Meade LXD 75 manual

Instruction Manual LXD 75 -Series T elescopes ™ MEADE.COM[...]

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T elescope F eatures ...................................................... 4 A utostar Features .......................................................... 9 Getting Star ted ..............................................................11 Unpac king and Assemb ly..........................................11 How to Assemb le Y our T elescope .......[...]

TELESCOPE FEA TURES 4 Fig. 1a : The LXD75-Series T elescope Optical Assembly (Schmidt-Newtonian model with A utostar handbox shown; Electronic Controller model users, see Appendix D , page 58). B C g d f I 1) 1# 1$ e H J 1! 1@ 3% 3* 3( 3& 3^ Fig. 1b : Close up of Focuser and Viewfinder Assembly , Schmidt-Ne wtonian sho wn. (See Fig. 1a f or o v[...]

5 A B C D E Fig. 1e : The LXD75-Series Computer Control Panel (see 2$ abo ve). Fig. 1d: The LXD75-Series Mount; insert shows opposite side of Mount. 2! 2@ T 1& 1* 1( 2# 2$ 2% 2^ 2^ 2* 2( 2& 3) 3! 3$ F 3@ 3# Legend 1. Eyepiece Thumbscre w 2. Eyepiece Holder 3. Ey epiece 4. Viewfinder (VF) 5. VF Collimation Screws 6. VF F ront Cell 7. VF Brac[...]

LXD75-Series:Y our Personal Window to the Universe The Meade LXD75- Series models are versatile, high-resolution telescopes . Supplied with either an Electronic Controller or an A utostar handbox, the LXD75- Series models off er unmatched mechanical and electronic performance. The LXD75- Series telescopes rev eal nature in an ev er-e xpanding lev e[...]

7 1% Vie wfinder Brac ket Screws: Tighten to a fir m feel to hold vie wfinder securely in place ( see E and h ). See page 12 for more inf or mation. 1^ Focus Lock Knob : Designed to prev ent the focuser dra wtube from moving when a heavy accessory , such as a camera, is attached to the focuser assemb ly . For nor mal obser ving with an eyepiece and[...]

8 sure to tur n off the LED when finished with the polar viewfinder . P owered by (f ac- tor y-supplied) batteries contained within. 3! R.A. Setting Circ le: See APPENDIX A, page 50 , f or more information. 3@ R.A. Setting Circ le Lock Knob: Rotate the knob to lock the R.A. Setting Circle (see 3! ) in place . 3# R.A. Lock : Controls the manual mov [...]

9 Fig. 2: The Autostar Handbo x. T our the Cosmos with Just the Push of a Button Control of most LXD75-Series telescope models (excluding the EC models; see mar- gin note) is through the operation of A utostar . Nearly all functions of the telescope are accomplished with just a f ew pushes of A utostar’ s buttons. Some of the major features of A [...]

10 Note: If ENTER is pressed f or two seconds or more and then released, A utostar emits a beep and “ENTER to Sync” is display ed. "ENTER to Sync" ma y be used only after your telescope has been aligned and is pointing at an object. See page 30 for more details . 3 MODE K ey : Press to return to the previous menu le vel. The top menu [...]

11 As you unpac k your telescope, carefully note the f ollowing par ts. The assembly is shipped in separate bo xes . T elescope Assembly W Equator ial mount with polar alignment finder W Heavy duty , adjustable aluminum tripod with leg braces, three tripod leg loc k knobs, and a captiv e mount locking knob W Complete optical tube assemb ly includin[...]

12 Note: If the counterweight e ver slips , the safety cap ( 23 , Fig. 1d ) pre vents the counterweight from sliding entirely off the shaft. Always lea ve the safety cap in place when the counterweight is on the shaft. 6. Set the latitude: Setting the latitude is easier if it is set bef ore you attach the opti- cal tube to the assembly . Locate the[...]

13 1b ) into the the diagonal. Tighten the diagonal's thumbscrews to a firm feel to secure the e y epiece. Note: T wo ey epiece holders are included with your telescope—f or both 1.25" and 2" ey epieces. T o change ey epiece holders, unscrew the attached holder from the f ocuser and thread on the other holder . 11. Adjust the heigh[...]

14 Important Note: Objects appear upside-down and re v ersed left-for-right when observed in the viewfinder . With refr acting telescope models , objects vie w ed through the main telescope with the diagonal mirror in place are seen right-side-up, b ut re v ersed left-f or-r ight. This image inv ersion is of no consequence when observ- ing astronom[...]

