Celestron NexStar 60GT User manual

Site name Description
Web site address
NexStar Resource Site The author's
web site www.NexStarSite.com
NexStar FAG Site Articles and tips for NexStar www.grcooperjr
.com/faq .htm
tele scope s
Yahoo NexStar Group Discussion group for all groups
.yahoo .com/group/
models of NexStar telescopes NexStar
Yahoo NexStarGPS Discussion group for the GPS groups .yahoo .com/group/
Group models of NexStar teles
cope sNexStarGPS
NexStar 50 Club
Web sitefor the NexStar 50 www .Ne xStarSite .com/
observerclubs - awards are nexstar50club.htm
given for a general list afobjects
and observa tionof lunar features
N exStar I mage Gallery A collection ofhundredsof www.buyastrostuff
.com/dons
imagestaken with all models of
NexStar telescopes
Matthias Bopp's Site A unique collection of technical www.dd 1us.de
information and tips for
NexStartelescopes
The Unofficial NexStar Dave Cole's
web sitefeaturing www.ne
xstarl1.com
11 Suppo rtSite tips
and resources for the
NexStar ~/1 1 GPS telescopes
Celestron's Web Site Official web siteof Celestron, www.celestron.com
manufacturerof NexStar
telescopes
Celestron's Download Productmanuals
and other www.celestron .com/
Site
downloads downloads/inde x.htm
259

260 The
NexStar User's Guide
Site name
American Associat ion of
Amateur Astronomers
Astronomical
league
Astronomy Magazine
Cloudy Nights
Telescope Reviews
NASA Web Site
ScopeReviews .com
Sky and Telescope
SkyMaps
Students for the
Exploration and
Development of Space
Description
Web site of theAssociation -
general astronomy information
Web site of the league - an
organization for amateur astronomers,
general astronomy information,
observation programs and
awards
Web site of Astronomymagazine -
news and general information for
amateur astronomers
Equipment reviews subm itted by
amateur astronomers
Official web site of the United States'
National Aeronautics and Space
Administration
Equipment reviews by Ed Ting
Web site of Sky and Telescope
magazine - news and general
informationfor amateur astronomers
Free mon thly sky charts
Great source of informationon solar
system, deep sky objects, and
general astronomy
W eb site address
www .corvus.com
www .astroleague.org
www .astronomy.com
www.c1oudynights.com
www .nasa .gov
www .scopereviews.com
skyandtelescope .com
www.skymaps .com
seds.lpl.arizona.edu
Vendor and Manufacturer Web
it - "< .' " ',' ," .... , . "
Company
Adirondack Video
Astronomy
Adorama
Alp ine Astronomical
Anacortes Telescopes
Apogee Instruments
Apogee, Incorporated
AstroMart
Products - not es
CCD and v ideo cameras ,automated
focusing software, imaging accessories
Telescopes , accesso ries
The Baader Bracket, Baader astre-
photography adapters, other accessories
Telescopes , accessor ies
CCD astronomy cameras
Telescopes , accessories
Used equipment; you can both buy
and sell
W eb site add ress
www .astrovid.com
www .adoramaphoto .com
www .alpineastro.com
www .buytelescopes.com
www .ccd.com
www.apogee inc.com
www .astromart.com

Internet Resources
Company
Astronomics
Astronomy-Mall
Astro-Physics
Baade r Planetarium
BuyAstroStuff .com
Campmor
Cases and Covers
Coleman
Coronado
GRABBER Warmers
Hands On Optics
ITE Telescopes
Jim's
Mobile, Inc. UMI)
Kendrick Astro
Instruments
Losmandy
Morrow Technical
Serv ices
Optec
Orion Telescopes
and Binoculars
Pelican Cases
Peterson Engineering
REI
S . King Company
SAC Imaging
Santa Barbara
Instrument
Group
(SBIGI
ScopeGuard Cases
ScopeStuff
Products -notes
Telescopes, accessories
A short listing of astronomy vendors and
free classified ads for astronomy
equipment
Diagonals, Baader Solar Film, Baader
Color Filters, Baader Skyglow Filter,
portable piers
Telescopes , the Baader Bracket, filters,
astrophotography accessories ,
other accessories
Ray's Bracket, observing cha irs
Outdoor equipment supplier
You guessed it - telescope cases
and covers
Out
door equipment supplier
HAlp ho solar filters
Chemical hand warmers
Telescopes , accessories
C CD and
video cameras , other
accessories
Telescope accessories
Dew prevention systems, other
accessories
Rails, counterweights,mounting
accessories
Bob 's Knobs (no-tools collimation
screws for SCTs). no-tools tripod bolts
for the
N8/1 1GPS
Focal reducers (telecompressorsl
Telescopes, accessories
Telescope cases
EyeOpener 2" adapter for SCTs
Outdoor equipment supplier
A co llectionof 12V d .c.
convenience equipment
Video astronomy cameras
CCD astronomy cameras
Telescope cases
Accessories
261
Web site addres s
www.astronomics.com
astronomy-mall.com
www .astro-physics .com
www .baader·
planetarium.de
www .buyastrostuff.com
www.camp mor.com
casesandcovers .com
www .coleman.com
www .coronadofilters.com
www .grabberwarmers.com
www .handsonoptics .com
www .itetelescopes .com
www .jimsmobile.com
www .kendrick-ai.com
www .losmandy.com
www .bobsknobs .com
www .optecinc .com/
astronomy
www .telescope.com
www .pelican.com
www .peterson-web .corn
www .rei .com
www .skingco.com
www .sac-imaging.com
www .sbig.com
www .scopeguard .com
www .scopestuff.com

