Celestron NexStar 5 SE manual

INSTRUCTION MANUAL[...]

INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................... .................................... 4 W ARNING ..................................................................................................................................................................4 ASSEMBLY [...]

Filter Limits ............................................................................................................................... ....................................... 23 Direction Buttons ............................................................................................................................... ...................[...]

Congratulations on your purchase of the Celestron NexStar! The NexStar us hers in a whole new generation of computer automated technology. Simple and friendly to use, the NexStar is up and running after locating just thr ee bright objects. It’ s the perfect combination of power and portab ility. If you are new to astronomy, you m ay wish to start[...]

1 2 3 12 1 Optical Tube 7 Tripod 2 Star Pointer Fi nderscope 8 Accesso ry Tray / Le g Brac e 3 Eyepiece 9 Tilt Wedge Plat e 4 Star Diagonal 10 ON/OFF Switch 5 Focuser Knob 11 Hand Control 6 Battery Compartment 12 Liquid Crystal Display 7 11 10 5 8 6 4 9 NexStar 5 SE 5[...]

The NexStar 5 come s c o mpl etely pre-a sse mb led and can be operational in a matter of minutes. The NexStar is conveniently packaged in one reus able shipping carton that contains all of the following acces sories: • 25mm Eyepie ce – 1 ¼ " • Star Diagonal 1 ¼ " • Star Pointer Finderscope • Steel Tripod with built-in Wedge ?[...]

make it more co nvenient to att ach the necessar y accessories as well as rem ove the front lens cover and install ba tteries when they are needed. You are now ready to attach the i ncluded visual acces sories onto the t elescope optical tube. The Star Diagonal The star diagonal diverts the light at a right angle from the light path of the telescop[...]

2. Slide the mounting track at the bottom of th e Star Pointer over the dovetail portion of the bracket. It may be necessary to loosen the two screws on the sid e of the mounting track before sliding it over the dovetail. The end of the Star Pointer with the glass window should be facing out to wards the front of the telescope. 3. Tighten the two s[...]

Attaching the NexStar to the Trip od The Celestron NexStar tripod is a sturdy, heavy duty mount on which to place your NexStar 4/5" telescope. This tripod can go anywhere, from your backyard to a remote observing site and can hold your NexStar in Alt-Az or can be polar aligned with the use of the built-i n equatorial wedge tilt pla te. The tri[...]

The NexStar has a removable hand controller built into the side o f the fork arm des igned to give you instan t access to all the functions the NexStar has to off er. With automat ic slewing to nearly 40,000 objects, and co mmon sense menu descriptions, ev en a beginner can master its variety of f eatures in just a few obs erving sessions. Below is[...]

4. Catalog Keys: The NexStar has a key on the hand control to allow direct access to each of the cata logs in its 40,000 object database. The NexStar contains the following catalogs in its database: Messier – Complete list of all Messier objects. NGC – Select list of all the deep-s ky objects in the Revised New General Catalog. Caldwell – A c[...]

telescope. Finally, EQ North and EQ South alignments are designed to assist you in aligning the NexStar when polar aligned using the tripods built-in wedge. Each alignm ent method is discussed in d etail below. Sky Align Sky Align is the easiest way to get your NexStar aligned and r eady to observe. Even if you do not know a single star in the sky [...]

4. Use the arrow buttons on the hand control to slew (move) the telescope towards an y bright celestial object in the sk y. Align the object with th e red dot of the finderscop e and press ENTER. 5. If the finderscope has been properly aligne d with the telescop e tube, the alignment star should now be visible inside the field of view of the eyepie[...]

6. Based on this information, the NexStar will automatically display the most suitable second alignment star that is above the horizon. Press ENTER to automati cally slew the telescope to the displayed star. If for some r eason you do not wish to select this star (perhaps it is behind a tree or bui lding), you can e ither: • Press the UNDO button[...]

Solar System Align Solar System Align is designed to pr ovide excellent tracking and GoTo perfo rmance by using solar system objects (Sun, Moon and planets) to align the telescope with th e sky. Solar System Align is a great way to align your telescope for daytime viewing as we ll as a quick way to align the tele scope for night time observing. Nev[...]

slew the telescope to the displayed s tar. If for some reason you do not wish to select one of these stars (perhaps it is behind a tree or building), you can either: • Press the UNDO button to display the next most suitable star for alignment. • Use the UP and DOWN scroll b uttons to manuall y select any star you wish from the en tire list of a[...]

Sync: The Sync feature can be used to improve poi nting accuracy in a s pecific region of the sky. S ync is a very useful feature especially when used in conjunction with the Con stellation tour an d Identify feature in which you will b e exploring smaller ar eas of the sky. To Sync on an object: 1. Select the desired star (or object) from the data[...]

