Celestron skyexpedition 60 Instruction Manual

by

SKYE

XPEDITION

60

COMPUTERIZE

TELESCOP

D

E

INSTRUCTION MANUAL

MODEL #22004

SkyExpedition 60

11

10

12

1

13

9

8

7

6

2

3

4

5

1. Objective Lens 6. Tripod Leg Extension Clamp 11. StarPointer Finderscope

2. Motorized Base 7. Hand Control 12. Altitude Clutch Knob

3. On/Off Switch 8. Focuser Knob 13. Telescope Mounting Bolt

4. Tripod 9. Star Diagonal

5. Accessory Tray 10. Eyepiece

1

INTRODUCTION

Congratulations on your purchase of the SkyExpedition telescope! The
SkyExpedition ushers in a whole new generation of computer automated
technology. Simple and friendly to use, the SkyExpedition telescope is
up and running after locating just three bright celestial objects. It’s the
perfect combination of power and portability. If you are new to astronomy,
you may wish to start off by using the SkyExpedition’s built-in Sky Tour
feature, which commands the SkyExpedition to find the most interesting
objects in the sky and automatically slews to each one. Or if you are more
experienced, you will appreciate the comprehensive database of over 4,000
objects, including customized lists of all the best deep-sky objects, planets,
and bright double stars. No matter at what level you are starting out, the
SkyExpedition will unfold for you and your friends all the wonders of the
Universe.

Some of the many standard features of the SkyExpedition
telescope include:

• Incredible 3°/second slew speed.

• Fully enclosed motors and optical encoders for
position location.

• Computerized hand controller with 4,000 object database.

• Storage for programmable user defined objects; and

• Many other high performance features!

The SkyExpedition’s deluxe features combined with Celestron’s legendary
optical standards give amateur astronomers one of the most sophisticated
and easy to use telescopes available on the market today.

Take time to read through this manual before embarking on your journey
through the Universe. It may take a few observing sessions to become
familiar with your telescope, so you should keep this manual handy until
you have fully mastered your telescope’s operation. The SkyExpedition
hand control has built-in instructions to guide you through all the
alignment procedures needed to have the telescope up and running in
minutes. Use this manual in conjunction with the on-screen instructions
provided by the hand control. The manual gives detailed information
regarding each step as well as needed reference material and helpful hints
guaranteed to make your observing experience as simple and pleasurable
as possible.

Your SkyExpedition telescope is designed to give you years of fun and
rewarding observations. However, there are a few things to consider before
using your telescope that will ensure your safety and protect
your equipment.

WARNING

• Never look directly at the Sun with the naked eye or with a telescope (unless you have the proper

• Never use your telescope to project an image of the Sun onto any surface. Internal heat build-up can damage the telescope

• Never use an eyepiece solar filter or a Herschel wedge. Internal heat build-up inside the telescope can cause these devices

• Never leave the telescope unsupervised, either when children are present or adults who may not be familiar with the

solar filter). Permanent and irreversible eye damage may result.

and any accessories attached to it.

to crack or break, allowing unfiltered sunlight to pass through to the eye.

correct operating procedures of your telescope.

2

ASSEMBLY

The SkyExpedition comes partially assembled and can be
operational in a matter of minutes. The SkyExpedition is
conveniently packaged in one reusable shipping carton that
contains the following accessories:

• 25 mm and 9 mm Eyepieces

• Erect Image Diagonal

• StarPointer Finderscope

• Accessory Tray

• The SkyX Student Edition Astronomy Software

• SkyExpedition Hand Control with 4,000 Object Database

ASSEMBLING THE TELESCOPE

Your SkyExpedition comes in three major sections: the optical
tube, the motorized mount and the tripod. These sections can
be attached in seconds using the quick release coupling screw
located under the tripod mounting platform and the dovetail
mounting clamp located on the outside of the motorized base.
To begin, remove all of the accessories from their individual
boxes. Remember to save all of the containers so that they can
be used to transport the telescope. Before attaching the visual
accessories, the telescope tube and mount should be attached to
the tripod. First, install the accessory tray onto the tripod legs:

1. Remove the tripod from the box and spread the legs apart
until the center leg brace is fully extended.

2. Locate the accessory tray, and place it on top of the tripod
center support brace in between the tripod legs
(see fi gure 2-1).

3. Rotate the accessory tray so that the central hole in the
tray slides over the fl ange post in the center of the
support bracket.

4. Finally, rotate the tray so that the locking tabs slide under the
locking clips on center leg brace. You will feel the tray snap
into place.

Attaching the Hand Control Holder

The SkyExpedition comes with a snap-on hand control holder that
conveniently attaches to any of the tripod legs. To attach the hand
control holder simply position the holder with the square plastic
tab facing up and push against the tripod leg until it snaps in
to place.

FIGURE 2-3

Attaching the Motorized Base to the Tripod

With the tripod properly assembled, the motorized base can
easily be attached using the quick release coupling screw located
underneath the tripod mounting platform:

1. Place the motorized base on top of the tripod making sure
that the three round feet rest on the round fl at pads on the
inside of the tripod head.

2. Thread the coupling screw into the hole at the bottom of the
motorized base and hand tighten.

Flange Post

Locking
Clips

Locking Tabs

FIGURE 2-1

It is a good idea to level the tripod by adjusting the height of the
tripod legs before attaching the motorized base and tube. Minor
adjustments can be made later. To adjust the height of the
tripod legs:

1. Lift the tripod leg locking lever located on the side of
each leg.

2. Slide the inner portion of each leg down 6” to 8” inches.

3. Adjust the tripod height until the base is visually level and
press down the locking levers to secure into place.

Motorized
Base

Coupling
Screw

Tripod
Mounting
Platform

FIGURE 2-4

3

Leveling the Telescope

Now that the base is attached to the tripod, it is a good idea to use the
included bubble level to more accurately level the telescope.

1. Place the bubble level on the top of the motorized base.

2. Adjust the tripod legs until the bubble level shows the base to be level.

Place Bubble
Level Here

FIGURE 2-5

Leveling the Base

Attaching the Telescope to the Base

Your telescope optical tube has a built on dovetail mounting bar used to
attach the tube to the base. To attach the telescope tube:

1. Loosen the altitude clutch knob a quarter turn and rotate the tube
clamp so that the mounting bolt is positioned on the top of the base.
Retighten the altitude knob by hand, but do not over tighten.

2. Loosen the tube clamp mounting bolt.

3. Slide the telescope tube’s dovetail mounting bar into the tube clamp.
Make sure that the fi nderscope is pointing up when the tube is attached
to the base.

4. Tighten the mounting bolt by hand to secure the tube to the base.

Your telescope is fully assembled and is ready to attach the accessories.

Mounting Bolt

Dovetail
Bar

Altitude Clutch
Knob

Focuser Barrel

Eyepiece

Star Diagonal

FIGURE 2-7

ACCESSORIES

The Eyepiece

The eyepiece is the optical element that magnifi es the image focused by the
telescope. The eyepiece fi ts directly into the star diagonal. To install
the eyepiece:

1. Loosen the thumbscrew on the star diagonal so it does not obstruct
the inner diameter of the eyepiece end of the diagonal. Remove the
protective dust cap from the star diagonal’s barrel.

2. Slide the chrome portion of the low power 25 mm eyepiece into the
star diagonal.

3. Tighten the thumbscrew to hold the eyepiece in place.

To remove the eyepiece, loosen the thumbscrew on the eyepiece barrel and
slide the eyepiece out.