15 Lo w po wer ey epieces offer a wide field of vie w , br ight, high-contrast images, and e ye relief during long obser ving sessions. T o find an object with a telescope, alwa ys star t with a lower po wer ey epiece such as the Super Plössl 26mm. When the object is located and centered in the ey epiece, you ma y wish to switch to a higher pow er[...]

16 supplied with your telescope . When the object is centered and focused in the e ye- piece , s witch to a higher power e yepiece to enlarge the image as much as pr acti- cal f or prev ailing viewing conditions. For inf or mation about other eyepieces a vail- able f or your telescope, see OPTIONAL A CCESSORIES , page 37. W Once centered, an object[...]

17 Speeds 1, 2, or 3: Best used f or fine center ing of an object in the field of vie w of a higher power e yepiece , 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 pow er ey epiece, such as the standard Super Plössl 26mm. Speeds 7 or 8: Best used f or rough center ing of an obje[...]

18 Observe a Star using the Automatic T racking Feature In this e xample, Autostar's Arro w ke ys are used to find a star , and then Autostar's trac king capability automatically keeps the star centered in your telescope's e yepiece . EC handbo x users, see APPENDIX D , page 58, f or information about tracking with the EC handbo x. 1[...]

19 Moving Through A utostar’ s Menus (A utostar Models Only) A utostar's menus are organized f or quick and easy na vigation. W Press ENTER ( 2, Fig. 2 ) to go deeper into A utostar menu lev els. W Press MODE ( 3, Fig. 2 ) to mo v e back to ward the top menu le vel. W Press the Scroll ke ys ( 7, Fig. 2 ) to mov e up and down through the opti[...]

20 a. A utostar prompts you to enter the Country or State (listed alphabetically) of the obser ving site. Use the Scroll keys to cycle through the database of coun- tries, states, and pro vinces. Press ENTER when the correct location displays . b . A utostar then prompts you to enter the nearest city (listed alphabetically) to the obser ving site. [...]

21 15. "Drive Setup: F or this...." begins to scroll across the display . This is another reminder to point your telescope at a terrestrial object. Loosen the R.A. and Dec. loc ks ( 17 and 33, Fig. 1d ) and point the telescope at an object. Then re-tighten the locks . Press ENTER when the telescope is pointing at the desired terrestrial o[...]

22 5. Press GO TO . “Satur n: Slewing... ” displa ys and the telescope slews until it finds Saturn. Y ou may need to use the Arro w keys to center Saturn precisely in the ey e- piece . Autostar then automatically sle ws (moves) the telescope so that it tr acks Saturn (or whatev er other object you ma y hav e chosen). Saturn remains centered in [...]

It is impor tant to understand that menu selections are set in a loop ( Fig. 19 ). This means that pressing the Scroll Down k ey ( 7, Fig. 2 ) cycles do wn through all the availab le options within a given category , then retur ns to the first option. The Scroll Up k ey ( 7, Fig. 2 ) cycles up through the options in the opposite order . Note that t[...]

24 3. Press the ENTER ke y to choose the "Event" option and mo ve down a le vel. "Event: Sunrise" is display ed. 4. Press the Scroll Down k ey once to displa y the "Sunset" option in the Event menu. 5. Press the ENTER ke y to choose the "Sunset" option and mov e down another le vel. 6. A utostar calculates th[...]

25 Solar System Mercury Etc. Moon Asteroids Comets Constellations Andromeda Etc. Deep Sky Named Object Galaxies Nebulae Planetary Neb. Etc. Star Named SAO Catalog Double V ar iable Etc. Satellite Select Add Delete Edit User Objects Select Add Delete Edit Landmarks Select Add Delete Identify Browse Star t Search Edit P arameters Sunrise Sunset Moonr[...]

26 MENUS Object Menu Almost all obser ving with A utostar is performed using the Object menu category . ( Note: Exceptions include Guided T our and Landmark Sur ve y . ) See GO T O SA TURN , page 21, f or an example of observing using the Object menu. Also see USING THE GUIDED T OUR , page 22. A utostar contains many libraries of viewab le objects,[...]

