GeoSafari Vega 360 User manual

EI-5304
Ages 8+
Grades 3+
®
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1
Introduction ........................................................................ 2
Getting Started.................................................................... 2
Let’s Look at Your Vega 360 .............................................. 3
Assembly Diagram .............................................................. 4
Assembling Your Telescope ................................................ 5
Using Your Telescope .......................................................... 7
Choosing an Ey pi c for Vi wing................................ 8
Using Your T l scop for T rr strial Vi wing .............. 8
Tips for T l scop Us .................................................... 9
Frequently Asked Questions .............................................. 10
Observing the Night Sky .................................................... 11
Plan ts ............................................................................ 11
Stars ................................................................................ 11
Th Moon ........................................................................ 12
Learn More About Astronomy .......................................... 14
Caring or Your Telescope .................................................. 14
Storag ............................................................................ 14
Optics .............................................................................. 15
CAUTION:
Never look directly at the sun, with or without your telescope. Never
aim your telescope at the sun, or anywhere near the sun. Instant
and irreversible eye damage can occur, including blindness.
Do not let children use the telescope without adult supervision any
time the sun is above the horizon.
Table of Contents

32
Introduction
Your V ga 360 is a r fractor t l scop . R fractors w r th first
typ s of t l scop s inv nt d. A r fractor t l scop coll cts light
through a larg obj ctiv l ns and dir cts it through th t l scop
to th y pi c for magnification. Your t l scop will nabl you to
s many int r sting obj cts in th night sky as w ll as giving you an
up-clos vi w of r markabl things h r on arth, from animals and
landforms to sporting v nts. Th information in this guid will h lp
you g t th most from your t l scop .
Getting Started
R mov all of th compon nts from th box. Using th list and pictur
b low, id ntify ach of th parts of your t l scop . It is r comm nd d
that you k p your t l scop box for long-t rm storag , or should you
v r n d to r turn th t l scop for s rvic .
Component parts:
A. Optical tub with rack and pinion focus r (pr -ass mbl d)
B. Tripod with altazimuth mount
C. Diagonal mirror
D. 20mm y pi c
E. 9mm y pi c
F. 2x r cting y pi c (imag r ctor)
1. Optical tube: Holds and prot cts th t l scop ’s main, or
obj ctiv , l ns.
2. Objective lens: Gath rs light from a distant obj ct and brings that
light, or imag , to a point or focus.
3. Dust cap: Prot cts th obj ctiv l ns from scratch s and dirt.
4. Dew shield: Pr v nts d w from forming on th l ns at night and
acts as a sunshad to r duc r fl ctions during th day.
5. Eyepiece: Brings th imag from th t l scop ’s obj ctiv l ns to
your y . Your t l scop com s with a low pow r y pi c and a
high pow r on , too.
6. Diagonal mirror: Ori nts th imag from your t l scop so that it is
right-sid up. It also mak s it mor comfortabl to look at stars
high in th sky without b nding down low.
7. Focuser: Turn th focusing knob to mak imag s cl ar r.
8. Altazimuth mount: Holds th optical tub and allows you to adjust
th vi w up and down (altitud ) and sid -to-sid (azimuth).
9. Tripod: Tabl top tripod supports th t l scop and mount.
Let’s Look at Your Vega 360
Familiariz yours lf with th parts of your t l scop and th ir purpos .
1
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
2(inside)
A
B
CD
E
F

54
Asse bly Diagra Asse bling Your Telescope
Us th diagram on pag 4 and th dir ctions b low to ass mbl
your t l scop .
1. G ntly pull th aluminum tripod l gs (J) apart as far as th y will go.
Pr ss down on th c nt r of th tripod supports until th y lock flat
into plac in a horizontal position. (S Figur 1.)
2. Plac th optical tub (A) ov r th mount and low r it so that th
plastic “tongu ” on th mount slips into th brack t und rn ath
th tub . (S Figur 2.) Lin up th hol s on th prongs with
hol s in th tongu .
3. On of th prongs in th brack t has a h xagonal-shap d cutout
around its op ning. Plac th nut from th altitud lock knob (H) in
this cutout and hold it in plac . Ins rt th bolt from th altitud lock
knob through th brack t and tongu as shown. (S Figur 2.) Turn
th altitud lock knob clockwis to scr w it into plac .
4. Tight n th altitud lock knob nough so that you can mov th
optical tub up or down and it will stay point d at th angl you
want. (You should b abl to aim th tub almost v rtically. If not,
you must r mov it and r v rs its position in th mount.
(S Figur 2.)
C
BA
E
D
F
G
I
J
H
A. Optical tub
B. Obj ctiv l ns (insid )
C. Dust cap
D. D w shi ld
E. Ey pi c
F. Diagonal mirror
G. Focus r/Focus knob
H. Altitud lock knob
I. Azimuth lock knob
J. Tripod l gs
Figur 1
Figur 2

