) ALIGN, page 17), except Autostar displays a database of

bright stars and twostars are chosen by the observerfrom this database for alignment. It is rec-

ommended that you choose stars with which you are familiar from this database when first try-ing out this method or the One-Star Alignment method.

One-Star Alt/Az AlignmentOne-Star Alignment also requires some knowledge of the night sky. One-Star Alignment is iden-tical to Easy Align (see EASY (TWO-STAR) ALIGN, page 17), except Autostar displays a data-

base of bright stars and onestar is chosen by the observerfrom this database for alignment.

IMPORTANT NOTE:The accuracy of One-Star Alt/Az Alignment, unlike the Two-Star Alignment procedures, depends on how well the observer levels the telescope

and how close to North the telescope is pointed when setting the Home Position(Fig. 18). Because the Two-Star Alignment methods use two stars to align upon,they are more precise than One-Star Alignment.



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19

Go To SaturnAfter performing the Easy Align procedure, the motor drive begins operating and the telescope

is aligned for a night of viewing. Objects in the eyepiece should maintain their position eventhough the Earth is rotating beneath the stars.

IMPORTANT NOTE:Once aligned, only use GO TO or the Arrow keys to move the

telescope. Do not loosen the Alt and Az locks (22 and 19, Fig. 1), or move the base

manually, or alignment will be lost.This exercise shows how to select a celestial object (Saturn) for viewing from Autostar s database.

NOTE:Saturn is not always visible and you may need to choose another object

from Autostar's Object database; however, the procedure, as described below,

remains the samejust choose a different object in step 3.

1 After the telescope is aligned, Select Item: Object displays. Press ENTER.

2. Object: Solar System displays. Press ENTER.

3. Solar System: Mercury displays. Keep pressing the Scroll Down key until Solar System:

Saturn displays.

4. Press ENTER. Calculating displays. Then Saturn and a set of coordinates displays.

Note that Saturns (and other planets) coordinates may change throughout the year.

5. Press GO TO. Saturn: Slewing... displays and the telescope slews until it finds Saturn.You may need to use the Arrow keys to center Saturn precisely in the eyepiece. Autostar

then automatically moves the telescope so that it "tracks" Saturn (or whatever other objectyou may have chosen); i.e., Saturn remains centered in the eyepiece.

Take a Guided TourThis example demonstrates using Tonights Best Guided Tour.

1. After observing Saturn, press MODE twice so that Select Item: Object displays again.

2. Press the Scroll Down key twice. Select Item: Guided Tour displays.

3. Press ENTER. Guided Tour: Tonights Best displays. Press ENTER.

NOTE:If you wish to try out other Guided Tours, press the Scroll Down key to scrollthrough other tour choices. When the tour you wish to select displays, pressENTER.

4. Tonights Best: Searching... displays. After calculating, Tonights Best: Jupiter displays.

NOTE: Different objects may be displayed on a tour list on any given night.

Press ENTER to display informationabout the object. Press GO TO to movethe telescope to the object.

5. Press MODE to return to the Tour list.Press the Scroll keys to scroll throughthe list. Press ENTER when you find thenext object you wish to observe.

6. Press and hold down MODE for twoseconds to exit the Guided Tour menu.

Fig. 21: One of themost beautiful celes-tial sights, Saturn.

Which Ones theAlignment Star?

If Autostar has chosen an alignment star withwhich you are unfamiliar, how can you besure if the star in your eyepiece is really thealignment star?

The rule of thumb is that an alignment star isusually the brightest star in that area of thesky. When you view an alignment star in an

eyepiece, it stands out dramatically from therest of the stars in that portion of the sky.

If you have an obstruction, such as a tree ora building blocking your view of the alignmentstar, or if you have any doubts at all about thestar that has been chosen, no problem. Justpress the Scroll Down key and Autostar willfind another star to align upon.