Eyepieces are commonly referred to by focal length and barrel diameter.
The focal length of each eyepiece is printed on the eyepiece barrel. The
longer the focal length (i.e., the larger the number) the lower the eyepiece
power or magnifi cation; and the shorter the focal length (i.e., the smaller
the number) the higher the magnifi cation. Generally, you will use low-to­moderate power when viewing. For more information on how to determine
power, see the section on “Calculating Magnifi cation” found on the
Celestron website at www.celestron.com/downloads.

Barrel diameter is the diameter of the barrel that slides into the star
diagonal or focuser. The SkyExpedition uses eyepieces with a standard
1-1/4” barrel diameter.

Focusing

To focus your telescope, simply turn either of the focus knobs at the eyepiece
end of the optical tube. Turn the focus knob until the image is sharp. Once
sharp, turn the knob towards you to focus on an object that is closer than the
one you are currently observing. Turn the knob away from you to focus on a
more distant object than the one you are currently observing.

FIGURE 2-6

The Star Diagonal

The star diagonal diverts the light at a right angle from the light path of
the telescope. For astronomical observing, this allows you to observe
in positions that are more comfortable than if you were to look straight
through. To attach the star diagonal:

1. Turn the thumbscrew on the eyepiece adapter at the end of the
focuser barrel until it no longer extends into (i.e., obstructs) the inner
diameter of the focus barrel. Remove the protective dust cap from the
focuser barrel.

2. Slide the chrome portion of the star diagonal into the focuser barrel.

3. Tighten the thumbscrew on the focuser barrel to hold the star diagonal
in place.

If you wish to change the orientation of the star diagonal, loosen the
thumbscrew on the eyepiece adapter until the star diagonal rotates freely.
Rotate the diagonal to the desired position and tighten the thumbscrew.

The StarPointer Finderscope

The StarPointer is the quickest and easiest way to point your telescope
exactly at a desired object in the sky. It’s like having a laser pointer
that you can shine directly onto the night sky. The StarPointer is a zero
magnifi cation pointing tool that uses a coated glass window to superimpose
the image of a small red dot onto the night sky. While keeping both eyes
open when looking through the StarPointer, simply move your telescope
until the red dot, seen through the StarPointer, merges with the object as
seen with your unaided eye. The red dot is produced by a light-emitting
diode (LED); it is not a laser beam and will not damage the glass window
or your eye. The StarPointer is powered by a long life 3-volt lithium battery
(#CR1620). Like all fi nderscopes, the StarPointer must be properly aligned
with the main telescope before it can be used. The alignment procedure is
best done at night since the LED dot will be diffi cult to see during the day.

Install the Battery

1. Unscrew the battery cover on the StarPointer fi nderscope.

2. Insert battery with “ + ” side facing out.

3. Replace battery cover.

4

Aligning the StarPointer

1. To turn on the StarPointer, turn the switch to the “on” position
– see Figure 2-9

2. Locate a bright star or planet and center it in a low power
eyepiece in the main telescope.

3. With both eyes open, look through the glass window at the
alignment star. If the StarPointer is perfectly aligned, you
will see the red LED dot overlap the alignment star. If the
StarPointer is not aligned, take notice of where the red dot
is relative to the bright star.

4. Without moving the main telescope, turn the StarPointer’s
two adjustment screws until the red dot is directly over the
alignment star. Experiment as to which way each screw
moves the red dot.

Adjustment
Screws

Powering the Telescope

The SkyExpedition can be powered by 8 user supplied AA size
alkaline batteries or an optional 12V AC adapter. To install
batteries into the SkyExpedition:

1. Press the tab on the front of the battery compartment and
remove the cover.

Battery
Compartment

Power
Switch

FIGURE 2-9

E STARPOINTER FINDERSCOPE

TH

The StarPointer is now ready for use.

Always turn the
power off after you have found an object. This will
extend the life of both the battery and the LED.

Attaching the Hand Control

The SkyExpedition hand control has a phone jack type
connector at the end of its cord. Plug the phone jack connector
into the outlet on the top of the motorized base. Push the
connector into the outlet until it clicks into place and place
the hand control into its holder as described previously in the
Assembly section of the manual.

Hand Control Jack

FIGURE 2-11A

EMOVING THE BATTERY COMP

R

2. Gently remove the battery holder from inside the
battery compartment.

3. Place 8-AA batteries (user supplied) inside the battery holder.

ART

MENT LID

FIGURE 2-11B

INSERT

4. Return the battery holder back inside the base and replace
the cover.

5. Flip the power switch to the “On” position. The light on the
power button and hand control should come on.

In case of a loss of power, the optical tube can be moved
by hand in altitude (up and down) only. However, when
powered on, the telescope should always be controlled via
the hand control. The telescope will lose its star alignment
if moved by hand when powered on.

ING THE BATTERIES

Battery
Compartment
Release Tab

TH

E

FIGURE 2-10

SkyExpEdition MOTORIZED BASE

Power Switch

12v Outlet

HAND CONTROL

The SkyExpedition’s hand controller is designed to give you
instant access to all the functions the telescope has to offer.
With automatic slewing to over 4,000 objects, and common
sense menu descriptions, even a beginner can master its variety
of features in just a few observing sessions. Below is a brief
description of the individual components of the SkyExpedition
hand controller:

1. Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) Window: Has a

dual-line, 16 character display screen that is backlit for
comfortable viewing of telescope information and
scrolling text.

2. Align: Instructs the SkyExpedition to use a selected star or

object as an alignment position.

5

3. Direction Keys: Allows complete control of the telescope in any

direction. Use the direction keys to center objects in the StarPointer
fi nderscope and eyepiece.

4. Catalog Keys: The hand control has a key on the hand control to

allow direct access to each of the catalogs in its 4,000+ object database.
The hand control contains the following catalogs in its database:

Messier – Complete list of all Messier objects.
NGC – Many of the brightest deep sky objects from the Revised

New General Catalog.

Caldwell – A combination of the best NGC and IC objects.
Planets - All 8 planets in our Solar System plus the Moon and Sun.
Stars – A compiled list of the brightest stars from the SAO catalog.
List – For quick access, all of the best and most popular objects

in the database have been broken down into lists based on their
type and/or common name:

Named Stars Common name listing of the brightest

stars in the sky.

Named Objects Alphabetical listing of over 50 of the most

popular deep sky objects.

Double Stars Alphabetical listing of the most visually

stunning double, triple and quadruple stars
in the sky.

Variable Stars Select list of the brightest variable stars with

the shortest period of changing magnitude.

Asterisms A unique list of some of the most

recognizable star patterns in the sky.

selected from the database.

Tour: Activates the tour mode, which seeks out all the best objects for

6.
a given month and automatically slews the telescope to those objects.

7. Enter: Pressing Enter allows you to select any of the SkyExpedition
functions, accept entered parameters and slew the telescope to
displayed objects.

8. Undo: Undo will take you out of the current menu and display the
previous level of the menu path. Press Undo repeatedly to get back to a
main menu or use it to erase data entered by mistake.

9. Menu: Displays the many setup and utilities functions such as
tracking rate and user defi ned objects and many others.

10. Scroll Keys: Used to scroll up and down within any of the menu lists.

A double arrow symbol on the right side of the LCD indicates that the
scroll keys can be used to view additional information.

11. Rate: Instantly changes the rate of speed of the motors when the

direction buttons are pressed.

12. RS-232 Jack: Allows use with a computer and software programs

for point and click slewing capability.

