Meade TerraStar 60 User Manual

www.meade.com

MEADE INSTRUCTION MANUAL

60mm | 2.4 inch Altazimuth Refracting Telescope

TerraStar60

with Carry Bag

WARNING!

Never use a Meade®Telescope to look at the Sun!

Looking at or near the Sun will cause instant and irreversible damage to your eye. Eye damage is often painless, so there is no warning to the observer that damage has occurred until it is too late. Do not point the telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope or viewfinder as it is moving. Children should always have adult supervision while observing.

INTRODUCTION

Your telescope is an excellent beginner’s instrument, and is designed to observe objects in the sky and also on land. It can be your personal window on the universe or allow you to intimately study the behavior of nesting birds on a distant hillside.

The telescope is shipped with the following parts:

• Optical tube

• Steel tube tripod with an accessory tray

• Two 1.25 inch eyepieces: MH25mm (28X), MH9mm (78X)

• Diagonal mirror

• Red dot viewfinder with bracket

• Telescope mount with slow motion controls

• Durable carry bag for easy transport and storage

The tube has a focal length of 700mm, and its objective lens has a diameter of 60mm. The lens diameter is one of the most important pieces of information about the telescope. The size of the objective lens determines how much detail you will be able

to see in your telescope. The focal length will help later on to calculate magnification. Setting up your telescope involves these simple steps:

• Assemble your tripod

• Adjusting the tripod

• Attach the optical tube to the mount

• Attach the red dot viewfinder

• Attach the diagonal mirror and eyepiece

• Balancing the optical tube

• Align the red dot viewfinder Study the the picture on the next page and become acquainted with the parts of your telescope. Then proceed to “Assemble your Tripod.”

FIGURE 1

1. Eyepiece

2. Red dot viewfinder (see Inset A)

3. Red dot viewfinder alignment screws

(see Inset A)

4. Optical tube assembly

5. Vertical slow motion control

6. Base/tripod head

7. Tripod legs

8. Leg brace supports (See Inset C)

9. Leg brace (See Inset C)

10. Tripod leg nuts and bolts

11. Optical tube lock knobs

12. Horizontal slow motion control (See Inset B)

13. Diagonal mirror

14. Objective lens cell

15. Focuser drawtube

16. Telescope mount

17. Accessory tray (Inset C)

18. Red dot viewfinder bracket (see Inset A)

19. Adjustable sliding leg extension (see Inset C)

20. Tripod leg lock (see Inset C)

21. Dew shield/lens shade

22. Front lens cap (removed)

23. Focusing knob

Figure 1: Meade TerraStar60 Altazimuth Refracting Telescope

Inset A: Red Dot Viewfinder Assembly Inset B: Altazimuth or Azimuth Mount Inset C: Tripod Legs and Accessory Tray

(Not visible)

Inset A

Not visable (see other side)

Inset B

Inset C

Inset D

Figure 2: Carry Bag Opened with Telescope Inside

Inset D Durable carry bag

FIGURE 2

24. Accessory tray pouch

25. Tripod

26. Straps to secure tripod (2-places)

27. Optical tube assembly

28. Strap to secure front of the optical tube

29. Pouch for focuser

30. Shoulder strap with pad

31. Bag for eyepieces, red dot finder and diagonal

ASSEMBLE YOUR TRIPOD

The tripod is the basic support for your

telescope and is shipped with the tripod head and legs unattached. NNoottee:: NNuummbbeerr iinn bbrraacckkeettss,, eegg..,, [[33]],, rreeffeerr ttoo FFiigg.. 11..

1. Attach the 3 steel tripod legs [7] to the

tripod head [6] with the 3 leg locks [20] facing inward. Three 1-11/16” long bolts are provided for this purpose. Once the tripod head and legs are connected, spread the tripod legs evenly apart. ((SSEEEE FFIIGG.. 33))

2. Inside of the

Fig. 3

telescope carry bag you will find a plastic "bubble wrap" bag. Open this bag and find the leg brace [9]. Along with the leg brace you will find several other components which you will use later in the assembly of your telescope.

Attach the leg braces [9] to the leg brace

supports [8] using the three provided 11/4” long bolts and the wing nuts.

3. Place the round accessory tray into the hole in the center of the leg braces [9] and spin the tray clockwise to thread the tray into the hole. Tighten until firm.

ADJUSTING THE TRIPOD

Now that the tripod has been assembled, the tripod height can be adjusted so that you can view comfortably.

1. Spread the legs out evenly apart.

2. To set the height of the tripod, unlock the tripod leg lock knob [20].

3. Slide the leg [19] in or out to the desired length.

4. Tighten the leg lock knob [20] until firm.

3. Repeat for the other two legs.

ATTACH THE OPTICAL TUBE TO THE MOUNT

The optical tube gathers distant light which is focused in the eyepiece.

1. Remove the two lock knobs (11) from the optical tube.

2. Slide the optical tube [4] onto the mounting bracket from the front end of the mounting bracket.

3. Thread the lock knob [11] into the mounting bracket and tighten until firm.

ATTACH THE RED DOT VIEWFINDER

An eyepiece (1) has a narrow field of view.