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20

It is important to understand that menu selections are set in a loop ( Fig. 23). This means thatpressing the Scroll Down key (7, Fig. 2) cycles down through all the available options within a

given category, then returns to the first option. The Scroll Up key ( 6,Fig. 2) cycles up through theoptions in the opposite order. Note that this capability is a quick way to get to an option that is

near the bottom of the list. The following example demonstrates this capability.

Example:

To navigate to the Select Item: Setup menu option when the Select Item: Object menu is

displayed:

1. Press the Scroll Down key four times or the Scroll Up key once.

Autostar displays two lines of information. The top line shows the current menu level. The sec-ond line displays an option which may be selected within that menu level. Some options are

choices that select the next menu level down. The Scroll keys move up and down within the listof available options, showing one option at a time.

When the desired option is displayed on the second line, press the ENTER key to choose that

option and move down one menu level.

Press the MODE key to leave a level (e.g., the wrong menu option is chosen).

IMPORTANT NOTE:No matter how many levels into Autostar are traveled, each

press of the MODE key moves up a level, until the top level, "Select Item," isreached. Once in the Select Item level, press MODE to return to the topmost level,

"Select Item: Object."

Autostar Navigation ExerciseTo demonstrate how the Autostar menu structure works, the following exercise calculates

Sunset time so an evening observing session can be planned.NOTE:To perform an accurate calculation, Autostar must be properly initializedwith the current date, time, and location of the observing site. To enter the current

date, time, and location information of your observing site, see INITIALIZING

AUTOSTAR, page 15, before proceeding with this exercise.

BASIC AUTOSTAR OPERATION

Select Item:Setup

Select Item:Utilities

Select Item:Glossary

Select Item:Guided Tour

Select Item:Event

SETUP MENU

Quick, easy alignmentpermits all telescope

operations with onlya 2-minute setup.

UTILITIES MENU

Calculate eyepiecemagnifications;

set timer alerts;create your ownlandmark survey.

GLOSSARY

What is an elliptical galaxy?How far away is the Sun?Expand your knowledge ofastronomy by displaying terms

and definitions, and other information.

OBJECT MENU

Want to see Mars? The Orion nebula?The Andromeda galaxy? Select from

over 1400 database objects and pressGO TO to move the telescope

automatically to an object.

EVENT MENU

Display the time ofpast, present, and futureastronomical events,such as Moon phasesor meteor showers.

GUIDED TOUR

Autostar escorts youon a tour of tonight's

best celestial objectsat your viewing location.

Select Item:Object

M E A D EM E A D E

AutostarThe Universe of

Fig. 22: The Autostar Universe:The six primary categories listed in the Select Item menu of Autostar.

ObjectEventGuided ToursGlossaryUtilitiesSetup

Fig. 23: Menus set in aloop.

Select ItemSolar System

Select ItemObject

ENTER

Fig. 24: Autostar levels.



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21

To Calculate Sunset time:

1. Press the MODE key several times, until Select Item: Object is displayed.

2. Press the Scroll Down key once to display the Event option in the Select Item menu.

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 calculates the Sunset time based on the current date, time, and location. Autostar

then displays the results of the calculation.

7. Press MODE once to start moving back up through the Autostar levels. The first level up

is the Event menu.

8. Press MODE again to move up another level. This is the top level, "Select Item."

9. Press MODE again to return to the starting point of "Select Item: Object."

Entering Numbers and Text into AutostarTo enter numbers and text:

s Use the Up and Down Arrow keys to scroll through numbers 0 - 9 and the alphabet. The

Down Arrow key begins with the letter "A;" the Up Arrow key begins with digit "9."

To move the cursor across the display:

s Use the Right or Left Arrow key (5, Fig. 2) to move the cursor from one number to the next

in the display.

s Press ENTER when the desired information has been entered.

Navigating AutostarAutostar's menus are organized for quick and easy navigation:

s Press ENTER (2, Fig. 2) to go deeper into Autostar's menu levels.

s Press MODE (3, Fig. 2) to move back toward the top menu level.

s Press the Scroll keys (6 and 7, Fig. 2) to move up and down through the options or lists

s Press the Arrow keys (5, Fig. 2) to move the cursor across the display.

s Press the Speed/? key (8, Fig. 2)to access on-line help.