HAND CONTROL OPERATION

This section describes the basic hand control procedures needed to operate
the SkyExpedition. These procedures are grouped into three categories:
Alignment, Setup and Utilities. The alignment section deals with the initial
telescope alignment as well as fi nding objects in the sky; the setup section
discusses changing parameters such as tracking mode and tracking rate;
fi nally, the last section reviews all of the utility functions such as adjusting
the telescopes slew limits and backlash compensation.

5. Info: Displays coordinates and useful information about objects

1

7

2

8

3

4

9

10

11

5

6

12

Alignment Procedure

In order for the SkyExpedition to accurately point to objects in the sky,
it must fi rst be aligned to known positions (stars) in the sky. With this
information, the telescope can create a model of the sky, which it uses to
locate any object with known coordinates. There are many ways to align
the SkyExpedition with the sky depending on what information the user is

able to provide: SkyAlign uses your current date, time and city to create
an accurate model of the sky. Then the user can simply point the telescope
to any three bright celestial objects to accurately align the telescope with

the sky. Auto Two-Star Align will ask the user to choose and center the
fi rst alignment star, then the SkyExpedition will automatically select and

slew to a second star for alignment. Two-Star Alignment requires the
user to identify and manually slew the telescope to the two alignment stars.

One-Star Align is the same as Two-Star Align however only requires you

to align to one known star. Although not as accurate as the other alignment
methods, One-Star Align is the quickest way to fi nd and track bright

planets and objects in Altazimuth mode. Finally, Solar System Align
will display a list of visible daytime objects (planets and the moon) available
to align the telescope. Each alignment method is discussed in detail below.

“Altazimuth” or “Alt-Az” refers to a type of mounting that allows a
telescope to move in both altitude (up and down) and azimuth (left
and right) with respect to the ground. This is the simplest form of
mounting in which the telescope is attached directly to a tripod.

Sky Align

Sky Align is the easiest way to get your telescope aligned and ready to
observe. Even if you do not know a single star in the sky, the SkyExpedition
will have you aligned in minutes by asking for basic information like the
date, time and location. Then you simply need to aim the telescope to
any three bright celestial objects in the sky. Since Sky Align requires no
knowledge of the night sky, it is not necessary to know the name of the
stars at which you are aiming. You may even select a planet or the Moon.
The SkyExpedition is then ready to start fi nding and tracking any of the
objects in its 4,000+ object database. Before the telescope is ready to be
aligned, it should be set up in an outside location with all accessories
(eyepiece, diagonal and fi nderscope) attached and lens cover removed as
described in the Assembly section of the manual. To begin Sky Align:

FIGURE 3-1

THE

SkyExpEdition HAND CONTROL

6

1. Power on the SkyExpedition by flipping the switch located
on the side of the base, to the “on” position. Once turned
on the hand control display will say LCM Ready. Press
ENTER to choose Sky Align. Pressing the ALIGN key will
bypass the other alignment options and the scrolling text and
automatically begins Sky Align.

2. Once Sky Align has been selected, the hand control will
display “Enter if OK”, “Undo to edit” and “Saved Site.” The
bottom line of the LCD will display either the current time
or the time when you last used the telescope. Since this is
your first time using the SkyExpedition, press UNDO to enter
current time/site information.

The hand control display will then ask for the following information:

Location — The hand control will display a list of cities to

choose from. Choose the city from the database that is closest
to your current observing site. The city you choose will be
remembered in the hand controls memory so that it will be
automatically displayed the next time an alignment is done.
Alternatively, if you know the exact longitude and latitude of your
observing site, it can be entered directly into the hand control
and remembered for future use as well. To choose a location city:

• Use the Up and Down scroll keys to choose between City

Database and Custom Site. City Database will allow you to
select the closest city to your observing site from a list of
either international or U.S. location. Custom Site allows you to
enter the exact longitude and latitude of your observing site.
Select City Database and press ENTER.

• The hand control will allow you to choose from either U.S. or

international locations. For a listing of U.S. locations by state
and then by city, press ENTER while United States is
displayed. For international locations, use the Up or Down
scroll key to select International and press ENTER.

• Use the Up and Down Scroll buttons to choose your current

state (or country if International locations was selected) from
the alphabetical listing and press ENTER.

• Use the Up and Down Scroll buttons to choose the closest city

to your location from the displayed list and press ENTER.

Time — Enter the current time for your area. You can enter

either the local time (i.e. 8:00), or you can enter military time
(i.e. 20:00).

• Select PM or AM. If military time was entered, the hand

control will bypass this step.

• Choose between Standard time or Daylight Savings time.

Use the Up and Down scroll buttons (10) to toggle
between options.

• Select the time zone that you are observing from. Again, use

the Up and Down buttons (10) to scroll through the choices.
For time zone information, refer to the Time Zone map in the
appendix of this manual.

Date — Enter the month, day and year of your observing

session. The display will read: mm/dd/yy.

• If the wrong information has been input into the hand control,

the UNDO button will act as a backspace allowing the user to
re-enter information.

• The next time that your telescope is aligned, the hand control

will automatically display the last location (either a city or
longitude/latitude) that was entered. Press ENTER to accept
these parameters if they still apply. Pressing the UNDO button
will allow you to go back and select a new city location or
longitude/latitude.

3. Use the arrow buttons on the hand control to slew (move)
the telescope towards any bright celestial object in the sky.
Align the object with the red dot of the finderscope and
press ENTER.

4. If the finderscope has been properly aligned with the
telescope tube, the alignment star should now be visible
inside the field of view of the eyepiece. The hand control will

7

ask that you center the bright alignment star in the center of
the eyepiece and press the ALIGN button. This will accept the
star as the first alignment position. (There is no need to adjust
the slewing rate of the motors after each alignment step. The
SkyExpedition automatically selects the best slewing rate for
aligning objects in both the finderscope and the eyepiece).

5. For the second alignment object, choose a bright star or
planet as far as possible from the first alignment object.
Once again use the arrow button to center the object in the
finderscope and press ENTER. Then once centered in the
eyepiece press the ALIGN button.

6. Repeat the process for the third alignment star. When the
telescope has been aligned to the final stars, the display will
read “Match Confirmed.” Press UNDO to display the
names of the three bright objects you aligned to, or press
ENTER to accept these three objects for alignment. You are
now ready to find your first object.

Tips for Using Sky Align

Remember the following alignment guidelines to make
using Sky Align as simple and accurate as possible.

• Be sure to level the tripod before you begin alignment.

The time/site information along with a level tripod will
help the telescope better predict the available bright
stars and planets that are above the horizon.

• Remember to select alignment stars that are as far

apart in the sky as possible. For best results make sure
that the third alignment star does not lie in a straight
line between the first two stars. This may result in a
failed alignment.

• Don’t worry about confusing planets for stars when

selecting alignment objects. SkyAlign works with the
four brightest planets (Venus, Jupiter, Saturn and Mars)
as well as the Moon. In addition to the planets, the hand
control has over 80 bright alignment stars to choose
from (down to 2.5 magnitude).

• Rarely SkyAlign will not be able to determine what

three alignment objects were centered. This sometime

happens when a bright planet or the Moon passes near
one of the brighter stars. In situations like these, it is

best to try to avoid aligning to either object if possible.

• Be sure to center the objects with the same final

movements as the direction of the GoTo Approach. For
example, if the scope normally finishes a GoTo with the
front of the scope moving right and up, you should center
all three alignment objects in the eyepiece using the
right and up arrow buttons (the up/down arrows reverse
at slew rates of 6 or lower). Approaching the star from
this direction when looking through the eyepiece will
eliminate much of the backlash between the gears and
assure the most accurate alignment possible.