262 The NexStar User's Guide
Company
Products -notes Web site address
ScopeTronix Digita l ca mera adapters ,other www.scopetronix.com
acc essories
SightAndSoundShop Tel
escope s, acc essories www.sightandsound
shop.com
SKB Golf
cases suitablefor some www.skbcases.com
telescopes
and tripods
Starizona Telescopes,
accessorie swww.stari
zona .com
Starlight Xpress CCD as tronomy
cameras www.starlight-
xpress.co .uk
Tele Vue Telescope,
eyepiece , and accessory
www.televue.com
manufacturer
The Teles
cope Unique astronomy accessories
www.astronomy-
Warehouse mall.com/telescope-ware
house
Thousa nd
Oaks Filters www .thousandoaks
optical.com
UniversityOptics Eyepieces, Barlow lenses www.universityoptics.com
Van Slyke Engineering Zero-image-shiftfocusers, off-oxis www.observatory.org
guiders
Warehouse Photo T-mounts and various camera
www .war ehousephoto .com/
adapters
lenses&.htm
W illiamOptics Telescopes,accessories www.william-optics.com

The objects in the NexStar database areorganized byseveralcategories.Several ofthecat-
egoriesare thewell-knowncatalogs discussed in Chapters 2 and 6.
Named Stars (Alignment Stars)
The brighteststars in thesky are listed, pri mar ily for use asalignmentstars.
Nam e RA D ec M ag Constellation
Ac
hern ar Olh37m43' -57 °14' 0.6 Eri
Acrux 12h26m36'
-63 °05' 1.6
Cm
Albireo 19h30m43' +27 °58' 3.2 Cyg
Aldebaran 04h35m55' + 16°31' 1.1 Tau
Algenib
OO h 13m14' + 15°11' 2.9 Peg
Alpha Centauri 14h39m36' - 60°50' 0.0 Cen
Alp
hard 09h27m35'
-08 °39' 2.2 Hya
Alphecca 15h34m41' +26 °43' 2.3 CrB
Alpheratz
OO h08m23' + 29°06' 2.1 And
Altair 19h50m47' + 08° 52' 0.9 Aql
Antares 16h29m24'
-26 °26' 1.1 Sco
Arcturus 14h15m40' + 19°13' 0.2 Boo
Betelgeuse 05h55m10' +0 7°24' 0.6 Ori
Canopus 06h23m57'
-52 °42' - 0.9 Car
Capella 05h16m41' +46 °00' 0.2 Aur
Caph
OO h09m11' + 59°09' 2.4 Cas
Cas
tor 07h34m36' + 31° 53' 1.6 Gem
Deneb 20h41m26' +45 °17' 1.3 Cyg
Denebola
Il
h49m04' + 14°34' 2.2 Leo
Dubhe
Il
h03m44' +61°45'2Uma
Fomalhaut 22h57m39'
-29 °37' 1.3 PsA
Hadar 14h03m50' - 60°23' 0.9 Cen
Hama l02h07m10' + 23°28' 2.2 Ari
Mim osa 12h47m43' - 59°41' 1.5 Cru
M irach Ol h09m44' +35 °37' 2.4 And
263

264 The
NexStar User's Guide
Mi rfak 03h24m19' + 49°52' 1.9 Per
Mizar 13h23m56' +54°55' 2.4 Uma
Navi
OOh 56m43' +60°43' 2.8 Cas
Peacock 20h25m39'
-5 6°44' 2.1 Pay
Polar is 02h31m50' +89°16' 2.1 Umi
Pollux 07h45m19' +28°02' 1.2 Gem
Procyon07h39m18' +05°14' 0.5 Cmi
Rasalhague 17h34m56' +12°34' 2.1 Oph
Regulus 10h08m22' + 11°58' 1.3 Leo
Rigel 05h14m32' - 08°12' 0.3 Ori
Scheat 23h3m46' +28°05' 2.6 Peg
Si
rius 06h45m9' - 16°42' - 1.6
Cma
Spica 13h25m12' -11 °10' 1.2 Vi r
Suhai l 09h08m00' - 43°26' 2.2 Vel
Vega 18h36m56' +38°47' 0.1 Lyr
Double Stars
The reare 55 double sta rs in the NexSta r dat ab a se. Ad ditio nal d oubl e stars can be accessedw ith the
Star b
utt on on the h and contro l.Lis ts of those sta rs (h un dre dsfor the GT, thou s and s for the other
NexS ta r mod els) are available in the
Down loa ds sectio n of my NexStar Res our ce Site -
http ://www.NexStarSite.com.''
Nam e Ra Dec Mag Sep
/Po s angle Con ste llation
107 Aqr 23h46m01' - 18°41' 5.8 7" 1143 °Aq r
145 Cma 07h16m36'
-23 °19' 4.8 27" 1 65°
Cma
17 Cyg 19h46m26' +33°44' 5.0 26" 173° Cyg
19Ly n 07h22m54' +55°17' 5.6 14 .8" 1 315° Lyn
24 Com 12h35m08' + 18°22' 5.2 20
"/27 1° Com
30 Ari 02h37m00' +24°39' 6.6 39" 1274° Ari
32 Eri 03h54m18' - 02"57' 5.0 7" 1 347° Eri
35 Com 12h53m18' +2 1°15' 5.1 29" 1Trip le Com
38 Gem 06h54m39' +13°11' 4.7 7" Gem
54 Leo 10h55m37' + 24°45' 4.5 6.8" 1 110° Leo
61 Cyg 2l h06m36' +38°42' 5.4 30" 1 148° Cyg
94 Aqr 23h19m07' - 13°27' 5.3 13" 1350° Aqr
95 Her 18hoi- 30' +21°36' 5.1 6.5" 1258° Her
Acamar
02h58m16' - 40°18' 4.4 8" 182° Eri
Adh ara 06h58m38' - 28°58' 1.6 7.5" 1 161° Cma
Albireo 19
h30m43' + 27°58' 3.2 35" 154° Cyg
Algieba IOh19m58' + 19°50' 2.6 4.4" 1 124° Leo
Algorab 12h29m52' - 16°31' 3.1 24" 1 214" Cry
Almac h 02h03m55' +42°20' 5.1 10" 163° And
Beta Mo n 06h28m49' - 07°02' 4.7 3" 1132° Mo n
Casto r 07h34m36' +31°53' 1.6 1.8"
117 1° Gem
Cor Caro li 12h56m01' +38°19' 2.9 19" 1229° CVn
Dabih 20h21m01' - 14°47' 3.3 205" 1 267° Cap
Delta Cep 22h29m10' +58°25' 4.0 20"
1192 °Cep
Delta Ser 15h34m48' + 10°32' 5.2 3.9" 1 179° Ser
Epsilon Boo 14h44m59' + 27°05' 2.7 3" 1 303° Boo
Epsilon Lyr I 18h44m20' +39°40' 6.0 2" 1 353° Lyr
Epsilon Lyr 2 18h44m23' +39°37' 4.5 2.2" 180° Lyr
Epsilon Peg 21h44m11' +09°53' 2.5 83" 1 320° Peg