Fig. 4

Slide the red dot viewfinder (2) into the mounting bracket as shown in Fig. 4.

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the bracket out.

ATTACH THE DIAGONAL MIRROR AND EYEPIECE

The diagonal mirror reflects the light from the optical tube to a more comfortable

Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving.

A viewfinder (2) has a wider field of view, which makes it easier to locate objects. The red dot viewfinder has a red dot to make it easier to line up more precisely with a target.

To detach the red dot viewfinder, slide

viewing position.

1. Slide the diagonal mirror (13) into the focuser drawtube(15).

2. Tighten the drawtube thumbscrew to hold the diagonal mirror securely.

3. Slide the MH 25mm eyepiece (1) into diagonal mirror (13).

4. Tighten the diagonal mirror thumbscrew to hold the eyepiece securely.

BALANCING THE OPTICAL TUBE

The telescope is designed with a bracket that will allow the user to balance the optical tube. This may be needed when heavier eyepieces or accessories are used.

1. Loosen the optical tube locks [11] so the tube will slide in the mounting bracket.

2. Balance the tube by sliding it back and forth in the bracket until you find a position where the tube remains horizontal (i.e., without tipping up or down).

3. Retighten the optical tube lock knobs to a firm feel

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movement of the optical tube seems to be too

((S

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If the horizontal and/or vertical

Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving.

Fig. 5

loose or too tight, you can adjust the amount of tension in the movement of the tube to suit your own preferences.

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ALIGN THE RED DOT VIEWFINDER

Perform the first part of this procedure during the daytime and the last step at night.

1. Point the telescope at an easy-to-find land object such as the top of a telephone pole or a distant mountain or tower. Look through the eyepiece in the diagonal mirror and turn the focuser knob (23) until the image is sharply focused. Center the object precisely in the eyepiece’s field of view.

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2. Turn on the red dot viewfinder using the switch on the side of the finder.

3. Without moving the telescope, look through the red dot viewfinder. Turn one or more of the viewfinder’s alignment screws (3) until the red dot is precisely over the same object as you centered in the eyepiece.

4. Check this alignment at night on a celestial object, such as the Moon or a bright star, and use the viewfinder’s alignment screws to make any necessary refinements.

TO MOVE THE TELESCOPE

Your telescope is altazimuth mounted.

Altazimuth is just a complicated way of

saying that your telescope moves up and down and from side to side. Other telescopes may be mounted in different ways.

1. To move the telescope to an object, simply

move the telescope tube in the horizontal and/or vertical plane until it is centered in the red dot viewfinder. The object will now be in the eyepiece of the telescope.

2. Once an object is found, you can then use

the slow motion controls [5,12] to make smooth and precise movements as you follow (or “track”) an object as it moves in the eyepiece.

LOOKING AT OR NEAR THE SUN WILL CAUSE

INSTANT AND IRREVERSIBLE DAMAGE TO YOUR

EYE. EYE DAMAGE IS OFTEN PAINLESS, SO THERE

IS NO WARNING TO THE OBSERVER THAT DAMAGE

HAS OCCURRED UNTIL IT IS TOO LATE. DO NOT

POINT THE TELESCOPE OR ITS VIEWFINDER AT OR

NEAR THE SUN. DO NOT LOOK THROUGH THE

TELESCOPE OR ITS VIEWFINDER AS IT IS MOVING.

CHILDREN SHOULD ALWAYS HAVE ADULT

SUPERVISION WHILE OBSERVING.

Reference figure 2 for the following steps:

1. Begin by removing the red dot viewfinder, eyepiece and diagonal mirror.

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NEVER USE YOUR TELESCOPE

TO LOOK AT THE SUN!

2. Put eyepieces into their dedicated storage

STORING YOUR TELESCOPE

After you are through with your observing session, you can quickly breakdown your telescope and place it securely in its dedicated carry bag for storage. This padded bag will protect your telescope, keeping it at the ready, for your next observing session.

bottles.

3. Locate and reattach the two protective dust caps that came with your diagonal mirror.

4. Place the red dot viewfinder, eyepieces and diagonal mirror in the provided bag [31]. Set the bag aside for placement later into the carry bag.

Looking at or near the Sun will cause irreversible damage to your eye. Do not point this telescope at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope as it is moving.

5. Remove the optical tube assembly from the mount by removing the two lock knobs (11) and sliding the optical tube (4) off. Replace the front dust cap (22) and rear dust cap. Place the lock knobs into the storage bag (31) for safekeeping.

6. Retract the drawtube (15) back into the optical tube (4) by turning the focusing knob (23) counter-clockwise.

7. Place the optical tube assembly into its dedicated space [27], slipping the focuser end first into the pouch sewn into the storage bag (29). Locate and secure the front of the optical tube with the hook and loop strap (28).

8. Remove the accessory tray [17] by twisting counter-clockwise. Locate and place the tray into its dedicated pouch [24]. Secure the tray with the hook and loop closure.

9. Collapse the legs inward and place the tripod assembly into the dedicated storage bag cavity [25]. You may need to turn the telescope mount [16] so that it lay flat as shown. Secure using the hook and loop straps (26). Take care not to over tighten the straps.

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