Auto Two-Star Align

As with Sky Align, Auto Two-Star Align requires you to enter
all the necessary time/site information as before. Once this
information is entered, the hand control will prompt you
to select and point the telescope at one known star in the
sky. The SkyExpedition now has all the information it needs
to automatically choose a second star that will assure the
best possible alignment. Once selected, the telescope will
automatically slew to that second alignment star to complete
the alignment. With the SkyExpedition set up outside with all
accessories attached and the tripod leveled, follow the steps
below to align the telescope:

1. Once the SkyExpedition is powered on, Press ENTER to
begin alignment.

2. Use the Up and Down scroll keys (10) to select Auto Two-Star
Align and press ENTER.

3. The hand control will display the last time and location

information that was entered into the hand control. Use the Up and
Down buttons to scroll through the information. Press ENTER to accept
the current information or press UNDO to manually edit the information
(see Sky Align section for detailed instruction on entering time/site
information).

4. The display will now prompt you to select a bright star from the
displayed list on the hand control. Use Up and Down buttons (6 and 9 on
the keypad) to scroll to the desired star and then press ENTER.

5. Use the arrow buttons to slew the telescope to the star you selected.
Center the star in the finderscope and press ENTER. Finally, center the
star in the eyepiece and press ALIGN.

6. Based on this information, the SkyExpedition will automatically display
the most suitable second alignment star that is above the horizon. Press
ENTER to automatically slew the telescope to the displayed star. If for
some reason you do not wish to select this star (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 buttons to manually select any star you

wish from the entire list of available stars.

Once finished slewing, the display will ask you to use the arrow buttons to
align the selected star with the red dot of the finderscope. Once centered in
the finder, press ENTER. The display will then instruct you to center the star
in the field of view of the eyepiece. When the star is centered, press ALIGN to
accept this star as your second alignment star. When the telescope has been
aligned to both stars the display will read Align Success, and you are
now ready to find your first object.

Two Star Alignment

With the two-star alignment method, the SkyExpedition requires the user
to know the positions of two bright stars in order to accurately align the
telescope with the sky and begin finding objects. Here is an overview of the
two-star alignment procedure:

1. Once the SkyExpedition is powered on, use the Up and Down scroll keys
(10) to select Two-Star Align, and press ENTER.

2. Press ENTER to accept the time/site information displayed on the
display, or press UNDO to enter new information.

3. The SELECT STAR 1 message will appear in the top row of the display.
Use the Up and Down scroll keys (10) to select the star you wish to use
for the first alignment star.
Press ENTER.

4. The SkyExpedition then asks you to center in the eyepiece the alignment
star you selected. Use the direction arrow buttons to slew the telescope
to the alignment star and carefully center the star in the finderscope.
Press ENTER when centered.

5. Then, center the star in the eyepiece and press ALIGN.

In order to accurately center the alignment star in the eyepiece, you
may wish to decrease the slew rate of the motors for fine centering.
This is done by pressing the RATE key (11) on the hand controller then
selecting the number that corresponds to the speed you desire. (9 =
fastest, 1 = slowest).

6. The SkyExpedition will then ask you to select and center a second
alignment star and press the ALIGN key. It is best to choose alignment
stars that are a good distance away from one another. Stars that are
at least 40º to 60º apart from each other will give you a more accurate
alignment than stars that are close to each other.

Once the second star alignment is completed properly, the display will read
Align Successful, and you should hear the tracking motors turn­on and begin to track.

to be used to accurately locate small or faint deep-sky objects or to track
objects accurately for photography.

To use One-Star Align:

1. Select One-Star Align from the alignment options.

2. Press ENTER to accept the time/site information displayed on the
display, or press UNDO to enter new information.

3. The SELECT STAR 1 message will appear in the top row of the display.
Use the Up and Down scroll keys (10) to select the star you wish to use
for the first alignment star.
Press ENTER.

4. The SkyExpedition then asks you to center in the eyepiece the alignment
star you selected. Use the direction arrow buttons to slew the telescope
to the alignment star and carefully center the star in the finderscope.
Press ENTER when centered.

5. Then, center the star in the eyepiece and press ALIGN.

6. Once in position, the SkyExpedition will model the sky based on this
information and display Align Successful.

Note: Once a One-Star Alignment has been done, you can use
the Re-alignment feature (later in this section) to improve your
telescope’s pointing accuracy.

Solar System Align

Solar System Align is designed to provide excellent tracking and GoTo
performance by using solar system objects (Sun, Moon and planets) to
align the telescope with the sky. Solar System Align is a great way to align
your telescope for daytime viewing as well as a quick way to align the
telescope for night time observing.

1. Select Solar System Align from the alignment options.

2. Press ENTER to accept the time/site information displayed on the
display, or press UNDO to enter new information.

3. The SELECT OBJECT message will appear in the top row of the display.
Use the Up and Down scroll keys (10) to select the daytime object
(planet, Moon or Sun) you wish to align. Press ENTER.

4. The SkyExpedition then asks you to center in the eyepiece the
alignment object you selected. Use the direction arrow buttons to slew
the telescope to the alignment object and carefully center it in the
finderscope. Press ENTER when centered.

5. Then, center the object in the eyepiece and press ALIGN.

Once in position, the SkyExpedition will model the sky based on this
information and display Align Successful.

Tips for Using Solar System Align

• For safety purposes, the Sun will not be displayed in any of the hand

control’s customer object lists unless it is enabled from the Utilities
Menu. To allow the Sun to be displayed on the hand control, do the
following:

1. Press the UNDO button until the display reads “LCM Ready”

2. Press the MENU button and use the Up and Down keys to select the

Utilities Menu. Press ENTER.

3. Use the UP and Down keys to select Sun Menu and press ENTER.

4. Press ENTER again to allow the Sun to appear on the hand control

display.

The Sun can be removed from the display by using the same
procedure as above.

To improve the telescope pointing accuracy, you can use the Re-Align
feature as described below.

One-Star Align

One-Star Align requires you to input all the same information as you
would for the Two-Star Align procedure. However, instead of slewing to
two alignment stars for centering and alignment, the SkyExpedition uses
only one star to model the sky based on the information given. This will
allow you to roughly slew to the coordinates of bright objects like the Moon
and planets and gives the SkyExpedition the information needed to track
objects in altazimuth in any part of the sky. One-Star Align is not meant

Re-Alignment

The SkyExpedition has a re-alignment feature which allows you to replace
either of the original alignment stars with a new star or celestial object.
This can be useful in several situations:

• If you are observing over a period of a few hours, you may notice

that your original two alignment stars have drifted towards the west
considerably. (Remember that the stars are moving at a rate of 15º every
hour). Aligning on a new star that is in the eastern part of the sky will

8

improve your pointing accuracy, especially on objects in that
part of the sky.

• If you have aligned your telescope using the One-star align
method, you can use re-align to align to an additional object
in the sky. This will improve the pointing accuracy of your
telescope without having to re-enter addition information.

To replace an existing alignment star with a new alignment star:

1. Select the desired star (or object) from the database and slew

to it.

2. Carefully center the object in the eyepiece.

3. Once centered, press the UNDO button until you are at the

main menu.

4. With LCM Ready displayed, press the ALIGN key on the

hand control.

5. The display will then ask you which alignment star you want

to replace.

6. Use the UP and Down scroll keys to select the alignment star

to be replaced, and press ENTER. It is usually best to replace
the star closest to the new object. This will space out your
alignment stars across the sky. If you have used one of the
single object alignment methods then it is always best to
replace the object that is “unassigned” with an actual object.