Adjusting the Speed of a Scrolling Messages Press and hold the Up Arrow key to increase the scrolling speed when a message is scroll-

ing across the display.

s Press and hold the Down Arrow key to decrease the scrolling speed when a message is

scrolling across the display.

TIP:When multiplechoices are avail-

able within a menuoption, the option

that is currentlyselected is usually

displayed first andhighlighted by aright pointing

arrow(>).



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22

MENUS AND MENU OPTIONSObject MenuAlmost all observing with Autostar is performed using the Object menu category. (NOTE:Exceptions include Guided Tour and Landmark Survey.) See GO TO SATURN, page 19, for an

example of observing using the Object menu. Also see USING THE GUIDED TOUR, page 19.

Many Autostar menu categories contain databases. An Autostar databaseis a list of viewableobjects, such as stars, planets, comets, nebulae, and so forth. When one of these objects is

selected from a database, Autostar moves your telescope (if properly aligned) and points it atthe selected object.

The Object Menu options include:

Solar System is a database of the eight planets (Earth is not included) in order out from the

Sun, followed by the Moon, asteroids, and comets.

Constellation is a database of all 88 Northern and Southern Hemisphere constellations. When

this menu option is chosen and a constellation name appears on the first line of the screen,press GO TO once to change the second line to the name of the brightest star in the constel-

lation. Press GO TO a second time to slew the telescope to that star. Use the Scroll keys to

cycle through the list of stars in the constellation, from brightest to dimmest.

Deep Sky is a database of objects outside our Solar System such as nebulae, star clusters,

galaxies, and quasars.

Star is a database of stars listed in different categories such as named, double, variable, ornearby.

Satellite is a database of Earth-orbiting objects such as the International Space Station, the

Hubble Space Telescope, Global Positioning System (GPS) satellites, and geosynchronousorbit satellites.

User Objects allows the user to define and store in memory deep-sky objects of specific inter-est that are not currently in the Autostar database. See "Appendix B" for more information.

Solar System

Mercury

Etc.

MoonAsteroids

Comets

Constellations

Andromeda

Etc.

Deep Sky

Named Object

Galaxies

Nebulae

Planetary Neb.

Etc.

Star

Named

SAO Catalog

Double

Etc.

Satellite

Select

Add

Delete

Edit

User Objects

Select

Add

Delete

Edit

Landmarks

Select

Add

Delete

Identify

Sunrise

Sunset

Moonrise

MoonsetMoon Phases

Next Full Moon

Next New Moon

Next 1st Qtr

Next 3rd Qtr

Meteor Showers

Quadrantids

Lyrids

Eta Aquarids

Delta Aquarids

Perseids

Orionids

Taurids

Leonids

Geminids

Ursids

Solar Eclipses

Lunar Eclipses

Min. of Algol

Autumn Equinox

Vernal Equinox

Winter Solstice

Summer Solstice

Tour Objects A...

Accretion Disk

Etc.

B...C...

D...

E...

F...

G...

H...

I...

J...

K...

L...

M...

N...

O...

P...

Q...

R...

S...

T...

U...

V...

W...

X...

Y...

Z...

Timer

Set

Start & Stop

AlarmSet

On & Off

Eyepiece Calc.

Field of View

Magnification

Suggest

Display Options

Sun Warning

Getting Started

Brightness Adj.

Contrast Adj.

Battery Alarm

Landmark Survey

Sleep Scope

Park Scope

Align

Easy

One Star

Two StarDate

Time

Daylight Saving

Telescope

Tele. Model

Focal Length

Az/Alt Ratio

Mount

Train Drive

Tracking Rate

Reverse L/R

Reverse Up/Dn

Calibrate Motor

High Precision

Targets

Astronomical

Terrestrial

Site

Select

Add

Delete

Edit

Owner Info

Download

Statistics

Reset

Select Item:Object

Select Item:Event

Select Item:Guided Tour

Select Item:Glossary

Select Item:Utilities

Select Item:Setup

Tonight's Best

How Far is Far

A Star's Life

Fig. 25: The complete Autostar Menu structure.