27 Bro wse allows you to search the libr ar y for objects with certain parameters, much lik e a search engine. "Edit P arameters" lets you set v arious parameters for the search, such as: Object T ype, Minimum Ele vation, Largest, etc . Once you ha ve set the param- eters of the search, select "Star t Search" and press ENTER. Au[...]

28 W Set : Enter the time to be counted down, in hours, min utes, and seconds, then press ENTER. W Star t/Stop : Activates the timer set pre viously . Use the Scroll keys to toggle betw een ON and OFF . When ON is display ed, press ENTER to activate the timer . When the timer runs out, four beeps sound and the timer is deactiv ated. Alarm selects a[...]

29 Then check the "Select Item: Ev ent" menu for the Sunset time on that date . See EVENT MENU , page 27. Time changes the time entered into A utostar . Setting the correct time is critical for A utostar to proper ly calculate locations and e vents . Time may be set to 24-hour mode (militar y time) b y selecting the "blank" opti[...]

30 b. Lunar: Choose this option to properly track the Moon o ver long observing sessions. c. Custom : Allows entr y of user-defined trac king rates. W Rever se L/R: Rev erses the functions of the Left and Right Arrow ke ys ( i.e. , the Right ke y mov es the telescope to the left ). W Rever se U/D: Rev erses the functions of the Up and Down Arrow k [...]

31 Do wnload tr ansf ers information from another Autostar . Dur ing the operation, the warning “Do wnloading Do Not T ur n Off ” appears. Clone uploads inf or mation from one Autostar handbo x to another . Three options are av ailable: W Catalogs: Sends only user-defined object inf or mation, such as new satellite orbits or comet data to anoth[...]

32 USEFUL AUTOST AR PROCEDURES Bef ore tr ying out the examples in this section, f amiliar ize y ourself with the basic oper- ations of A utostar descr ibed earlier in this manual. The following e xamples assume that y ou ha ve a basic kno wledge of Autostar and understand ho w to scroll to a desired menu or menu option, and ho w to enter numbers a[...]

33 11. Press MODE. "Site: Edit" displays. 12. Using the Arrow ke ys, scroll to "Site: Select." The site you hav e just edited dis- pla ys. Press ENTER to select the site or press MODE to exit. Using A utostar to Find Objects Not in the Libraries In this procedure, y ou will enter coordinates of celestial objects that do not appe[...]

34 Observing Satellites In this procedure, y ou will prepare your telescope to observe a satellite pass. 1. Navigate to the "Object: Satellite" menu option and press ENTER. 2. Use the Scroll ke ys to scroll through the list of satellites. 3. Select a satellite from the list and press ENTER. 4. "Calculating...." and then "T [...]

35 Another setup method is to select an object from the Landmar k database. See TO SELECT A LANDMARK FROM THE D A T ABASE below . Then manually mov e the tele- scope's optical tube and center this object in the telescope ey epiece. 2. Displa y the "Setup: T argets" menu option. Choose "T errestr ial" and press ENTER. "[...]

36 Photograph y through an LXD75 Schmidt-Newtonian and Newtonian Reflector telescope requires an LXD75-Series T -Adapter ( supplied) attached to the telescope ( Fig. 22a ). Through-the-telescope photog raph y is possible with any 35mm camera body with a remov able lens. In this way , the telescope effectiv ely becomes the lens of the camera. Unthre[...]

37 OPTIONAL ACCESSORIES A wide assor tment of prof essional Meade accessor ies is av ailable for the LXD75-Ser ies telescope models. The premium quality of these accessories is well-suited to the qual- ity of the instrument itself. Consult the Meade General Catalog for complete details on these and other accessories. Fig. 24: Series 4000 Ey epieces[...]

38 Series 4000 8 - 24mm Zoom Eyepiece: The internal zoom optics of this ey epiece mov e on smooth, precisely machined surfaces which maintain optical collimation at all zoom settings . A scale graduated in 1mm units indicates the zoom f ocal length in operation. An excellent addition to an y ey epiece set. #140 2x Barlow Lens: A 3-element design, d[...]

39 Fig. 30: Optional A utostar handbox f or EC model users. nal of the telescope , f ollowed b y an ey epiece. The #1A Skylight Filter threads onto the rear cell of the Meade Schmidt-Cassegrain SC-8 model and eff ectively seals the inter ior of the telescope from dust. All other rear cell accessories may then be thread- ed to the #1A filter . The f[...]