7. Press ALIGN to make the change.

OBJECT CATALOG

Selecting an Object (SAO)

Now that the telescope is properly aligned, you can choose an
object from any of the catalogs in the SkyExpedition’s database.
The hand control has a key designated for each of the catalogs
in its database. There are two ways to select objects from the
database; scrolling through the named object lists and entering
object numbers:

• Pressing the LIST key on the hand control will access all
objects in the database that have common names or types.
Each list is broken down into the following categories: Named
Stars, Named Object, Double Stars, Variable Stars and
Asterisms. Selecting any one of these options will display an
alpha-numeric listing of the objects under that list. Pressing
the Up and Down keys (10) allows you to scroll through the
catalog to the desired object.

• Pressing any of the catalog keys (M, CALD, NGC, or STAR)
will display a blinking cursor below the name of the catalog
chosen. Use the numeric key pad to enter the number of any
object within these standardized catalogs. For example, to find
the Orion Nebula, press the “M” key and enter “042.”

• Pressing the PLANET button will allow you to use the UP
and DOWN arrow keys to scroll through and select the eight
planets as well as the Moon.

When scrolling through a long list of objects, holding down either
the Up or Down key will allow you to scroll through the catalog at
a rapid speed.

When entering the number for an SAO star, you are only required
to enter the first four digits of the object’s six digit SAO number.
Once the first four digits are entered, the hand control will
automatically list all the available SAO objects beginning with
those numbers. This allows you to scroll through only the SAO
stars in the database. For example, in searching for the SAO star
40186 (Capella), the first four digits would be “0401”. Entering
this number will display the closest match from the SAO stars
available in the database. From there you can scroll down the list
and select the desired object.

Slewing to an Object

Once the desired object is displayed on the hand control screen,
you have two options:

• Press the INFO Key. This will give you useful information
about the selected object such as magnitude, constellation

and fascinating facts about many of the objects.

• Press the ENTER Key. This will automatically slew the

telescope to the coordinates of the object. While the telescope
is slewing to the object, the user can still access many of the
hand control functions (such as displaying information about
the object).

If you slew to an object that is below the horizon,
SkyExpedition will notify you by displaying a message
reminding you that you have selected an object outside
of your slew limits (see Slew Limits in the Scope Setup
section of the manual). Press UNDO to go back and select
a new object. Press ENTER to ignore the message and
continue the slew. The LCM hand control will only display
objects that are below the horizon if the Filter Limits are
set below 0º in altitude. See Filter Limits in the Utility
Feature section of the manual for more information on
setting the filter limits.

Caution: Never slew the telescope when someone is looking

into the eyepiece. The telescope can move at fast slew
speeds and may hit an observer in the eye.

Object information can be obtained without having to do a star
alignment. After the telescope is powered on, pressing any of
the catalog keys allows you to scroll through object lists or enter
catalog numbers and view the information about the object as
described above.

Finding Planets

The LCM can locate all 8 of our solar systems planets, plus Pluto,
the Sun and Moon. However, the hand control will only display
the solar system objects that are above the horizon (or within
its filter limits). To locate the planets, press the PLANET key on
the hand control. The hand control will display all solar system
objects that are above the horizon:

• Use the UP and DOWN keys to select the planet that you wish
to observe.

• Press INFO to access information on the displayed planet.

• Press ENTER to slew to the displayed planet.

To allow the Sun to be displayed as an option in the database, see

Sun Menu in the Utilities section of the manual.

Tour Mode

The SkyExpedition includes a tour feature which automatically
allows the user to choose from a list of interesting objects based
on the date and time in which you are observing. The automatic
tour will display only those objects that are within your set filter
limits. To activate the Tour mode, press the TOUR key on the
hand control. The SkyExpedition will display the best objects to
observe that are currently in the sky.

• To see information and data about the displayed object, press
the INFO key.

• To slew to the object displayed, press ENTER.

• To see the next tour object, press the Down key.

Constellation Tour

In addition to the Tour Mode, the SkyExpedition telescope
has a Constellation Tour that allows the user to take a tour
of all the best objects within a particular constellation.
Selecting Constellation from the LIST menu will display all the
constellation names that are above the user defined horizon
(filter limits). Once a constellation is selected, you can choose
from any of the database object catalogs to produce a list of all
the available objects in that constellation.

• To see information and data about the displayed object, press
the INFO key.

• To slew to the object displayed, press ENTER.

• To see the next tour object, press the Up key.

9

DIRECTION BUTTONS

The SkyExpedition has four direction buttons in the center of the hand
control which controls the telescope motion in altitude (up and down) and
azimuth (left and right). The telescope can be controlled at nine different
speed rates.

NiNe AvAilAble Slew SpeedS

1 = 2x 4 = 16x 7 = 1º / sec

2 = 4x 5 = 32x 8 = 2º / sec

3 = 8x 6 = 64x 9 = 3º / sec

Rate Button

Pressing the RATE key (11) allows you to instantly change the speed rate of
the motors from high speed slew rate to precise guiding rate or anywhere
in between. Each rate corresponds to a number on the hand controller
key pad. The number 9 is the fastest rate (approximately 3º per second,
depending on power source) and is used for slewing between objects and
locating alignment stars. The number 1 on the hand control is the slowest
rate (2x sidereal) and can be used for accurate centering of objects in the
eyepiece. To change the speed rate of the motors:

• Press the RATE key on the hand control. The LCD will display the current
speed rate.

• Press the number on the hand control that corresponds to the
desired speed.

The hand control has a “double button” feature that allows you to instantly
speed up the motors without having to choose a speed rate. To use this
feature, simply press the arrow button that corresponds to the direction
that you want to move the telescope. While holding that button down,
press the opposite directional button. This will increase the speed to the
maximum slew rate.

SET UP PROCEDURES

The SkyExpedition contains many user defined setup functions designed to
give the user control over the telescope’s many advanced features. All of
the set up and utility features can be accessed by pressing the MENU key
and scrolling through the options:

Tracking Mode — Once the SkyExpedition is aligned, the tracking

motors will automatically turn on and begin tracking the sky. However,
the tracking can be turned off for terrestrial use:

Alt-Az: This is the default tracking rate and is used when the

telescope has been properly aligned.

EQ North: Used to track the sky when the telescope is polar

aligned using an equatorial wedge in the Northern Hemisphere.

EQ South: Used to track the sky when the telescope is polar

aligned using an equatorial wedge in the Southern Hemisphere.

Off: When using the telescope for terrestrial (land) observation

the tracking can be turned off so that the telescope never moves.

Note: EQ North and EQ South tracking modes are only needed with
telescopes that can be polar aligned. The LCM series are exclusively
Alt-Az mounted telescopes and do not require equatorial tracking.

Tracking Rate — In addition to being able to move the telescope with the

hand control buttons, the SkyExpedition will continually track a celestial
object as it moves across the night sky. The tracking rate can be changed
depending on what type of object is being observed:

Sidereal: This rate compensates for the rotation of the earth

by moving the telescope at the same rate as the rotation of the
earth, but in the opposite direction. When tracking in Alt-Az
mode, the telescope must make corrections in both altitude
and azimuth.

Lunar: Used for tracking the Moon when observing the lunar

landscape.

Solar: Used for tracking the Sun when solar observing using a

proper solar filter.

View Time-Site — View Time-Site will display the last saved time and

longitude/latitude entered in the hand control.

User Defined Objects — The SkyExpedition can store up to 50 different

user defined objects in its memory. The objects can be daytime land objects
or an interesting celestial object that you discover that is not included in
the regular database. There are several ways to save an object to memory
depending on what type of object it is:

Save Sky Object: The SkyExpedition stores celestial objects

to its database by saving its right ascension and declination in
the sky. This way the same object can be found each time the
telescope is aligned. Once a desired object is centered in the
eyepiece, simply scroll to the “Save Sky Obj” command
and press ENTER. The display will ask you to enter a number
between 1-25 to identify the object. Press ENTER again to save
this object to the database.