Objects in the NexStar Hand Control 265
Eta Cas OOh 49m03' + 57°49' 3.6 12" /312° Cas
Eta Puppis 07h34m20'
-23 °28' 5.9 10" /117° Pup
GammaAries O
lh 53m30' + 19°19' 4.8 8" /360° Ari
GammaCe t 02h43m18' +03°14' 3.6 2.7" /297° Cet
Graffias 16h05m26' -19°48' 2.9 14"
/21 ° Sco
IotaCancer 08h46m42' +28 °46' 4.2 31" /307° Cnc
Kappa Boo 14
h13m29' +51°47' 4.6 13"
/236 °Boo
Kappa Puppis 07h38m48' - 26°48' 4.6 10" /318° Pup
Lamda Aries
Olh 57m54' + 23°36' 4.8 38"
/47 °Ari
Mintaka 05h32m00' -00°18' 2.5 53" Ori
M izar 13h23m56' + 54°55' 2.4 14
"/1 51° Uma
Nu Dra 17h32mII ' +55°11' 5.0 62" /312° Dra
Omicro nCap 20h29m54' -18°35' 6.1 19" /239° Cap
Polaris 02h31m50' +89°16' 2.1 18" /218° Umi
Porrima 12h41m40' - 01°27' 2.9 3" /287° Vi r
Psi Piscium
Ol h05m42m+21°28' 5.5 30"
/1 59° Psc
Rasalgethi 17h14m39' +14°24' 3.5 4.6"
/10 7° Her
Rigel 05h14m30' -08°12' 0.3 9" /203° Ori
Sigma Cas 23h59m01' + 55°45' 4.9 3" /326° Cas
Tau I Aqr 22h47m43' - 14°03' 5.7 23" /121° Aqr
Tegman 08h12m13' + 17°39' 6.0 9" /89° Cnc
Theta 2 Cnc 08h26m48' +26°56' 6.3 5"
/2 17° Cnc
Xi Boo 14h51m23' + 19°06' 4.6 7" /326° Boo
ZetaAqr 22h28m50' +00°01' 4.6 2"
/207 °Aqr
Zeta Lyr 18h44m46' +37°36' 4.3 44" / 150° Lyr
Zeta Piscium 01h13m42' +07°35' 5.6 23"
/63 °Psc
Variable Stars
The hand co ntro l databaseincludesa small selectionof the most interesting variablestars.
Name RA Dec Min Max Period Constellation
mag mag in days
Algol 03h08m10' +40°57' 2.2 3.5 2.9 Per
Beta Lyr 18h50mOS ' + 33°22' 3.5 4.3 12.9 Lyr
Delta Cep 22h29m10' +58°25' 3.6 4.3 5.4 Cep
L Car 9h45m15' - 62°30' 3.4 4.1 35 Car
Mira 02h19m21' - 02°59' 3.4 9.2 332 Cet
R Car 09h32m15'
-6 2°47' 4.6 9.6 309 Car
R Cen 14h16m34' - 59°55' 5.9 10.7 546 Cen
R Cyg 19h36m26' +50°13' 7.5 13.9 426 Cyg
R Dra 16h32m39' +66°45' 7.6 12.4 246 Dra
RH or 02h54m06' - 50°52' 6.0 13.0 404 Hor
RLeo 09h47m34' +U026' 5.8 10.0 312 Leo
R Tri 02h35m47' +34°41' 6.2 11.7 266 Tri
RRL yr 19h25m27' +42 °47' 7.3 8.1 0.6 Lyr
SCar IOh09m22' -61°33' 5.7 8.5 150 Car
SS Cyg 21h42m34' +42°26' 8.2 12.4 50 Cyg
TCen
13h41m46'
-33 °36' 5.5 9.0 91 Cen
TCe p21
h09 m32' +68°30' 6.0 10.3 388 Cep
UGem
07h ssm 06' +22°40' 8.2 14.9 103 Gem
UU ma IO
h44m38' +68°46' 7.5 13.0 302 Uma
Zeta Gem 07
h04m07' +20°34' 3.7 4.3 10.2 Gem