40 MAINTENANCE General Maintenance LXD75-Series telescopes are precision optical instr uments designed to yield a lif etime of rew arding applications. Given the care and respect due any precision instrument, your LXD75 will rarely , if ev er , require factory ser vicing. Maintenance guidelines include: a. A void cleaning the telescope’ s optics:[...]

41 shipment of your telescope . It is only necessar y f or you to confirm that the telescope has not been badly jarred out of collimation, and to perf or m the final fine-tuning of Step 4, below . Fig. 31a shows a correctly collimated Schmidt-Newtonian telescope, as it appears when vie w ed through the focuser with the e y epiece remo v ed. T o che[...]

42 4. P erf or m an actual star test to confir m the accuracy of steps 1 through 3. Using the SP 26mm ey epiece, point the telescope at a moderately bright (second or third mag- nitude) star , and center the image in the main telescope's field of view . 5. Bring the star's image slowly in and out of focus until y ou see se veral disks sur[...]

43 Caution: Do not f orce the three collimation scre ws past their normal trav el and do not loosen them more than two full turns in a counterclockwise direction or the secondar y mirror ma y come loose from its suppor t. Y ou will find that the adjustments are very sensitive, usually requiring only one-half tur n or less to produce the desired res[...]

44 Alignment (Collimation) of the Newtonian Reflector Optical System The optical systems of Newtonian Reflector telescopes include the f ollowing par ts: pr i- mar y mirror ( 1, Fig. 34 ); secondary mirror ( 2, Fig. 34 ); secondar y mirror-holder ( 3, Fig. 34 ); secondar y mirror-v anes (4, Fig. 34) and (1, Fig. 35 ); primar y mirror-tilt screws ( [...]

45 2 1 3 3 2 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 1 2 3 2 1 2 3 4 3 6 2 5 1 4 Fig. 34 Fig. 35. Fig. 36. Fig. 37. Fig. 38. Fig. 39. Fig. 40.[...]

46 SPECIFICA TIONS 6" f/5 Model SN-6A T , SN-6EC Specifications Optical design ..............................................Schmidt-Newtonian Clear aper ture..............................................6" (152mm) F ocal length ................................................762mm F ocal ratio (photographic speed) ................f/5 Res[...]

47 10" f/4 Model SN-10A T Specifications Optical design ..............................................Schmidt-Newtonian Clear aper ture..............................................10" (254mm) F ocal length ................................................1016mm F ocal ratio (photographic speed) ................f/4 Resolving power ........[...]

48 Alignment ....................................................Germa n-t yp e eq uat oria l m oun t Slew Speeds ................................................1x sidereal to 4.5°/sec in 9 increments T r ipod ..........................................................V ariable-height field tripod Accessories ......................................[...]

49 A utostar Specifications Processor ............................................................................ 68HC11, 8MHz Flash Memor y ............................................................1.0MB, reloadab le K eypad ........................................................................20 ke y alphanumeric Displa y ...................[...]

50 A celestial coordinate system was created that maps an imaginary sphere surround- ing the Ear th upon which all stars appear to be placed. This mapping system is simi- lar to the system of latitude and longitude on Ear th surf ace maps. In mapping the surf ace of the Ear th, lines of longitude are drawn between the North and South P oles and lin[...]

51 Polaris Little Dipper Big Dipper Cassiopeia Fig. 42 Locating P olar is . and also of the object y ou wish to locate , in a star atlas. P oint the object at the bright star . Then loosen the R.A. setting circle lock knob ( 32, Fig. 1d ) and turn the R.A. set- ting circle to read the correct R.A. coordinate of the br ight star; lock the R.A. setti[...]

52 APPENDIX B: ENHANCING POINTING PRECISION The P olar Alignment Viewfinder T ypically Autostar's pointing capabilities are sufficient f or most telescope obser v ers, and the use of the polar alignment viewfinder is unnecessary for them. Howe ver , for those obser v ers who need to meet the more demanding requirements of astropho- tograph y ,[...]

53 4. Autostar then chooses three stars from its database to align upon. When the telescope slews to a star f or alignment, it may not appear in the field of view in the ey epiece. Use the Arro w keys to mo ve the telescope until the star is visib le and centered in the e y epiece. The alignment star should be easily recognized and be the brightest[...]