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Landmarks stores the location of terrestrial points of interest in the permanent Autostar data-base.

IMPORTANT NOTE:To use the Landmark function, the telescope must be locatedand aligned exactly as when the landmark was added to the database.

s Select: To select a Landmark already in the database (see ADD below), choose the

"Select" option and scroll through the list. Press ENTER to select a Landmark, then press

GO TO and the telescope slews to the object.s Add: To add a Landmark, choose the "Add" option. Enter a name for the Landmark. Locate

and center the Landmark in the eyepiece, then press ENTER.

Identify is an exciting feature for an observer who wants to scan the night sky and start explor-ing. After the telescope has been properly aligned, use the Autostar Arrow keys to move aboutin the sky. Then follow this procedure:

IMPORTANT NOTE:Only use the Arrow keys to move the telescope during theIdentify procedure. Do not loosen the telescope locks or move the base or align-ment is lost.

1. When a desired object is visible in the eyepiece, keep pressing MODE until the SelectItem: Object menu is displayed. Press ENTER to select this menu.

2. Scroll through the Object menu options until the Object: Identify screen appears.

3. Press ENTER. Autostar searches thedatabase for the identity of the objectbeing observed.

4. If the telescope is not directly on anAutostar database object, the nearestdatabase object is located and displayedon the screen. Press GO TO and the tele-scope slews to that object.

Event MenuThe Event menu provides access to datesand times of astronomical events. The Eventdatabase includes:

Sunrise and Sunset calculates the time thatthe Sun rises or sets on the current date. Findrise and set times for other dates by enteringa new date into the Setup: Date menu. SeeDATE, page 25.

Moonrise and Moonset calculates the timethat the Moon rises or sets on the currentdate. Find rise and set times for other datesby entering a new date into the Setup: Datemenu. See DATE, page 25.

Moon Phases displays the date and time ofthe next Full, New, 1st Quarter, and 3rdQuarter Moon.

Meteor Showers provides information onupcoming meteor showers, such as the

Perseids, the Leonids, etc. Also lists the datesof the showers and when they reach maxi-mum.

NOTE:Meteors are fast moving objectsthat cover large areas of the sky andare usually best observed with thenaked eye.

WARNING!Never use aMeade DS-

114AT Telescope tolook at the Sun!Looking at or near

the Sun will causeinstant and irre-versible damage toyour eye. Eye dam-age is often painless,so there is no warn-ing to the observerthat damage hasoccurred until it istoo late. Do not pointthe telescope or itsviewfinder at or nearthe Sun. Do not look

through the tele-scope or its viewfind-er as it is moving.Children shouldalways have adult

supervision whileobserving.

Observing Considerations Try to pick an observing site away from

street and house lights, and car head-lights. While this is not always possible,the darker the site, the better.

Give your eyes about ten minutes toadjust to the darkness before observing.Give your eyes a rest from observingevery ten or fifteen minutes to relieve eye-strain.

Try not to use a standard flashlight.Seasoned observers use red LED flash-lights or tape red cellophane over theirflashlights for setup and map reading sothey dont have to continually readjusttheir eyes to the darkness. Be careful notto shine bright lights if there are otherobservers in the area. Never shine a flash-light into a telescope while someone isobserving!

Dress warmly. It gets chilly when you resitting for prolonged periods, even onsome summer nights.

Practice setting up your equipment duringthe day or in a lighted area to becomefamiliar with it before going to a dark site.

Use your 25mm eyepiece to view terrestri-al objects and wider areas of space, suchas open star clusters. Use your higherpower eyepieces when you wish to viewsomething up close, such as craters onthe Moon or the rings of Saturn.

Know your observing site. If you re goingto try out an unfamiliar site, check it out inthe daylight for obstructions and pitfalls.