76
5. Find th azimuth lock knob (I) and tight n it, if n c ssary, by turning
it clockwis . Th knob, wh n fully tight n d, will lock your
t l scop ’s horizontal mov m nt.
6. If th diagonal mirror has not com alr ady ins rt d into th focus r,
r mov th prot ctiv plastic cap ov r th t l scop ’s focus r (G) by
loos ning th two small scr ws. R mov th black plastic cap from th
diagonal mirror (F) and ins rt th mirror into th focusing tub . S cur
th mirror in plac by tight ning th two small scr ws. (S Figur 3.)
7. Loos n th prot ctiv plastic cap from th diagonal mirror by
loos ning th singl scr w. Locat th 20mm y pi c , ins rt it into
th diagonal mirror, and tight n th scr w (S Figur 4).
Using Your Telescope
1. For b st r sults, tak your t l scop outsid . Do not aim it through a
window which will caus distortions.
2. L t your t l scop adjust to th outsid t mp ratur . Your t l scop
will p rform much b tt r if th l ns s and th air insid th tub ar
all th sam t mp ratur as th outsid air. In xtr m t mp ratur s,
it may tak up to 30 minut s to acclimat your t l scop .
3. Start vi wing with your low pow r (20mm) y pi c in plac b caus
it giv s you th wid st angl and bright st, sharp st vi ws.
4. Loos n th altitud and azimuth lock knobs and mov th t l scop
in th dir ction of an obj ct you wish to vi w. Look through th
y pi c and pan th t l scop until th obj ct app ars c nt r d in
th t l scop ’s fi ld of vi w (th portion of th sky that you can vi w
through a t l scop ). Onc it is in your fi ld of vi w, tight n th
altitud and azimuth knobs.
5. Look through th y pi c , turning th focus knob until th imag is
cl ar and sharp.
Figur 3
Figur 4
Note: Wh n looking through th diagonal mirror, obj cts will
app ar right sid up, but r v rs d, lik a r fl ction in a mirror. This
is normal for all astronomical t l scop s. Your t l scop is suppli d
with an r cting y pi c , which prop rly ori nts imag s for
t rr strial vi wing. S pag 8 for dir ctions for using your
r cting y pi c .
CAUTION:
Never look directly at the sun, with or without your telescope. Never
aim your telescope at the sun, or anywhere near the sun. Instant and
irreversible eye damage can occur, including blindness.

98
Tips or Telescope Use
Exploring th night sky with a t l scop is xciting—and chall nging!
L arning to us a t l scop tak s practic and pati nc . H r ar som
tips to b tt r vi wing:
1. To locat obj cts, you must l arn how th sky is laid out. Ch ck books
about astronomy to l arn your way around th night sky. Consult on
of th w b sit s on pag 14 to ch ck th location of int r sting
c l stial sights. Local astronomy clubs ar a good sourc of
information, too.
2. No matt r how much light surrounds you, mor is always wors . Turn
off any lights. Allow 15 minut s or mor for your y s to adapt to
th darkn ss.
3. Cool your t l scop to th outsid t mp ratur for about 30 minut s
b for obs rving. Cooling th t l scop r duc s air curr nts insid
th tub that could produc fuzzy, blurry imag s.
4. Plan tary vi wing r quir s good “s ing” conditions—st ady, dry
atmosph r with littl or no clouds. A good way to judg s ing
conditions is to ch ck th stars. If th stars app ar to b twinkling, a
ph nom non caus d by a turbul nt atmosph r , th n conditions ar
poor for plan t gazing.
5. Us slow, st ady hand mov m nts wh n using your t l scop . This
will minimiz vibrations and mak it asi r to g t a st ady vi w.
Using Your Telescope or Terrestrial Viewing
To vi w t rr strial (land) subj cts, your t l scop com s with an
r cting y pi c , or imag r ctor. This sp cial compon nt ori nts
obj cts so that you can vi w th m as you would with your nak d y .
Follow th s dir ctions to us th imag r ctor:
1. R mov th diagonal mirror and y pi c from th focusing tub .
2. Loos n th small scr w in th focusing tub . Ins rt th imag r ctor
dir ctly into th focusing tub . Tight n th scr w to k p it in plac .
(S Figur 5.)
3. Loos n th small scr w in th imag r ctor and ins rt your chos n
y pi c into it. Tight n th scr w to k p this y pi c in plac .
(S Figur 5.)
Th imag r ctor provid s a 2x magnification, which m ans that th
9mm y pi c will magnify obj cts 80x wh n us d with it.
Choosing an Eyepiece or Viewing
Your V ga 360 com s with two diff r nt y pi c s—a 20mm y pi c
and a 9mm y pi c . Th y pi c s off r you a rang of vi wing
pow rs or magnifications. Ey pi c s ar m asur d and lab l d in
“mm” (millim t rs). Th low pow r y pi c is th on with th high r
numb r in mm (20mm). Th high pow r y pi c is th on with th
low r numb r in mm (9mm).
As a rul , always start with th low pow r y pi c , gradually switching
to th high pow r y pi c only aft r you hav locat d an obj ct.
Figur 5