266 The NexStar User's Guide
Named Obiects
A listingof some of the most spectacular deepsky objects.
Name RA Dec Mag S ize Type Const Comments
A
ndrom eda OOh 42.7
ffi
+41°16' 3.5 178' Gal Andromeda M31. The closest spiral
Ga
iaxyM 31 galaxy to earth.
Spanning3°across, the
Andromedagalaxy is
thefarthest objectthat
can be seen with the
nakedeye. Distance
=
2.8million Iy.
Di
amet er =180000 Iy.
Barnard 's 19h44.9ffi -14°48' 9.0 10.2' Gal Sagitt ariu s Irregular
dwarf galaxy.
Galaxy Distance=1.7
milly .
NGC 6 822 Diameter=10000 Iy.
Bear Paw 08
h13.2 ffi
+46°00' 11.7 1.7' Gal Lynx Moderatelybright,
Galaxy round,and well-resolved
NGC 2537 galaxy.
Beehive OC 08h40.l
ffi
+ J9059' 3.1 95' OC Cancer Open cluster containing
M44 over 200 stars,visible to
the naked eye.Also
called Praesepeand M44.
Distance=525 Iy.
Diameter=40 Iy.
Black-Eye 12h56.7
ffi
+21°41' 8.5 9.3' Gal Coma A spiral galaxy with a
Gai
axyM 64 Berenicesstrikingdark dust cloud
near thecentral nucleus.
Distance=20 million Iy.
Blinking Plan 19h44.Sffi + 50°31' 10.0 2.3' PN Cygnus Planetary nebuladisc
NGC 6826 with 11th-magnitude
centralstar.
Blue Planetary II h50.3
ffi
- 57°11' 8.0 0.2' PN Centaurus Small,r
ound planetary
NGC 3918 nebula.Blue in color
with 7th-mag nitudes
tar
in center.
Blue Snowball 23
h25.9 ffi
+42°33' 9.0 2.2' PN Andromeda A h azy blue planetary
NGC 7662 nebulaestim atedto be
1800 to 5600Iy awayand
20000 to 50000 AU
across.
Bode's Nebula 09h55.6
ffi
+69°04' 6.9 25.7' Gal Ursa Ma
jor A massive galaxy witha
M8 1 luminosity equalto 20
billionsuns and a total
mass of approx 250 solar
masses. Distance7
millio
nl y.
Diamet er
=36000 Iy.
Box Nebula 17h14.1
ffi
- 12°55' 11.0 1.1' PN Ophiuchus This planetary nebula
NGC 6309 has a greenishdisk and
appears rectangularin
shape, henceits name.
The Box Nebula is best
seen using an 0III
nebula filter.
BubbleNebula 23
h20.7 ffi
+61°12' 15' SR Cassiopeia Remnantof a supernova,
NGC 7635
named for its gaseousarc

Objects in the NexStar Hand Control 267
Name RA Dec Mag Size Type Const Comments
thatresemblesa large
bubble.
Distance=11000 ly.
Bug Nebula 17
h13.7 ffi
-37°06' 13.0 0.8' PN Scorpius Irregular-shaped
NGC6302 planetarynebula.
ButterfiyOC 17h40.1
ffi
-32°13' 4.2 15' OC Scorpius Also called M6. Bright
M6 open clustercontaining
about50 stars.
Distance=1300ly.
Diameter
=20 ly.
California 04h00.7
ffi
+36°37' 145' Neb Perseus Very faint, large, and
Nebula diffusenebula
NGC 1499 resemblingtheshapeof
Californ ia. Best seen
using ahydrogen-beta
filter.
Cat's Eye l7h58.6
ffi
+66°38' 9.0 5.8' PN Draco One of thebrightest
Nebula planetarynebulaewith a
NGC6543 centralstar nearly 100
times theluminosityof
the Sun.
Distance=3200 ly.
Diameter
=0.33 ly.
Christmas 06h
4I.l m+09°53' 3.9 60' OC Monoceros A very young open
Tree cluster,also called the
NGC 2264 Cone Nebula, with 150
members
surrounded by
dark nebulosity.
Distance=2600 ly.
Diameter
=20 ly.
Cocoon 21
h53.4 ffi +47°16' 7.2 12' Neb Cygnus A faint openclustersur-
Nebula roundedby nebulosity
IC 5146 that islocatedESEof a
large
dark nebula-
Barnard168.
Crab Nebula 05
h34.5 ffi
+22°01' 8.4 6' SR Taurus Also called Ml.
Ml Supernova
remnant that
was recordedby the
Chinese in the year 1054.
At itsbrightest,it was
visible evenin the
daytimeand cast a
shadowin thenighttime.
Distance=6500 ly.
Diameter
=10 ly.
Crescent 20h12
ffi
+38°21' 20' Cygnus A faint, very large
Nebula nebularwith adouble
NGC6888
star visibleinside. Best
seen with an OlII filter.
Deer Lick 22
h37
.1
ffi
+34°25' 9.5 10.7' Gal Pegasus A fairly brightelongated
Galaxy galaxy with four small
NGC 7331 companiongalaxies sur-
roundingit.
Double 2
h19 ffi
+57°09' 4.0 30' OC Perseus Two openclusters
Cluster visible

268 The NexStar User's Guide
Name RA Dec Mag Size Type Const Comments
NGC
869/884
to thenakedeye, each
with a diameterof about
70 ly.Both clustersare
veryyoung. NGC 884 is
8500 ly in distanceand
11.5 million years old.
NGC 869 is 7000
lyaway
and 6.4millionyears old.
Dumbbell 19h59.6
ffi
+ 2Z043' 8.1 15.2 PN Vulpecula One of theclosest
NebulaM27 plan
etar ynebulaeto
earth.Expandingat a
speed of 27
km/ s,it can
be estimatedto beabout
48 000 years old.
Distance= - 750 ly.
Diameter = 2 ly.
Eagle Nebula 18h18.8
ffi
-13°47' 6.0 35' Neb Serpens A large
open cluster
MI6
surrounded by adiffuse
nebula.A very active
region ofstarfo
rmation .
Distance= - 8000 ly.
Diameter= 70 ly.
Eight Burst 10h07.0
ffi
-40°26' 8.0 0.8' PN Vela Bright central star.
Nebula Namedafterits multi-
NGC 31 32 ring structure visible in
photographs.Distance=
2500 ly.
Diameter=0.7Iy.
Eskimo 07h29.2
ffi
+20°55' 10.0 0.7' PN Gemini Bright
inner ring
Nebula separatedby a
dark gap
NGC 2392 from
another faint outer
ring. Distance= approx.
2500 ly.
Ghost Of 10h24.8
ffi
-18°38' 9.0 20.8' PN Hydra Pl
anetar ynebula with an
Jupiter elongated inner ring.
NGC 3242 Distanc e= - 2600 ly.
Diameter =0.5 ly.
Helix Nebula 22h29.6
ffi
-20°48' 12.8' PN Aqu ariu s The largestand closest
NGC 7293 planetarynebulawith an
angulardiameterof half
the full Moon.
Distance= - 300 ly.
Diameter= 1.751y.
Hercules GC 16h41.7
ffi
+36°28' 5.9 16.6' GC He rcules Globularclustervisible to
M13 thenakedeye. The cluster
contains about I million
stars and isestimatedto
be 10billionyears old.
Distance= 25 000ly.
Diameter= 160 ly.
H ind 's 04h22.9
ffi
+l9 °32
mNeb TaurusVery faintreflection
Variablenebula.
Nebula
NGC 1555
Horsehead 05h41
ffi
-O Z024 'II.3 60' Neb Orion A
dark nebula that
Nebula resembles theshapeof a
IC 434 horse head, positionedin
fr
ont of a bright diffuse