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Solar Eclipse lists upcoming Solar Eclipses, including the date and type (total, annular, or par-tial) of eclipse, and the location and time of the first and last contacts of the Moon's shadow.Use the Scroll Up and Down keys to display the available data. Remember, never use a tele-scope to look at the Sun! See WARNING! on page 23.

Lunar Eclipse lists upcoming Lunar Eclipses, including the date and type (total, partial, penum-bral) of eclipse. Use the Scroll Up and Down keys to display the available data.

Min. (Minimum) of Algol is the minimum brightness of the dramatic eclipsing binary star sys-tem, Algol. It is relatively close at a distance of 100 light years. Every 2.8 days during a 10-hourperiod, Algol undergoes a major change in apparent magnitude as one of the two stars passesbehind the other. The combined magnitude of the two stars thus dips from +2.1 to a minimumof +3.4 halfway through the eclipse as the second star is hidden. Autostar calculates minimummagnitude time at mid-eclipse.

Autumn and Vernal Equinox calculates the time and date of the fall or spring equinox of thecurrent year.

Winter and Summer Solstice calculates the time and date of the winter or summer solstice of

the current year.

Glossary MenuThe Glossary menu provides an alphabetical listing of definitions and descriptions for common

astronomical terms and Autostar functions. Access directly through the Glossary menu or

through hypertext words embedded in Autostar. A hypertext word is any word in [brackets],usually found when using the Autostar Help function or when reading a scrolling message such

as a description of a planet or star. Press ENTER whenever a hypertext word is on screen and

Autostar goes to the glossary entry for that word.

To access directly from the Glossary menu, use the Scroll keys to scroll through the alphabet.

Press ENTER on the desired letter. Scroll to the desired entry and then press ENTER to read

the description.

Utilities MenuThe Utilities menu provides access to several extra features within Autostar, including a count-

down timer and an alarm. The Utilities functions include:

Timer selects a countdown timer. This feature is useful for functions such as astrophotography

and tracking satellites. See OBSERVING SATELLITES, page 34. To use the Timer, press ENTER,

then choose Set or Start/Stop."s Set: Enter the time to be counted down, in hours, minutes, and seconds, then press ENTER.

s Start/Stop: Activates the timer set previously. Use the Scroll keys to toggle between ON and

OFF. When ON is displayed, press ENTER to activate the timer. When the timer runs out,four beeps sound and the timer is deactivated.

Alarm selects a time for an alarm signal as a reminder. To use the Alarm, press ENTER, then

choose "Set" or "Start/Stop."

s Set: Enter the time of day for the alarm to sound, in hours, minutes, and seconds, then press

ENTER.

s Start/Stop: Activates the alarm set previously. Use the Scroll keys to toggle between ON

and OFF. When ON is displayed, press ENTER to activate the alarm. When the alarm timearrives, Autostar beeps. Press ENTER to deactivate the alarm.

Eyepiece Calc calculates information about an eyepiece for the specific telescope to whichAutostar is connected.

s Field of View: Scroll through a list of available eyepieces. When an eyepiece is selected,

the field of view is calculated.

s Magnification: Scroll through a list of available eyepieces. When an eyepiece is selected, the

magnification is calculated.

s Suggest: Autostar calculates and suggests the best eyepiece for viewing, based on the

telescope and the object being viewed.



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Display Options enables or disables Autostars two initial displays. If both displays are dis-abled, Autostar begins with the Date display.

s Sun Warning: Turns the Sun Warning message on or off.

s Getting Started: Turns the Getting Started message on or off.

Brightness Adj: Adjusts the brightness of the display using the Scroll keys. When complete, pressENTER.

Contrast Adj: Adjusts the contrast of the display using the Scroll keys. When complete, pressENTER.

NOTE:This feature is usually only required in very cold weather.

Landmark Survey automatically slews the telescope to all user-defined landmarks with a shortpause at each location. Press ENTER to start the survey. While a slew is in progress, pressany key to skip that object and go to the next landmark on the list. To observe a landmark fora longer period, press MODE when paused on the object to stop the survey. Press ENTER torestart the survey at the first object on the list. See LANDMARKS, page 23.