Save Database (Db) Object: This feature allows you to

create your own custom tour of database objects by allowing
you to record the current position of the telescope and save the
name of the object by selecting it from any one of the database
catalogs. These objects then can be accessed by selecting GoTo

Sky Object.

Save Land Object: The SkyExpedition can also be used as

a spotting scope on terrestrial objects. Fixed land objects can
be stored by saving their altitude and azimuth relative to the
location of the telescope at the time of observing. Since these
objects are relative to the location of the telescope, they are only
valid for that exact location. To save land objects, once again
center the desired object in the eyepiece. Scroll down to the
“Save Land Obj” command and press ENTER. The display
will ask you to enter a number between 1-25 to identify the
object. Press ENTER again to save this object to the database.

Enter R.A. - Dec: You can also store a specific set of

coordinates for an object just by entering the R.A. and declination
for that object. Scroll to the “Enter RA-DEC” command and
press ENTER. The display will then ask you to enter first the R.A.
and then the declination of the desired object.

GoTo Ob jec t: To go to any of the user defined objects stored

in the database, scroll down to either GoTo Sky Obj or
GoTo Land Obj and enter the number of the object you wish

to select and press ENTER. The hand control will automatically
retrieve and display the coordinates before slewing to the object.

To replace the contents of any of the user defined objects, simply save a
new object using one of the existing identification numbers; SkyExpedition
will replace the previous user defined object with the current one.

Get R.A./DEC. — Displays the right ascension and declination for the

current position of the telescope.

GoTo R.A./ DEC. — Allows you to input a specific R.A. and declination

and slew to it.

Identify

Identify Mode will search any of the SkyExpedition database catalogs
or lists and display the name and offset distances to the nearest
matching objects. This feature can serve two purposes. First, it can be
used to identify an unknown object in the field of view of your eyepiece.
Additionally, Identify Mode can be used to find other celestial objects that
are close to the objects you are currently observing. For example, if your
telescope is pointed at the brightest star in the constellation Lyra, choosing
Identify and then searching the Named Star catalog will no doubt return
the star Vega as the star you are observing. However, by selecting Identify
and searching by the Named Object or Messier catalogs, the hand control
will let you know that the Ring Nebula (M57) is approximately 6° from your
current position. Searching the Double Star catalog will reveal that Epsilon
Lyrae is only 1° away from Vega. To use the Identify feature:

• Press the Menu button and select the Identify option.

• Use the Up/Down scroll keys to select the catalog that you would like to search.

10

• Press ENTER to begin the search.

Note: Some of the databases contain thousands of objects,
and can therefore take a minute or two to return the
closest object.

SCOPE SETUP FEATURES

Setup Time-Site — Allows the user to customize the hand

control display by changing time and location parameters (such
as time zone and daylight savings).

Anti-backlash — All mechanical gears have a certain amount

of backlash or play between the gears. This play is evident
by how long it takes for a star to move in the eyepiece when
the hand control arrow buttons are pressed (especially when
changing directions). The SkyExpedition’s anti-backlash features
allows the user to compensate for backlash by inputting a value
which quickly rewinds the motors just enough to eliminate
the play between gears. The amount of compensation needed
depends on the slewing rate selected; the slower the slewing
rate the longer it will take for the star to appear to move in the
eyepiece. Therefore, the anti-backlash compensation will have
to be set higher. You will need to experiment with different
values; a value between 20 and 50 is usually best for most
visual observing, whereas a higher value may be necessary
for photographic guiding. Positive backlash compensation is
applied when the mount changes its direction of movement
from backwards to forwards. Similarly, negative backlash
compensation is applied when the mount changes its direction
of movement from forwards to backwards. When tracking is
enabled, the mount will be moving in one or both axes in either
the positive or negative direction, so backlash compensation will
always be applied when a direction button is released and the
direction moved is opposite to the direction of travel.

To set the anti-backlash value, scroll down to the anti-backlash
option and press ENTER. Enter a value from 0-100 for both azimuth
and altitude directions and press ENTER after each one to save
these values. The SkyExpedition will remember these values and
use them each time it is turned on until they are changed.

Slew Limits — Sets the limits in altitude that the telescope

can slew without displaying a warning message. The slew limits
prevent the telescope tube from slewing to an object below the
horizon or slewing to an object that is high enough that the tube
might hit one of the tripod legs. However, the slew limits can be
customized depending on your needs. For example, if you would
like to slew to an object that is close to the zenith and are certain
that the tube will not hit the tripod legs, you can set the slew
limits to 90º in altitude. This will allow the telescope to slew to
any object above the horizon without warning.

Filter Limits — When an alignment is complete, the

SkyExpedition automatically knows which celestial objects
are above the horizon. As a result, when scrolling through the
database lists (or selecting the Tour function), the SkyExpedition
hand control will display only those objects that are known to be
above the horizon when you are observing. You can customize the
object database by selecting altitude limits that are appropriate
for your location and situation. For example, if you are observing
from a mountainous location where the horizon is partially
obscured, you can set your minimum altitude limit to read +20º.
This will make sure that the hand control only displays objects
that are higher in altitude than 20º.

If you want to explore the entire object database, set the
maximum altitude limit to 90º and the minimum limit to
–90º. This will display every object in the database lists
regardless of whether it is visible in the sky from your
location or not.

Direction Buttons — The direction a star moves in the

eyepiece varies depending on the accessories being used. This
can create confusion when guiding on a star using an off-axis
guider versus a straight through guide scope. To compensate
for this, the direction of the drive control keys can be changed.
To reverse the button logic of the hand control, press the MENU

11

button and select Direction Buttons from the Utilities menu. Use
the Up/Down arrow keys (10) to select either the Azimuth buttons
(left and right) or Altitude buttons (up and down) and press
ENTER. Pressing ENTER again will reverse the direction of the
hand control buttons from their current state. Direction Buttons
will only change the eyepiece rates (rate 1-6) and will not affect
the slew rates (rate 7-9).

GoTo Approach — lets the user define the direction that the

telescope will approach when slewing to an object. This allows
the user the ability to minimize the effects of backlash For
example, if your telescope is back heavy from using heavy optical
or photographic accessories attached to the back, you would want
to set your altitude approach to the negative direction. This would
ensure that the telescope always approaches an object from the
opposite direction as the load pulling on the scope.

To change the GoTo approach direction, simply choose GoTo
Approach from the Scope Setup menu, select either Altitude or
Azimuth approach, choose positive or negative and
press ENTER.

Cord Wrap — Cord wrap safeguards against the telescope

slewing more than 360º in azimuth and wrapping accessory
cables around the base of the telescope. This is useful any time
that the telescope is powered using an external power supply. By
default, the cord wrap feature is turned off when the telescope is
aligned in altazimuth and turn on when aligned
on a wedge.

UTILITY FEATURES

Scrolling through the MENU options will also provide access
to several advanced utility functions such as anti-backlash
compensation and slew limits.

GPS On/Off — This feature is only available when using your

telescope in conjunction with the optional CN 16 GPS accessory.
Allows you to turn off the GPS module. If you want to use the
SkyExpedition database to find the coordinates of a celestial object
for a future date you would need to turn the GPS module off in
order to manually enter a date and time other than the present.

Light Control — This feature allows you to turn off both the

red key pad light and LCD display for daytime use to conserve
power and to help preserve your night vision.