54 Impor tant Note: The image will appear r ight-side-up , but re versed left-f or- r ight, in the ey epiece of a refractor telescope . The image will appear upside-down, b ut correct left-for-right, in the ey epiece of a Schmidt- Newtonian telescope , if the e yepiece e xtends horizontally from the tube, as described in Step #3. 5. Loosen the R.A.[...]

55 7. Rotate the telescope 180° in the R.A. axis ONL Y , to return the optical tube to posi- tion A. 8. Repeat steps 5 through 8, if necessar y , alter nating between position A and posi- tion B, and bringing the ref erence object halfwa y of the remaining distance to cen- ter . Stop the procedure once the distance between the object in position A[...]

56 The telescope first mov es 180° on the Dec. axis and then rotates 180° on the R.A. axis. A utostar displays "Sle wing....". When the telescope has completed the 180° slew , the telescope will be under the mount instead of o v er it. The counterweight shaft is now pointed upw ards and the cradle adjustment scre ws ( Fig. 47 ) are eas[...]

57 APPENDIX C: LA TITUDE CHART Latitude Chart for Major Cities of the W orld T o aid in the polar alignment procedure (see pages 17-21), latitudes of major cities around the wor ld are listed below . T o deter mine the lati- tude of an observing site not listed on the char t, locate the city closest to your site. Then follow the procedure below: No[...]

58 APPENDIX D: EC HANDBOX Some LXD75 models (designated with an “EC, ” f or example, AR-5EC) come equipped with an Electronic Controller (EC) handbo x, rather than the Autostar Handbo x. The Electronic Controller provides y ou with the means to control the telescope motors from a compact handbo x. The Electronic Controller ( Fig. 49 ) has soft-[...]

59 5 MODE Key : Press and hold MODE to place the Electronic Controller into the Mode function, i.e ., to select operation f or the Nor ther n or Souther n Hemisphere. See TRA CKING RA TES , page 60. 6 OUT Ke y : Use this ke y to decrease the tracking rate . See TRA CKING RA TES , page 60. 7 IN K ey : Use this ke y to increase the tracking r ate. Se[...]

60 7. When the test is complete, light 1 remains on; lights 2, 3, and 4 tur n off . 8. Use the f our Arrow ke ys ( 1, Fig. 49 ) to slew the telescope to the desired object. T o change the slew speed, press SPEED . 9. Fine-adjust the position of the object with the Electronic Controller Arrow k eys so that it is centered in the viewfinder . The obje[...]

61 Note: The tr ac king rate can be increased by up to 65%. 4. T o use a rate slower than sidereal, press OUT ( 6, Fig. 49 ) until light 4 b links again (sidereal rate). Press OUT k ey and light 4 goes out, signifying a trac king rate 0.5% slower than sidereal. Note that when the Mode function is active , the tracking motor stops. T o restar t the [...]

62 APPENDIX E: MOUNTING THE MODEL SC-8 SCHMIDT - CASSEGRAIN OPTICAL TUBE How to Attach the Optical T ube to the Mount The LXD75 model SC-8 Schmidt-Cassegrain assemb les and operates identically to all the other LXD75 models equipped with an A utostar handbox, with one e xception: the optical tube is attached to the mount with a mounting bracket r a[...]

63 In the early 17th centur y Italian Scientist Galileo , using a telescope smaller than your LXD75 , turned it skyward instead of looking at the distant trees and mountains. What he saw , and what he realized about what he saw , has fore ver changed the wa y mankind thinks about the universe . Imagine what it must hav e been like being the first h[...]

64 Planets Planets change positions in the sky as the y orbit around the Sun. T o locate the plan- ets on a given da y or month, consult a monthly astronomy magazine, such as Sky and T elescope or Astronomy . Y ou can also consult Autostar f or information about planets. Scroll to the "Object: Solar System" menu and scroll through the lis[...]

65 Further Study .... This manual giv es only the br ief est introduction to astronomy . If you are interested in pursuing fur ther studies in astronomy , a few topics are suggested belo w that are worth reading up on. T ry looking up some of these in the optional Autostar glossary . Also included below is a small sampling of books, magazines , and[...]

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14-7500-01 2/05C MEADE LIMITED W ARRANTY Every Meade telescope, spotting scope, and telescope accessory is warranted b y Meade Instruments Cor poration (“Meade”) to be free of defects in materials and workmanship f or a period of ONE YEAR from the date of or iginal purchase in the U .S.A. and Canada. Meade will repair or replace a product, or p[...]