Sleep Scope is a power saving option that shuts down Autostar and the telescope without for-getting its alignment. With "Sleep Scope" selected, press ENTER to activate the Sleep func-tion. Autostar goes dark, but the internal clock keeps running. Press any key, except ENTER,to re-activate Autostar and the telescope.

Park Scope is designed for a telescope that is

not moved between observing sessions. Alignthe telescope one time, then use this functionto park the telescope. Next time it is poweredup, enter the correct date and timeno align-ment is required. Pressing ENTER causes thetelescope to move to its pre-determined Parkposition. Once parked, the screen prompts toturn off power.

IMPORTANT NOTE: When the "ParkScope" option is chosen and the dis-play prompts you to turn off the tele-scope's power, Autostar is unable to bereturned to operation without turningthe power off and then back on.

Setup MenuThe Setup menus primary function is to alignthe telescope (see EASY ALIGN, page 17).However, there are numerous other featuresavailable within the Setup menu, including:

Date changes the date used by Autostar. Thisfunction is useful to check events in the past orfuture. For example, set the Date menu for aday three months in the future. Then check the"Select Item: Event" menu for the Sunset timeon that date. See EVENT MENU, page 23.

Time changes the time entered into Autostar.Setting the correct time is critical for Autostar

to properly calculate locations and events.Time may be set to 24-hour mode (militarytime) by selecting the "blank" option which fol-lows the "AM" and "PM" options.

Daylight Saving is used to enable or disableDaylight Savings time.

NOTE: Daylight Savings Time may bereferred to by different names in variousareas of the world.

Surf the WebOne of the most exciting resources for astrono-my is the Internet. The Internet is full of web-sites with new images, discoveries, and the lat-est astronomical information. For example,when comet Hale-Bopp made its approach toour Sun in 1998, astronomers around the worldposted new photos daily.

You can find websites for virtually any topicrelating to astronomy on the Internet. Try thefollowing key word searches: NASA, Hubble,HST, astronomy, Messier, satellite, nebula,

black hole, variable stars, extrasolar, Chandra,gamma burster, comets, Astronomy Day, etc.

Check out Meades website for the latest prod-uct and technical information. You can down-load the latest software revisions, links to otherastronomical sites, coordinates of celestialobjects, and the latest satellite tracking informa-tion for the Autostar handbox. See page 31 formore information. Youll find our website at:

http://www.meade.com/

Here are some other sites you might find useful:

Sky & Telescope:http://www.skypub.com/

Astronomy:http://www.astronomy.com/astro/

The Starfield:http://users.nac.net/gburke/

Astronomy Picture of the Day:http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.goc/apod/

Heavens Above (satellite information):http://www.heavens-above.com/

Photographic Atlas of the Moon:http://www.lpi.ursa.edu/research/lunar_orbiter

Hubble Space Telescope Public Pictureshttp://oposite.stsci.edu/pubinfo/pictures.html



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Telescope accesses the several options, including:s Model: Allows you to select the telescope model connected to Autostar.

s Focal Length: Displays the focal length of the selected telescope.

s Az Ratio and Alt Ratio: The Az (Azimuth) ratio and Alt (Altitude) ratio refers to the gears

of the telescope's motors. Do not alter these numbers.

s Az Percent: The Az (Azimuth) Percent allows you to change the azimuth backlash, i.e., the

way the Arrow keys move the telescope along the azimuth (horizontal) axis. If you enter avalue near 100, the telescope tube responds more quickly (it responds immediately at100%) as you hold down an Arrow key and also slews (moves) the tube more quickly. If

you enter a value near 0, it takes longer for the tube to respond as you hold down an Arrow

key and also slews the tube more slowly. Experiment with this option. Try changing thepercent value until you get a "feel" for the Arrow keys that is comfortable for you.