Slewing to an Object Once the desired object is displayed on the ha nd control screen, you have two op tions: • Press the INFO Key . This will give you useful information about the s elected object such as magnitude, constellation and fascinating facts about many of the objects . • Press the ENTER Key . This will automaticall y slew the telesco[...]

D D i i r r e e c c t t i i o o n n B B u u t t t t o o n n s s he NexStar has four direction buttons in the cen ter of the ha nd control which control the telescope motion in altitude (up and T down) and azimuth (left and right). The telescop e can be controll ed at nine differe nt speed rates. 1 = .5x 6 = 64x 2 = 1x 7 = 1º / sec 3 = 4x 8 = 2º /[...]

This rate compensates for the ro tation of the earth by moving the telescope at the same rate as th e ro tation of the earth, but in the opposite direction. When the telescope i s polar aligned, this can be accomplished by moving the telescope in Righ t As cension only. When mounted in Alt- Az mode, the telescope must make corrections in both R.A. [...]

Connecting a Camera to the NexStar Mount Your NexStar mount has a camer a control port that allows you to connect your camera using the s upplied Shutter Release Cable and a firing cable for your model of camera (not included). To connect you cam era: 1. Attach the phone jack end of th e supplied cable into the camera p ort on the base of the mount[...]

Repeat Count - Allows you to set the number of exposures per object. Exposure Time - Allows you to set the duratio n of each exposure in seconds. Long exposures – To take an exposure for more than 1 second, your cam era must be set to the “Bulb” setting. Then the camera will take the exposure for the amount of time entered into the hand c ont[...]

S S c c o o p p e e S S e e t t u u p p F F e e a a t t u u r r e e s s Setup Time-Site - Allows the user to custom ize the Ne xStar display by changi ng ti me and loca t i on paramete rs (such a s time zone and daylight savings). Anti-backlash – All mechanical gears hav e a certain amount of backlash or play between the gears. This play is evide[...]

while polar aligned, you would want to set the azimuth approach to the dir ection that allows the sco pe to compensate for differ ent load level on the motors and g ears when pointing in different parts of the sk y. To change the goto approach direction, simply choose Goto Approach from the Scope Setup menu, select either Altitude or Azimuth approa[...]

Scrolling Menu This menus allows you to chang e the rate of speed that th e text scrolls across the h and control display. • Press the Up (number 6) button to increase the speed of the text. • Press the Down (number 9) but ton to decrease the speed of the text. Calibrate Goto Goto Calibration is a useful tool when attaching heav y visual or pho[...]

ALT- AZ EQ NOR T H EQ SOUT H OF F MOD E SIDE RE AL SOLAR LUNAR RATE TRACKIN G VIEW TI M E-SIT E SETU P TI M E-SI T E A NT I- BACKLAS H SLEW LI MIT S FILTER LIMIT S DIRECT IO N B UTTO NS GOTO APP ROAC H CORDW RA P SCOPE SETU P LIGHT CONTROL FACTORY SE TTING VERSI O N GET AXI S POSI T I O N GO TO AXIS POSITIO N HIBERNATE SUN MEN U SCR OLLI NG TEXT CA[...]

A telescope is an instrument that collects and focuses light. Th e nature of the optical design determines how the light is foc used. Some telescopes, known as refractors, use lenses. Other telescopes, known as reflec tors, use mirrors. The Schmidt-Cassegrain optical system (or Schmidt-Cass for short) uses a combination of mirrors and lenses and is[...]

Focusing The NexStar's focusing mechanism controls th e primary mirror which is mounted on a ring that slides back and forth on the primary ba ffle tube. The focusing knob, which moves the primary mirror, is on the rear cell of the telescop e just below the star diagonal and e yepiece. Turn the focusing knob until the image is sharp. If the kn[...]

thousand yards. The apparent field of each eyepi ece that Cele stron manufactures is found in the Celestron Accessory Catalog (#93685). G G e e n n e e r r a a l l O O b b s s e e r r v v i i n n g g H H i i n n t t s s or over objects that are pr oducing heat waves. This includes aspha lt park ing lots on hot summer days or building rooftops. • [...]

Up to this point, this manual covered the assembly and basic operation of your NexS tar telescope. However, to understand your telescope more thoroughly , you need to know a little about th e night sky. This s ection deals with observational astronomy in general and includes information on th e night sky and polar align ment. T T h h e e C C e e l [...]

M M o o t t i i o o n n o o f f t t h h e e S S t t a a r r s s The daily motion of the Sun a cross the sky is familiar to even th e most casual observer. This daily trek is not the Sun m oving as early astronomers thought, but the result of the Earth's rotation. The Earth's rotation also causes the stars to do the same, scribin g out a l[...]

Figure 6-3 This is how the telescope is to be se t up for polar alignment. The tube should be parallel to the fork arm which should be pointed to P olaris. P P o o l l a a r r A A l l i i g g n n m m e e n n t t Even though the NexStar can precisely track a celestial object while in the Alt-Az position, it is still necessary to ali gn the polar axi[...]