Factory Setting — Returns the SkyExpedition hand control

to its original factory setting. Parameters such as backlash
compensation values, initial date and time, longitude/latitude
along with slew and filter limits will be reset. However, stored
parameters such as PEC and user defined objects will remain
saved even when Factory Settings is selected. The hand control
will ask you to press the “0” key before returning to the factory
default setting.

Version — Selecting this option will allow you to see the

current version number of the hand control and motor control
software. The first set of numbers indicate the hand control
software version. For the motor control, the hand control will
display two sets of numbers; the first numbers are for azimuth
and the second set are for altitude.

Get Axis Position — Displays the relative altitude and

azimuth for the current position of the telescope.

GoTo Axis Position — Allows you to enter a specific altitude

and azimuth position and slew to it.

Hibernate — Hibernate allows the SkyExpedition to be

completely powered down and still retain its alignment when
turned back on. This not only saves power, but is ideal for those
that have their telescopes permanently mounted or leave their
telescope in one location for long periods of time. To place your
telescope in Hibernate mode:

1. Select Hibernate from the Utility Menu.

2. Move the telescope to a desire position and press ENTER.

3. Power off the telescope. Remember to never move your
telescope manually while in Hibernate mode.

Once the telescope is powered on again, the display will read Wake Up.
After pressing Enter, you have the option of scrolling through the time/site
information to confirm the current setting. Press ENTER to wake up the
telescope.

Pressing UNDO at the Wake Up screen allows you to explore many
of the features of the hand control without waking the telescope
up from hibernate mode. To wake up the telescope after UNDO has
been pressed, select Hibernate from the Utility menu and press
ENTER. Do not use the direction buttons to move the telescope
while in hibernate mode.

Sun Menu

For safety purposes the Sun will not be displayed as a database object
unless it is first enabled. To enable the Sun, go to the Sun Menu and press
ENTER. The Sun will now be displayed in the Planets catalog and can
be used as an alignment object when using the Solar System Alignment
method. To remove the Sun from displaying on the hand control, once again
select the Sun Menu from the Utilities Menu and press ENTER.

Scrolling Menu

This menu allows you to change the rate of speed that the text scrolls
across the hand control display.

• Press the Up (number 6) button to increase the speed of
the text.

• Press the Down (number 9) button to decrease the speed
of the text.

Calibrate GoTo

GoTo Calibration is a useful tool when attaching heavy visual or
photographic accessories to the telescope. GoTo Calibration calculates
the amount of distance and time it takes for the mount to complete its
final slow GoTo when slewing to an object. Changing the balance of the
telescope can prolong the time it takes to complete the final slew. GoTo
Calibration takes into account any slight imbalances and changes the final
GoTo distance to compensate.

Set Mount Position

The Set Mount Position menu can be used to recover an alignment in cases
where the telescope or tripod has been manually moved. For instance,
you might use this feature if you needed to adjust the level of the tripod by
raising or lowering the tripod legs. After the mount has been moved, simply
slew to a bright star and center it up in the eyepiece, then select Set Mount
Position from the Utilities menu. Since the telescope has been moved, the
pointing accuracy will be diminished. But now you can slew to a new set of
alignment stars and replace any of the original alignment stars with the
new stars. This will help you to avoid having to start the alignment process
over from the beginning.

12

SkyexpeditioN READY

SkyExpedition

HAND CONTROL MENU TREE:

MENU TREE SHOWING THE SUB-MENUS ASSOCIATED WITH THE PRIMARY COMMAND FUNCTIONS

13

APPENDIX A - TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

OPTICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Design Refractor

Aperture 60 mm

Focal Length 700 mm

F/ratio of the Optical System 12

Optical Coatings Fully Coated

Highest Useful Magnification 142x

Resolution: Rayleigh Criterion 2.31 arc seconds
Dawes Limit 1.93 arc seconds

ELECTRONIC SPECIFICATIONS

Input Voltage 12 V DC Nominal

Batteries Required 8 AA Alkaline

Power Supply
Requirements 12 VDC-750 mA (Tip positive)

Light Gathering Power 73x unaided eye

Field of View: Standard Eyepiece 1.5º

Linear Field of View (at 1000 yds) 79 feet

Eyepiece Magnification 28x (25 mm)
78x (9 mm)

Optical Tube Length 29 inches

MECHANICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Motor: Type / Resolution DC Servo motors with
encoders, both axes
/ 0.691 arc seconds

Slew speeds Nine slew speeds: 3º /sec, 2º /sec,
1º/sec, 64x, 32x, 16x, 8x, 4x, 2x

Hand Control Double line, 16 character
Liquid Crystal Display;
19 fiber optic backlit LED buttons

SOFTWARE SPECIFICATIONS

Ports RS-232 communication port on hand control

Tracking Rates Sidereal, Solar and Lunar

Tracking Modes Alt-Az, EQ North & EQ South

Alignment Procedures Sky Align, Auto Two-Star, Two-Star, One-Star, Solar System Align

Database 99 user defined programmable objects;
Expanded information on over 100 objects

14

APPENDIX B - GLOSSARY OF TERMS

A –

Absolute Magnitude The apparent magnitude that a star

magnitude would have if it were observed
from a standard distance of 10 parsecs, or

32.6 light years. The absolute magnitude of
the Sun is 4.8. at a distance of 10 parsecs, it
would just be visible on Earth on a clear
moonless night away from surface light.

Airy disk The apparent size of a star’s disk produced

even by a perfect optical system. Since
the star can never be focused perfectly, 84
per cent of the light will concentrate into a
single disk, and 16 per cent into a system of
surrounding rings.

Alt–Azimuth A telescope mounting using two
Mounting independent rotation axes allowing

movement of the instrument in Altitude
and Azimuth.

Altitude In astronomy, the altitude of a celestial

object is its Angular Distance above or below
the celestial horizon.

Aperture The diameter of a telescope’s primary lens

or mirror; the larger the aperture, the
greater the telescope’s light–gathering
power.

Apparent A measure of the relative brightness of a
Magnitude star or other celestial object as perceived

by an observer on Earth.

Arc minute A unit of angular size equal to 1/60 of

a degree.

Arc second A unit of angular size equal to 1/3,600 of a

degree (or 1/60 of an arc minute).

Asterism A small unofficial grouping of stars in the

night sky.

Asteroid A small, rocky body that orbits a star.

Astrology The pseudoscientific belief that the positions

of stars and planets exert an influence on
human affairs; astrology has nothing in
common with astronomy.

Astronomical The distance between the Earth and the Sun.
unit (AU) It is equal to 149,597,900 km., usually

rounded off to 150,000,000 km.

Aurora The emission of light when charged

particles from the solar wind slams into and
excites atoms and molecules in a planet’s
upper atmosphere.

Azimuth The angular distance of an object eastwards

along the horizon, measured from due
north, between the astronomical meridian
(the vertical line passing through the center
of the sky and the north and south points on
the horizon) and the vertical line containing
the celestial body whose position is to
be measured.

B –

Binary Stars Binary (Double) stars are pairs of stars

that, because of their mutual gravitational
attraction, orbit around a common center
of mass. If a group of three or more stars
revolve around one another, it is called
a multiple system. It is believed that
approximately 50 percent of all stars belong
to binary or multiple systems. Systems with
individual components that can be seen
separately by a telescope are called visual

C –

Celestial The projection of the Earth’s equator
Equator on to the celestial sphere. It divides the sky

into two equal hemispheres.

Celestial pole The imaginary projection of Earth’s

Celestial An imaginary sphere surrounding the Earth,
Sphere concentric with the Earth’s center.