1110
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Why is the image in my telescope eyepiece upside down and/or
backwards?
If you hav ins rt d your y pi c dir ctly into th t l scop ’s
focusing tub , you will s an imag that is upsid -down and
backwards. If you hav ins rt d th diagonal mirror into th focusing
tub and th n plac d th y pi c into th diagonal mirror, your
imag will b right-sid up, but it will still app ar backwards or
r v rs d. This is normal for an astronomical t l scop . Aft r all,
th r ’s no up or down in spac so it do sn’t matt r how th fi ld is
ori nt d. For t rr strial vi wing, wh n you want imag s to b
ori nt d prop rly (as s n with th nak d y ), ins rt th r cting
y pi c according to th dir ctions on pag 8 of this guid .
2. Why can’t I see anything when I look through my telescope?
If you s only whit , gray, or black through th t l scop you
probably hav ins rt d an y pi c that is too pow rful. To solv this
probl m, switch to th low pow r y pi c . As a rul , always start
with th low st pow r y pi c , gradually switching to high r pow r
y pi c s only aft r you hav locat d an obj ct.
3. When I use my high power eyepiece, why does everything look
darker?
As t l scop magnification incr as s, brightn ss diminish s. Brightn ss
incr as s wh n magnification is r duc d. If an imag app ars dark or
uncl ar, try using your low pow r y pi c . It is asi r to study small,
bright vi ws of c l stial obj cts than larg , dark, or blurry on s. You
do not n d v ry high pow rs to study most c l stial obj cts.
4. Why do objects in the sky move out o view when I look through
my telescope?
Wh n you vi w a c l stial obj ct through a t l scop , th rotation of
th arth mak s it app ar as though obj cts ar moving across th
vi wing ar a. You can l ss n this ff ct and obs rv th larg st ar a
of th sky by using your low pow r l ns.
Observing the Night Sky
Your t l scop can bring you th moon and stars—and som plan ts, too.
Planets
Th plan ts ar our solar syst m companions. Th y rang in siz from
Pluto, a rocky plan t small r than our moon, to Jupit r, a giant gas ball
that could hold 1,000 Earths. Vi wing th plan ts pr s nts som
chall ng s. As th plan ts in our solar syst m orbit th sun, th ir
position in our night sky chang s. To find out wh r to look for
plan ts at a particular tim , ch ck an astronomy magazin , such as Sky
and Telescope. You can also visit th magazin ’s w b sit , list d on
pag 14 in this guid .
Most p opl who hav look d up at th night sky hav probably s n
som plan ts but did not r aliz it. A plan t, wh n it is abov th
horizon, will not twinkl lik a star. Plan ts ar r solv d by th y as
tiny balls, as oppos d to stars, which ar infinit ly small points of light.
Th asi st plan ts to vi w, wh n th y ar visibl , ar th fiv “nak d-
y ” plan ts: Saturn, Jupit r, Mars, V nus, and M rcury. M rcury is th
most difficult to s sinc it is usually b low th horizon. Each of th
plan ts has its own s t of uniqu charact ristics, making th m a
wond r to b hold.
Stars
Th stars ar so far away that wh n you look at on with your
t l scop , you won’t s a disk as you do wh n you look at a plan t.
Ev n with a larg , pow rful t l scop , a star is s n as a point of light.
Som stars look larg r than oth rs, but what you ar actually s ing is
bright r points of light compar d to dimm r points of light. Th
bright r stars ar n’t n c ssarily larg r, but th y app ar that way to us.