Objects in the NexStar Hand Control 269
Name RA Dec Mag Size Type Const Comments
nebula.This objectis best
seen using an H-Beta
filter.Distance
=1500 Iy.
Hubble 06h39.2m+08°44' 2' Neb Monoceros Gaseous nebula
Variable surroundingavariable
Nebula star.Distance=2600 Iy.
NGC 2261 Diameter
=7 Iy.
Hyades 04
h27.0m+16"00' 4° OC Taurus A very close opencluster
NGC 7845 with atriangularshape
forming the head of the
bull of theconstellation
Taurus. Distance=150Iy.
Diameter
=121y.
Lagoon 18
h03.8 m-24°23' 5.8 90' Neb Sagittarius A very brightnebula
NebulaM8 which is an activestar
formationregion.
Distance
=5000 Iy.
Diameter
=100Iy.
Little 01h42.3
m+51°34' 12.0 4.8' PN Perseus
Dumbbell
NGC 650
NGC 891 02h22.6m+42°21' 10.0 13.5' Gal Andromeda Edge-on spiral galaxy
with prominentban of
dark interstellarmatter
along the galactic plane.
Distance=43 million Iy.
Diameter
=120000ly,
North 20h58.8
m+44°20' 120' Neb Cygnus A diffuse nebulathat
American resemblestheoutlineof
Nebula theNorthAmerican
NGC 7000 continent.Best seen with
an om filter.Distance
1600 Iy. Diameter451y.
Omega Cluster13h26.8
m-47°29' 3.7 36.3' GC Centaurus The brightestand largest
NGC 5139 globularclusterin the
sky.Best seen at lower or
southernlatitudes.
Distance=17000 Iy.
Diameter
=100 Iy.
OrionNebula 05h35.4
m-05°27' 4.0 66' Neb Orion One of the most
M42 impressivediffuse
nebulaein the sky.
Visible to thenakedeye
bellowOrion's belt. Star
formingregion with four
prominent star s called
"The Trapezium"
centeredin thenebula.
Distance=1600Iy.
Diameter
=30 Iy.
Owl Nebula
llh 14.8
m+55°01' 11.2 3.2' PN Ursa Major Also called M97.1rregular
M97 shapedplanetarynebula.
Distance=
-3000 Iy.
Diameter
=3 Iy.
Pinwheel 01h33.9m+30°39' 5.7 62' Gal Triangulum A large spiralgalaxy
M33 structurewithbright
knotsof dust
and gas.

270 The NexStar User's Guide
Name RA Dec Mag Size Type Const
Comment s
After the Andromeda
Galaxy, it is the closest
spiralgalaxy to the Milky
Way.
Distance=3millionly.
Diame ter
=60 000 Iy.
Pleiades 03h47.5
m+24°07' 1.5 89' OC Taurus Also called " The Seven
M 45 Sisters" and M45. Bright,
open clusterwith 250
members. Six or seven
stars easily visible to the
naked eye.
Distance=450 Iy.
Diameter=20 ly.
Ring Nebula 18h53.6
m+33°02' 9.0 2.5' PN Lyra A very famous planetary
M5 7 nebula with an extremely
hot blue dwarf star in the
center.
Distance
=1400ly.
Diameter
=0.5 Iy.
Ring-Tail 12h01.9m- 18°53' 13.0 3.2' Gal Corvus A very
unu sual pair of
Galaxy interacting galaxies
NGC 4038 resulting in
extrao rdi
nary long,
curvedfilame nts
extendingfrom each
galaxy.
Distance
=90 million ly.
Diameter
=100000 Iy.
Rosette 06
h30.3 m+05°03' Neb Monoceros A diffuse nebula
Nebula surrounding an open
NGC 2244 cluster.Clouds ofdark
interstellarmaterial
against the glowing back
ground of the nebulagive
it its " ros e" appeara nce.
Dis tance =2600ly.
Diameter=55 ly.
Saturn Nebula 21h04.2m- 11°22' 8.0 1.7' PN Aquarius Planetarynebul awith an
NGC 7009 elongatedring
resembling the rings of
Saturn.
Distan ce=4000 ly.
Diamet er
=0.5 ly.
Sculpto r
OO h47.6
m- 25°17' 7.1 25.1' Gal Sculp tor The bright estmemberof
Galaxy the SculptorGalaxy
NGC 2 53 Clusterand very similar
in sizeto our Milky Way.
Total luminosityof
5 billion suns.
Distance
=7.5 million Iy.
Diameter
=70 00 ly.
Siamese 12h36.5
m+ 11°15' 11.3 3.0' Gal Virgo Elongate dgalaxy with
Twins close c
ompanio n galaxy.
NG
C4 567
Sombrero 12
h40m- 11°37' 8.3 8.9' Gal Virgo Also calledM104.
Galaxy Edge-ongalaxy with a
M I04
dark band of interstellar