Based on your current alignment, NexStar will slew to wh ere it thinks Polaris should be. Use the tripod’s tilt plate adjustment to place Polaris in the center of the eyepiece . Do not use the hand control’s direction buttons to position Polaris . Once Polaris is centered in the eyepiece, press ENTER; the polar axis should then be pointed towar[...]

Finding the North Celestial Pole In each hemisphere, there is a p oint in the sky around which all the other stars appear to rot ate. These points are cal led the celestial poles and are na med for the hemisphere in which they reside. For example, in the northern hemisphere all st ar s move around the north celestial pole. When the telescope's[...]

With your telescope set up, you are ready to use it for observing. This section covers visual observ ing hints for both solar s ystem and deep sky objects as well as g e neral observing conditions which will affect your ability to observe. O O b b s s e e r r v v i i n n g g t t h h e e M M o o o o n n Often, it is tempting to look at the Moon when[...]

S S o o l l a a r r O O b b s s e e r r v v i i n n g g H H i i n n t t s s o The best time to observe th e Sun is in the early mo rning or late afternoon when the air is cooler. o To center the Sun without look ing into the eyepiece, watch th e shadow of the t elescope tube until it forms a ci rcular shadow. o To ensure accurate tracking, be s ure[...]

While your NexStar te lescope requires little m aintenance, there ar e a few things to remember that will ensure your telescope performs at its best. Care and Cleaning of the Optics Occasionally, dust and/or moisture ma y build up on the corrector plate of your telescope. Special care should be taken when cleaning any instrument so as not to dam ag[...]

Figure 7-3 A collimated telescope should appear 7. Once the star im age is in the center of the field of view, check to s ee if the rings are concentric. If the centr 7. Once the star im age is in the center of the field of view, check to s ee if the rings are concentric. If the centr symmetrical w ith the central obstruction centered in the star&a[...]

You w nce, all the Adap to run the NexStar drive off an extern al power source. The ad apter attaches to the cigarett e lighter of your car, truck, van, or motorcycle. Barlow Lens - A Barlow lens is a n egative lens that incr eases th e focal length of a telescope. Used with any eyepiece, it doubles the magnification of that eyepiece. Celestron off[...]

40 lights. This includes mercury and high and low pressure sodium vapor li ghts. In addition, they also block unwanted natural li ght (sk y glow) caused by neutral oxygen emission in our atmosphere. Ce lestron offers a model for 1-1/4" eyepieces (#94126A). Moon Filter (#94119-A) - Celestron’s Moon Filter is an economi cal eyepiece filter for[...]

Appendix A - Technical Specifications O O O p p p t t t i i i c c c a a a l l l S S S p p p e e e c c c i i i f f f i i i c c c a a a t t t i i i o o o n n n Schmidt Cassegrain Optical Design Design Aperture 5 inches (125mm) Focal Length 50 inches (1250mm) F/ratio of the Optical System 10 Primary Mirror: Dia meter 125mm Coating s Starbright XLT® S[...]

A A p p p p e e n n d d i i x x B B - - G G l l o o s s s s a a r r y y o o f f T T e e r r m m s s gnitude The apparent magnit ude that a sta ere observed from a stand ard distance of 10 parsecs, or 32.6 light-years. The a f the Sun is 4.8. at a distance of 10 parsecs, it would just be visible on Earth on oonless night away from surface light. The[...]

F F - o mirror) and the point at which the image of an object at infinit y is gth divided by the aperture of the mirror or lens is termed the focal Jovian Planets K - ar (ly) 5.87 X 1 Magnitude ude is a measure of the b rightness of a celestial body. The brightest stars are assigned down to magnitude 5. The faintest star that can be ds to a ratio o[...]

Resolution The minimum detectab le angle an optical system can detect. Be cause of diffractio n, there is a l imit to the minimum angle , resolution. The larger the aperture, the better th e resolution. n: (RA) S - Sidereal Rate This is the angular speed at which the Ea rth is rotating . Telescope tracking motors drive the telescope at this rate. T[...]

45 dix D – M Appen aps of Time Zones[...]

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CELESTRON TWO YEAR WARRANTY A. Celestron warrants this telescope to be free from defects in materials and workmanship for two years. Celestron will repair or replace such product or part ther eof which, upon inspection by Celestron, is found to be defective in m a terials or workmanship. As a condition to the obligation of Celestron to repair or re[...]

Celestron 2835 Columbia Street Torrance, CA 90503 (Products or instructio ange without notice This device compl the FCC Rule. Operation is subject to the following two con v ice may not cau se harmful interference, and 2) This d f erence received, i ncluding interference that may cause undesired oper ations. Tel. (310) 328-9560 Fax. (310) 212 -5835[...]