Collimation The act of putting a telescope’s optics into

D –

Declination The angular distance of a celestial body
(DEC) north or south of the celestial equator. It

may be said to correspond to latitude on the
surface of the Earth.

E –

Ecliptic The projection of the Earth’s orbit on to the

Equatorial Mount A telescope mounting in which the strument

mount is set upon an axis which is parallel
to the axis of the Earth; the angle of the axis
must be equal to the observer’s latitude.

F –

Focal length The distance between a lens (or mirror) and

G –

GoTo Term used to refer to a computerized

J –

Jovian Planets Any of the four gas giant planets that are

K –

Kuiper Belt A region beyond the orbit of Neptune

L –

Light–Year (ly) A light–year is the distance light traverses in

M –

Magnitude Magnitude is a measure of the brightness

15

binaries or visual multiples. The nearest
“star” to our solar system, Alpha Centauri,
is actually our nearest example of a multiple
star system, it consists of three stars, two
very similar to our Sun and one dim, small,
red star orbiting around one another.

rotational axis north or south pole onto the
celestial sphere.

perfect alignment.

celestial sphere. It may also be defined as
“the apparent yearly path of the Sun against
the stars.”

the point at which the image of an object at
infinity is brought to focus. The focal length
divided by the aperture of the mirror or lens
is termed the focal ratio.

telescope or to the act of slewing (moving) a
computerized telescope.

at a greater distance from the sun than the
terrestrial planets.

extending to about 1000 AU which is a
source of many short period comets.

a vacuum in one year at the speed of 186,000
mi/sec. (299,792 km/sec.) With 31,557,600
seconds in a year, the light–year equals a
distance of 5.88 trillion miles (9.46 trillion km).

of a celestial body. The brightest stars are assigned
magnitude 1 and those increasingly fainter from
2 down to magnitude 5. The faintest star that can
be seen without a telescope is about magnitude 6.
Each magnitude step corresponds to a ratio of 2.5 in
brightness. Thus a star of magnitude 1 is 2.5 times
brighter than a star of magnitude 2, and 100 times
brighter than a magnitude 5 star. The brightest star,
Sirius, has an apparent magnitude of –1.6, the full
moon is –12.7, and the Sun’s brightness, expressed
on a magnitude scale, is –26.78. The zero point of the
apparent magnitude scale is arbitrary.

Meridian A reference line in the sky that starts at the North

celestial pole and ends at the South celestial pole and
passes through the zenith. If you are facing South,
the meridian starts from your Southern horizon and
passes directly overhead to the North celestial pole.

Messier A French astronomer in the late 1700s who was

primarily looking for comets. Comets are hazy diffuse
objects and so Messier cataloged objects that were not
comets to help his search. This catalog became the
Messier Catalog, M1 through M110.

N –

Nebula Interstellar cloud of gas and dust. Also

refers to any celestial object that has a
cloudy appearance.

North Celestial The point in the Northern hemisphere around
Pole which all the stars appear to rotate. This is

caused by the fact that the Earth is rotating on
an axis that passes through the North and
South celestial poles. The star Polaris lies less
than a degree from this point and is therefore
referred to as the “Pole Star”.

Nova Although Latin for “new” it denotes a star that

suddenly becomes explosively bright at the end of its
life cycle.

O –

Open Cluster One of the groupings of stars that are concentrated

along the plane of the Milky Way. Most have an
asymmetrical appearance and are loosely assembled.
They contain from a dozen to many hundreds of stars.

P –

Parallax Parallax is the difference in the apparent position of

an object against a background when viewed by an
observer from two different locations. These positions
and the actual position of the object form a triangle
from which the apex angle (the parallax) and the
distance of the object can be determined if the length
of the baseline between the observing positions is
known and the angular direction of the object from
each position at the ends of the baseline has been
measured. The traditional method in astronomy of
determining the distance to a celestial object is to
measure its parallax.

Parfocal Refers to a group of eyepieces that all require the

same distance from the focal plane of the telescope
to be in focus. This means when you focus one
parfocal eyepiece all the other parfocal eyepieces, in a
particular line of eyepieces, will be in focus.

Parsec The distance at which a star would show parallax of one

second of arc. It is equal to 3.26 light–years, 206,265
astronomical units, or 30,800,000,000,000 km. (Apart
from the Sun, no star lies within one parsec of us.)

Point Source An object which cannot be resolved into an image

because it to too far away or too small is considered a
point source. A planet is far away but it can be resolved
as a disk. Most stars cannot be resolved as disks, they
are too far away.

R –

Reflector A telescope in which the light is collected by means of

a mirror.

Resolution The minimum detectable angle an optical system can

detect. Because of diffraction, there is a limit to the
minimum angle, resolution. The larger the aperture,
the better the resolution.

Right The angular distance of a celestial
Ascension: (RA) object measured in hours, minutes, and

seconds along the Celestial Equator eastward
from the Vernal Equinox.

S –

Sidereal Rate This is the angular speed at which the Earth is

rotating. Telescope tracking motors drive the
telescope at this rate. The rate is 15 arc seconds per
second or 15 degrees per hour.

T –

Terminator The boundary line between the light and dark portion

of the moon or a planet.

U –

Universe The totality of astronomical things, events, relations

and energies capable of being described objectively.

V –

Variable Star A star whose brightness varies over time due to either

inherent properties of the star or something eclipsing
or obscuring the brightness of the star.

W –

Waning Moon The period of the moon’s cycle between

full and new, when its illuminated portion
is decreasing.

Waxing Moon The period of the moon’s cycle between

new and full, when its illuminated portion
is increasing.

Z –

Zenith The point on the Celestial Sphere directly above the

observer.

Zodiac The zodiac is the portion of the Celestial Sphere that

lies within 8 degrees on either side of the Ecliptic. The
apparent paths of the Sun, the Moon, and the planets,
with the exception of some portions of the path of
Pluto, lie within this band. Twelve divisions, or signs,
each 30 degrees in width, comprise the zodiac. These
signs coincided with the zodiacal constellations about
2,000 years ago. Because of the Precession of the
Earth’s axis, the Vernal Equinox has moved westward
by about 30 degrees since that time; the signs have
moved with it and thus no longer coincide with the
constellations.

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APPENDIX C – MAPS OF TIME ZONES

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18

SKY MAPS

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20

21

22

23

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GENERAL OBSERVING HINTS

When using any optical instrument, there are a few things to
remember to ensure you get the best possible image.

• Never look through window glass. Glass found in household
windows is optically imperfect, and as a result, may vary
in thickness from one part of a window to the next. This
inconsistency can and will affect the ability to focus your
telescope. In most cases you will not be able to achieve a truly
sharp image, while in some cases you may actually see a
double image.

• Never look across or over objects that are producing heat
waves. This includes asphalt parking lots on hot summer days
or building rooftops.

• Hazy skies, fog, and mist can also make it difficult to focus
when viewing terrestrially. The amount of detail seen under
these conditions is greatly reduced.

Note: Your telescope was designed for terrestrial observation
as well as celestial observation.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Reference material on Telescope Basics, Astronomy Basics,
Celestial Observing and Telescope Maintenance can be found on
the Celestron website at www.celestron.com/downloads.

WARRANTY

Your telescope has a Two Year Limited Warranty. For detailed
information and to register your new product, please visit

www.celestron.com.

This device complies with Part 15 of FCC Rules. Operation is subject to the following two conditions: (1) This device may not
cause harmful interference, and (2) This device must accept any interference received, including interference that may cause

undesired operation.

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