Objects in the NexStar Hand Control
271
Name RA Dec Mag Size Type Const Com ments
m
atter in theequatorial
galacticplane resembling
thebrimof asombrero.
Distance=30 millionIy.
Diameter
=82 000 Iy.
SpindleGalaxy
lO h05.2m -07 °43' 9.2 8.3' Gal Sextans Agreatlyflattened,
NGC 3115 ellipticalgalaxyshaped
like aspindle.
Distance
=27 millionIy.
Diameter
=30000ly
Stephan's 22h36.1m +33°57' 12.7 2.2' Gal Pegasus A
group of five galaxies,
Quintet some of which are
NGC 7 317 connectedby " bridges" of
interstellar m
atter .
Sunflower 13
h15.8
m+42°02' 8.6 12.3' Gal Canes An elongatedgalaxy with
Galaxy Venatici abrightcore
and atight
M63 spiralp
attern resembling
agiantcelestialflower.
Distance=35 millionIy.
Diameter=90000 Iy.
Swan Nebula 18
h20.8
m-16°11' 6.0 46' Neb Sagittarius Diffuse nebula
M17 resemblinga swan
swimmingacrosswater.
Distance
=5500 Iy.
Diameter
=151y.
TarantulaNeb 05h38.6
m- 69°05' 8.2 40' Neb Dorado A gi
ant diffusenebula
NGC 2070 located in the Large
M agellanic Cloud is the
largestobjectof its
kind
knownin theUniverse.
Distance=1690001y.
Diameter
=800ly
Trifid Nebula 18h02.3
m- 23°02' 6.3 29' Neb Sagittarius A diffuse nebula
M20 characterizedby three
dark band s dividingthe
brightregionsof the
nebula.
Distance
=3700ly,
Veil Nebula 20h56,4m +31°43' 2.5° SR C ygnu s A beautiful
comp lex
NGC 6992/ nebula,whose delicate
6960 filamentstructureis best
seen usingan om filter.
The Veil Nebulais the
remn ant of an ancient
supernova
that exploded
some 35000 years ago.
Distance=1500Iy.
Whirlpool 13
h29.9
m+47°12' 8,4 11' Gal Canes Also called M51. One of
Galaxy M51 Venatici the closestand brightest
galaxieswith very
pronounced spiral arms .
Distance=35 million Iy.
Diameter
=100000 Iy.
Wild Duck 18
h51.1
m-06°16' 5.8 14' OC Scutum Also called
MIl. A rich
Cluster open clustercontaining
Mil
about 500stars.
Distance=6000 Iy.
Diameter
=211y.

272 The
NexStar User's Guide
Asterisms
A collectionof unique starpatterns.
Name RA Dec Const Comments
Kite Cluster Ol h 40m+59°00' Cas A diamond-shapedpatternof stars
resemblinga kitewith astringof
5 stars making up the tail.
TriangleCluster 01h54m+38°00' And A long stringof stars leading to an
isoscelestrianglesituatednear the
bright,open cluster NGC 752.
Perseus Cluster 03h28m+49°00' Per Called the Perseus Moving Cluster,
this asterismis a largeassociation
of over 50starsscattered across 3°
of the constellationPerseus.All
stars visible are bright,very young,
hot starsdatingback onlyabout
50 million years.
Kemble's Cascade 03
h57m+63°00' Cam Long strand of 5th- to
8th-magnitudestars stretching
over 2°.Continuingsoutheast
from the clusterwill lead to the
open cluster NGC 1502.
Little Fish 05h18m+33°30' Aur Mor e thana dozen stars make up
this clusterwhich cover an areaof
30' x 75' across
Arrowhead Cluster 06
h40m-09°00' CMa AdistinctiveV-shapedpatternof
star resemblingan arrowhead
positionsabout7°northof thestar
Sirius.
Number 3 Cluster 06
h53m-10°12' CMa A patternof faint starsseen as a
backwards
numb er"3" througha
low power eyepiece.Look for the
bright,open cluster M50just
northwestof this asterism.
Crown Cluster IOh50m+56°12' UMa A small " crown" of stars with a
bright"jewel" star near the center
located 2°west of thestar Merak.
Coma Star Cluster 12
h22m+25°48' CmB The Coma StarCluster.A
V-shapedpatternof stars visibleto
the naked eye.This clusteris one
of the closestto Earth at adistance
of250 Iy.
Star GateCluster 12
h36m-12°00' Crv Auniquetriangle of stars with
anothertriangleof fainter starsin
itscenter.
Mini -Coathanger 16h30m+80°12' UMi A patternof 10 faintstars
spanning[degree, nicknamedthe
"Mini -coathanger" or "S" Cluster
S Cluster 16h37m+31°00' Her A curving patternof a dozenstars
resemblingabackwards letter "S'.
Ring Cluster 18
h04m+26°30' Her A faint ring ofstars witha brighter
7th-magnitudestarinside the ring.
W Cluster 18h35m+72°18' Dra An asterismof 20 stars, with the
5 brightest starsmakinga
distinctive"w" pattern! degree
across.

Objects in the NexStar Hand Control 273
Name RA
CoathangerCluster 19
h25m
Spiral Cluster 20
h14m
DiamondCluster 20
h39m
HorseshoeCluster 21h07m
Number7 Cluster 23h07m
Arrow Cluster 23
h21m
CCD Obiects
Dec
+20°12'
+36°30'
+13°30'
+47°18'
+59°00'
+62°30'
Const
Vul
Cyg
Del
Cyg
Cas
Cas
Comments
Called"Brocchi's cluster"or the
"Coathangercluster". Visible to
the naked eye 8°southof the star
Albireo.Ten visible stars make up
a coathangershapespanning
1°across.
Asprawlingpatternof stars
resemblingthe arms of a spiral
galaxy with abrighterreddishstar
in the center.
Seen as abrighttriangleof
7th-magnitude stars, with
6th-magnitudeThetaDelphini
being thebrightest.
A"horseshoe"patternof over a
dozen 7th- to 11th-magnitude
starsmeasuring20' across lying
near thebrightstar Deneb.
Nine 5th- and 6th-magnitude
starsmakingup a sideways
number"7".
One degree of starsresemblingan
arrowpatternnortheastof the
cluster M52.
Only available in the NexStar 8/11 GPSand NexStar 5i/8i.A collection of galaxyclusterswell suitedto
CCD imaging .
Name RA Dec Const Comments
NGC 383 Group
Olh 07m23' +32°25' Pisces Awell-populatedgalaxygroup
with more than a dozen small
galaxiesspreadover a 1.5°area.
A good object for f/2
Fastar imaging.
Arp 318 02h09m24' -10°08' Cetus Astringof four spiral galaxies
arrangedin a line curving east
and south.
NGC 1068 &1055 02
h42m24' +00°13' Cetus This galaxy pairconsistsof a
circularspiral galaxy with a
brilliantcore and less brightspiral
arms,with a visible dust lane
runningthroughone of its arms.
NGC 1097A 02 h46m12' -30°14' Fornax Astronglybarredspiral galaxy
with a largebrightoval core.
Detachedfrom the galaxy is a
30' companionoff thenorthern
spiral bar.
FornaxCluster 03
h22m42' -3]012' Fornax This cluster iscenteredaroundits
brightestmember,NGC 1316,a
bright, slightlyelongatedoval
galaxysurroundedby many
fainter galaxies.