Alt Percent: The Alt (Altitude) Percent operates identical to the AZ Percent option (see

above), but allows you to change the altitude backlash, i.e., the way the Arrow keys movethe telescope when moving along the altitude (vertical) axis.

s Train Drive: Trains the Altitude and Azimuth motors to locate objects with more precision.

If you are experiencing any problems with pointing accuracy, follow the procedure

described in TRAINING THE DRIVE, page 16, to insure accurate pointing and tracking.

s Tracking Rate: Changes the speed at which the telescope tracks targets in the sky.

a. Sidereal: The default setting for Autostar; sidereal rate is the standard rate at whichstars move from East to West across the sky due to the rotation of the Earth.

b. Lunar: Choose this option to properly track the Moon over long observing sessions.

c. Custom: Allows entry of user-defined tracking rates.

s Reverse L/R: Reverses the functions of the Left and Right Arrow keys ( i.e., the Right key

moves the telescope to the left).

s Reverse UP/DOWN: Reverses the functions of the Up and Down Arrow keys (i.e., the Up

key moves the telescope down).

s Calibrate Motor: If the telescope motors appear to have a problem, use this option to

retest the motors before performing a Reset. This option is also used if an Autostar unit ismoved between telescopes, to match Autostar to the new telescope. To calibrate the

motors, select this option and press ENTER.

s High Precision: If High Precision is turned on, when looking for a faint celestial object (i.e.,a nebula or galaxy), Autostar first slews to a nearby bright star and displays "ENTER to

Sync." Center the star in the eyepiece, then press ENTER. At that point the telescope has

a high precision alignment to that part of the sky and it then slews to the object that wasoriginally requested.

Targets switches between Astronomical targets and Terrestrial targets. If "Astronomical" is

selected, the telescope tracking motor is activated and any object you observe will remain cen-tered in the eyepiece. If "Terrestrial" is selected, the tracking motor is turned off. To learn how

to track an object automatically, see page 17.

Site provides access to several options including:

s Select: Displays the currently selected observing site. Use the Scroll keys to cycle through

all available sites (see ADD below). Press ENTER when the site you wish to select dis-plays. Use this option when you move to a different geographic location.

s Add: Allows you to add new observing sites to the database (up to six sites may be stored).Scroll through the list of Countries/States. Press ENTER when the site you wish to add dis-plays. Then choose the desired city in the same manner.

s Delete: Deletes a stored site from the database.



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s Edit: Edits a selected site, including: the name, latitude, longitude, and time zone. Time

Zone refers to the Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) time zone shift. Users West of Greenwich,

England use - hours, East of Greenwich use + hours. For the United States, look up thetime zone shift in Table 1.

NOTE: Autostar compensates for Daylight Savings time, if selected. SeeSETUP

MENU: DAYLIGHT SAVING, page 25.

Owner Info accesses the owner information menu, including:s Name: Users may enter both their first and last names using the Up and Down Arrow keys

to cycle through the alphabet. Use the Right and Left Arrow keys to move through the text.

Press ENTER when the entry is complete.

s Address: Use the Up and Down Arrow keys to enter your street address, city, state, and

zip code. Press ENTER when the entry is complete.

Download transfers information from a personal computer or another Autostar. During theoperation, the warning Downloading Do Not Turn Off appears.

NOTE:The Download function requires the optional #506 Astrofinder Software and

Cable Connector Kit. See the instruction sheet included with the kit for more infor-mation on how to download. Also seeOPTIONAL ACCESSORIES, page 31.

Statistics provides basic statistical data about Autostar, including:

s Characters Free: Shows how much room is available in user-defined object memory.s Version: Shows the current version of the Autostar software.

Reset completely resets Autostar. Most values entered into the menus revert to factory

defaults. Autostar requires initialization again after a Reset before proceeding with observa-tions. See INITIALIZING AUTOSTAR, page 15.

Time Zone ShiftAtlantic -4 HoursEastern -5 HoursCentral -6 HoursMountain -7 Hour

Documents

Meade telescop manual ds114at