1312
The Moon
Th silv ry moon is th b st subj ct to vi w with your t l scop . As
Earth’s n ar st n ighbor, it’s about a quart r million mil s (402,000 km)
away. That may sound lik a long distanc , but it’s clos nough that
your t l scop will r v al a fascinating lunar landscap of crat rs,
plains, and mountain p aks.
H r ar a f w int r sting lunar f atur s to look for:
Mare Crisium
Mar Crisium (“S a of Cris s”) is actually a hug plain form d wh n gr at
lava flows cool d and hard n d on th moon’s surfac .
Crater Copernicus
Crat r Cop rnicus is a bright crat r with a hug ncircling ring of d bris
that was thrown out of th crat r wh n it was form d by an impacting
m t or mor than 100 million y ars ago. It is 60 mil s (97 km) across
and mor than 2 mil s (12,600 f t, or 3,840 m) d p.
Crater Tycho
Bright str aks or rays, b st s n during a full moon, manat from this
crat r. Th rays indicat that this is a young crat r. Ov r tim , m t ors
constantly bombarding th crat r’s surfac will caus th rays to
disapp ar. Crat r Tycho is 56 mil s (90 km) across and almost 14,000 f t
(4,267 m) d p.
Crater Grimaldi
This larg crat r looks lliptical in shap , but it is actually circular. It
app ars to b lliptical b caus w s it on th w st rn horizon of
th moon, which is curving away from us. This ff ct is call d
for short ning. Crat r Grimaldi is about 140 mil s (225 km) across
and 10,500 f t (3,200 m) d p.
E
N
S
W
Mare
Crisium
Crater
Copernicus
Crater
Tycho
Crater
Grimaldi
© Copyright 1982 Th Royal Astronomical Soci ty of Canada
Not : This map, lik
your t l scop ,
shows a mirror imag
of th moon.

1514
Learn More About Astrono y
Visit th s w b sit s to l arn mor about astronomy and th obj cts
you s in th night sky:
• http://www.nasa.gov
NASA’s official w b sit .
•http://www.nasa.gov/audience/ orkids/home/index.html
NASA’s link with information for stud nts
• http://www.nasm.si.edu
Th w b sit of th National Air and Spac Mus um at th
Smithsonian Institut
• http://www.space.com
Astronomy w b sit with int r sting links, including a sky cal ndar
listing what’s visibl in th sky ach night
• http://skyandtelescope.com
Astronomy w b sit with us ful information, including a customizabl
sky chart wh r you can typ in your zip cod for a map of th night sky
• http://cosmobrain.com
Astronomy w b sit with xc ll nt links, including an astronomical
cal ndar listing what’s visibl in th night sky and an “astrolinks“
s ction to many oth r outstanding sit s
Caring for Your Telescope
Tak good car of your V ga 360 and it will provid you with many
hours of vi wing xcit m nt.
Storage
Your V ga 360’s compact, asy-to-ass mbl d sign mak s storing it in
its box simpl . If you wish to stor your V ga 360 fully ass mbl d,
cov r it with h avy plastic to prot ct it from moistur , and nsur that
th dust cap and l ns cov rs ar on. Acc ssori s should b stor d
s parat ly in a box, with all th ir dust caps on.
Optics
Optical compon nts of a t l scop will g t dirty ov r tim . How v r,
a consid rabl amount of dirt or dust must b pr s nt on th optical
surfac b for you will notic th ff ct visually. Follow th s
sugg stions to maintain your t l scop ’s optics in th b st possibl
condition:
1. K p th dust caps on during storag of th t l scop to r duc th
amount of dust coll ct d.
2. Aft r using th t l scop th r may b cond nsation on th
optical surfac s. Wh n th t l scop is brought insid , r mov
th dust caps and allow th moistur to vaporat naturally.
Point th optical tub downwards so as to minimiz th
coll ction of airborn dust. Onc th moistur has vaporat d,
r plac th dust caps.
3. A small amount of dust on optical surfac s, do s not n d to b
r mov d. A build-up of dirt or dust coll ct d onto a l ns should
only b r mov d with th utmost car . If you wish to r mov a
build-up of dust from th l ns s, you should first try using a can
of filt r d compr ss d air. R mov th dust cap and th d w
shi ld. Onc you ar abl to fr ly blow across th surfac of th
optics, b gin by first pointing th can away from th pi c and
g ntly xp l som air. This will r mov any cond nsat in th air
can lin s and cl ar off dust that may hav accumulat d on th
discharg tub . N xt, using short quick bursts of air car fully
r mov th dust particl s. Do not hold the trigger o the
compressed air or too long as condensate might be blown out
across the optical sur ace.
Th optics of your t l scop should last a long tim b for th y g n rally
r quir major cl aning. By k ping th dust caps on and avoiding th
t mptation to handl th l ns s, you will find that v ry littl is n d d in
th way of optical maint nanc .