274 The
NexStar User's Guide
Name RA Dec Const Comments
NGC 1400 &1407 03h39m59' - 18°35' Eridanus Two very similarspiralgalaxies
with brightcores and faint halos
separatedby 12'.
NGC 1532 &1531 04h12m06' - 32°52' Eridanus This visually contrasti nggalaxy
pair isseparatedby only 1.75'.
NGC 1532 is a 10th-magnitude
elongatedgalaxy with a bright
core. NGC 1531 is a smalle r,less
elongatedcompanion galaxy.
NGC 1723 Group 04h59m00' - 11°00' Eridan us A gro up of four galaxies in the
shapeof a eat's paw with three
faintgalaxiesin an arc and the
brighter NGC1723,directlyn
orth
of the trio.
Bode's Galaxies 09h
ssm 36' +69 °20' This galaxy pair made up of M81
and M82 are
both bright,oval
galaxies separated by halfof a
degree. Good object for Fastar f/2
imaging.
NGC 3 158 Group IOh13m48' + 38°46' This galaxy group centered
around NGC 3 158 is madeup of
eightgalaxies that spana 10'
diameter and can be image d at
f/6.3 or at f/2 witha Fastar lens.
NGC 3 190Group 10h18m06' +21°50' Leo NGC 3190 is the brightestm
ember
of this trio of galaxies,which
include NGC 3187 and NGC 3193.
HydraI Cl
uster
10h36m42' - 27°32' Hydr a Hydra I is a cluster of eight
galaxiesthat lie at adistance of
200 million light-yearsaway.All
are 11th- and 12th-magnitude
galaxies.the farthestbeingabout
30' from each other. Good object
for f/2 Fastar imaging.
MI0 5 Trio IOh47m48' + 12°35' Leo This galaxy
group is composedof
an 8 arc minut etriangle of
contrast inggalaxiesincludingan
elliptical,lenticular and loose
spiralgalaxy.
Butterfly Galaxy IOh50m00' +33°00' Two elongatedinteracting galaxies
connectedat their tips giving the
appeara nceof a
butt erfly.
Leo'sTriple 11h19m30' + 13°15' Leo The Leo Tripleis compr ised of two
bright M essier objects (M65 and
M66) and NGC 3628 thatform a
triangle ofmorethan 30' across.
Best suitedfor Fastar f/2 imaging.
Copeland'sSeptet 11h37m54' +2 1°59' Leo Copela
nd' s Septet is a tight cluster
of 6 faint galaxies scatteredacross
a 6' field of view.The galaxies
rangein brightness from
magnitude13.6 to IS. This cluster
is best imaged throu gh an
f/6.3reducer.
Ring-TailGalaxy 12hO l m 53' - 18°53' Corvus NGC 4038-39 is an unusual pair of
interactinggalaxiesthatappearas
one comma-shaped object.

Objects in the NexStar Hand Control 275
Name RA Dec Const Comments
NGC 4298 &4302 12
h21m43' +14°36' Coma This visually contrastingpair is
Berenices onlyseparatedby I'
and is best
imaged at f/6.3 withreducerlens.
Virgo Cluster 12h26m12' +12°57' Virgo M86 lies at thecenterof this
galaxycluster
surrounded by
sevensatellitegalaxiesofvarious
sizes andmagnitude.
Siamese Twins 12
h36m36' +11°14' Virgo The Siamese Twins are a pair of
interactinggalaxiesthatappearto
bejoinedat the tips.
NGC 5350 Group 13
h53m24' +40°22' Canes This groupis positionedneara
Venatici 6.5-magnitudestar and has a
brightspiralgalaxy, NGC 5471
less than0.5°to thenortheast.
A good object for f/2
Fastarimaging.
NGC 5774-75 14h54m00' +03°33' Virgo Two spiralgalaxies,one seen
edge-on,the
other seen face-on,
with a faintcompaniongalaxy to
thesouth.
Stephan'sQuintet 22h36m07' +33°57' Pegasus These five galaxies all liewithina
3.5' area
and range inbrightness
from 12.6 to 13.6.Stephan's
Quintetis positionedjustsouthof
another good CCD object
NGC 7330.
Deer Lick Cluster 22
h37m06' +34°25' Pegasus NGC 7331 is a nearly edge-on
spiralgalaxy with foursmaller
companiongalaxiesorbiting
towards the east.
Pegasus I Cluster 23
h20m42' +08°13' Pegasus This galaxyclusteris made up of
morethan10 faint galaxies
rangingin magnitudefrom
II to 13. The clusterspans30'
across with two equalbrightness
twin galaxies in itscenter.Pegasus
I is a good object for
Fastarimaging.
NGC 7782 Group 23h53m54' +07°58' Pisces At12th-magnitudeNGC 7782 is
thebrightestof this five galaxy
clusterlocatedin Pisces.
Stars
In additionto the Named, Double, and Variable star lists,additionalstarsare accessible using the Star
button on the hand control.The number of starsvaries by NexStar model. Lists of thestarsare avail-
ablein theDownloadssection of my NexStarResourceSite - http://www.NexStarSite.com.
• N exS tar 60/8 0/114/4 -2824stars.The new GT hand controlorganizesthis list by
SAO catalog
numbers .The originalGT hand contr ol uses aNexStar-specific number that can be
cross-referencedto the SAOcatalogwith the list available on my web site.
• N exSta r 5/ 8-10384starsorganizedby a NexStar-specific number thatcan becross-ref-
erencedto the SAO catalog with the list available on my web site.

276 The
NexStar User's Guide
• NexStar Si/8i and 8/11 GPS -29522 star s organized by SAO catalog
numbers.
Messier Obiects
All 110 Messier objects areavailablein all NexStarmodels.The Messier objects arelistedin Chapter6
and a list is also available in theDownloadssectionof my NexStar Resource Site.
Caldwell Obiects
All 109 Caldwell objects are available in all NexStar models.A list of the Caldwell objects is available in
theDownloadssectionof my NexStarResourceSite.
NGC Obiects
The NexStar 60/80/114/4 hand controlincludes1165 NGC objects.All other modelsincludetheentire
NGC catalog of 7840 objects.Both lists are available in theDownloadssection of my NexStarResource
Site.
IC Obiects
The NexStar 5i/8i and 8/11 GPScontaintheentireIC catalogof 5386objects.A list of the ICobjectsis
available in theDownloadssectionof my NexStar Resource Site.
Abell Obiects
The NexStar5i/8i and 8/1I GPScontainthe first 2712objectsin the Abell galaxyclustercatalog.The
magnitude given by the hand controlis the magnitude of thetenth-brightestgalaxy in thecluster.A
list of these Abell objects is availablein theDownloadssectionof my NexStarResourceSite.

There are a widevarietyof softwarepackagesavailablefor controlling your NexStar telescope.
Programs written for Windows,Macintosh, and palmtop computers (PDAs) can provide extended
control and enhancedfeaturesfor yourscope. Prices range from free to a few hundred dollars.While
many of thepackagesaresimilarin function, someare quite unique .I recommend you spend some
time researchingat the manufacturers ' web sites to determine whichsoftwarepackageor packages
best suityourneeds.
Table C.I shows thedesignationsusedto denotewhichmodelsof NexStarscopesare compatible
with eachsoftware package.
Followingis a list ofsoftwarepackagesavailableat thetimeof this writing; additionalsoftwareis
introduced continually .Please visit the PC Control section of the NexStar Resource Site -
http://www.NexStarSite.com- for the mostup-to-datelist. Allinformationis subjectto changeby the
software
manuf acturer;please visit theweb sitelistedfor the latest details.
Description
The originalGT (computerizedGoTo)
hand control for the NexStar
60/80 /114/4 telescopes, as well as all Tasco StarGuide telescopes.
The
upgraded GT hand controlfor the NexStar 60/80/1 14 /4
teles cope s. This hand control is includedwith all littl e Ne xStars
manufacturedafterDecember
2001 . See the sid ebar Old versus
New GT Hand Controlin Chapter 3 to determine whetheryou have
theoriginalor new GT
hand control.
The originalNexStar5
and 8models. These models were discontinued
in the summer of 2
002 and repl aced with the NexStar 5i and 8i.
The new NexStar5 i
and 8i telescopes.Only theoptionalcomputer ized
hand controlallows PC control.
The NexStar
8/11 GPS tele scopes.
NewG T
Ne xStar GPS
Ne xStar 5
i/8 i
Ne xStar
5/8
Table C.1. De signat ions deno ting compatib ilityof modelsof NexStar scopes with software
packages
Model
Or iginal GT
277.

278
NexStar Observer List
The NexStar User's Guide
Author: MichaelSwanson
Cost: Free
Web Site:http ://www.NexStarSite.com/
Computer systemssupported:Win dows 9s/98/ME/N T12000 /XP
Models ofNexStarsupported:Original GT, New GT, NexStar5/8,NexStar si/8i,NexStar GPS
Arrow Keys for GuideStar
Authors:M ichael Ganslmeierand Matthias Bopp
Cost:Free
Web Site:http://www
.ddlu s.de
Computersystemssupported:Windows 2000/XP
Mod els ofNexStar supported :HC models (the m anu al hand contro l littl eNexStars)and GT models
with modifications
Note: A unique package that allows the PC to act as the directi on
butt ons on thehand control.This
allows completeremotecontro lof the little NexStarsafterthe initial alignment is accomplished. Visit
the site and download the articleon "Co nt rolling the NexStar4/60/80/114series telescopesfully
remotely" for complete details.
ASCOM
Publi sher : Astronomy Common ObjectMo del(ASCOM)
Cost: Free
Web Site:http://ascom-standards.org
Computersystemssupported:Windows 9s/98/ME/NT12000/XP
Modelsof NexStarsupported:Original G'I', New
G'T ,NexStar5/8,NexStar si/8i, NexStar GPS
Note: This is a plug-in that isused by otherprogramsto controla telescope, not a standalone program.
AstroPlanner
Publi sher :iLanga, Inc.
Cost: $20 download versio n;$30 CD- ROM version
WebSite:http://www.ilangainc.com/astroplanner
Computersystemssupported:Mac OS and Windows9s/98/ME/NT/2000/XP
Models of NexStarsupported:OriginalGT, New GT, NexStar5/8,NexStar si/8i,NexStar GPS
Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts)
Author: PatrickChevalley
Cost:Free
Web Site:http://www.stargazing.net/astropc
Computersystemssupported: Windows 9s/98/ME/NT/2000/XP
Mod elsof NexStar support ed: Uses the ASCOM pl ug-in above and suppo rts the samescopes.Note
that it is necessary to download the ASCOM platform from the ASCOM lin k above
and you must
downloadthe ASCOM driverfrom theCartesdu Ciel web site -the " CompletePackage" download
does not include either.