ORION TELESCOPES & BINOCULARS Atlas EQ Mount 9830 User manual

INSTRUCTION MANUAL
IN 177 Rev. A 11/02
Providing Exceptional Consumer Optical Products Since 1975
Customer Support [phone]
E-mail: [email protected]
Corporate Offices [phone]
P.O. Box 1815, Santa Cruz, CA 95061
Orion®
Atlas™EQ Mount
#9830

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Figure 1. The Atlas EQ Mount.
Tube ring mounting plate
Tube ring mounting plate
lock knobs (2)
Dec. lock lever
Dec. setting circle
Front opening
Counterweight shaft
lock lever
Counterweight shaft
Counterweights
Counterweight
lock knobs
“Toe Saver”
Tripod leg
Leg lock levers
Power indicator light
Power cord jack
Hand controller jack
R.A. setting circle
R.A. lock lever
Latitude scale
Latitude adjustment L-bolts
Center support shaft
(not shown)
Hand controller
Tripod support tray

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Table of Contents
1. Unpacking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
2. Parts List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
3. Assembly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
4. Attaching a Telescope . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
5. Balancing a Telescope . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
6. Setting Up and Using the
Equatorial Mount . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
7. Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
1. Unpacking
The entire mount will arrive in two boxes, one containing the
tripod, the other containing the equatorial mount. Be careful
unpacking the boxes.We recommend keeping the boxes and
original packaging. In the event that the mount needs to be
shipped to another location, or returned to Orion for warranty
repair, having the proper packaging will ensure that your
mount will survive the journey intact.
Make sure all the parts in the Parts List are present. Be sure to
check box carefully, as some parts are small.If anything appears
to be missing or broken, immediately call Orion Customer
Support (800-676-1343) or email suppor[email protected] for
assistance.
2. Parts List
1 Tripod
1 Equatorial mount
1 Tube ring mounting plate
2 Counterweights
1 Tripod support tray
1 Hand controller (with control cable)
1 Battery pack (with power cord)
3. Assembly
1. Stand the tripod legs upright and spread the legs out as far
as they will go. Make certain that the leg lock levers are
tightened. Keep the tripod legs at their shortest (fully
retracted) length, for now; you can extend them to a more
desirable length later, after the scope is fully assembled.
2. Place the base of the equatorial mount onto the tripod
head. Orient the equatorial mount so that the post on the
tripod head lines up with the azimuth adjustment knobs on
the equatorial mount (Figure 2).You may need to loosen
the azimuth adjustment knobs on the equatorial mount in
order to fit the mount onto the tripod head.
3. Remove the knob and washer from the bottom of the cen-
ter support shaft. Slide the tripod support tray up the bot-
tom of the central support shaft until the three tray arms
are touching the legs of the tripod.The flat side of the sup-
port tray should be facing up. Make sure the “V” of each
tray arm is against a tripod leg. Place the knob washer on
the center support shaft against the tray, and follow it by
threading the securing knob all the way up the center sup-
port shaft until it is tight against the tray.The tripod support
tray provides additional stability for the tripod, and holds up
to five 1.25" eyepieces and two 2" eyepieces.
4. Loosen the counterweight shaft lock lever and fully extend
the counterweight shaft.Retighten the lock lever.
5. Remove the knurled “toe saver” retaining screw on the bot-
tom of the counterweight shaft and slide both counter-
weights onto the shaft. Make sure the counterweight lock
knobs are adequately loosened to allow the counterweight
shaft to pass through the hole.Position the counterweights
about halfway up the shaft and tighten the lock knobs.
Replace the toe saver at the end of the bar. The toe saver
Congratulations on your purchase of a quality Orion mount.Your new Atlas Equatorial Mount works with
many different telescope optical tubes. Designed for astronomical use, this precision mount allows con-
venient “tracking” of celestial objects with its built-in motor drives.The setting circles built into the mount
will assist you in locating hundreds of fascinating celestial denizens, including galaxies, nebulas, and star
clusters, from their catalogued coordinates. With a little practice, you’ll find that the Atlas Equatorial
Mount is an invaluable tool for getting the most out of your astronomical observing sessions.
These instructions will help you set up and properly use your equatorial mount. Please read them over
thoroughly before getting started.
Warning: Never look at the sun with your telescope
or its finderscope—even for an instant—without
a professionally made solar filter that completely
covers the front of the instrument, or permanent
eye damage could result.
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prevents the counterweights from falling on your foot if the
lock knobs happen to come loose.
6. Insert the plug on the end of the hand controller’s cable
into the jack on the side of the EQ mount.
7. Insert eight D-cell batteries into the battery pack.Insert the
plug on the end of the the battery pack’s cord into its jack
on the mount.
Your Atlas EQ mount is now fully assembled and should
resemble Figure 1.
Note about the Atlas EQ mount Weight: The Atlas EQ
mount is very heavy. Alone it weighs 54 lbs.With a large opti-
cal tube and counterweights it can easily weigh over 100 lbs.
Keep this in mind when moving the telescope even small dis-
tances, and use assistance when needed.It is best to remove
the optical tube and counterweights when moving the mount.
4. Attaching a Telescope
The Atlas equatorial mount is designed to hold telescope
tubes weighing up to approximately 40 lbs. For heavier tele-
scopes, the mount may not provide sufficient stability for
steady imaging.Any type of telescope can be mounted on the
Atlas, including refractors, Newtonian reflectors, and cata-
diotropics, provided a set of tube rings is available to couple
the tube to the mount. Orion sells a variety of telescope tube
rings. Please visit our website at telescope.com for details.
1. Attach the tube mounting rings to the tube mounting plate
using the attachment screws that come with the tube rings.
The screws should go through the holes in the outer ends
of the mounting plate and rethread into the tube rings.
Note that the side of the mounting plate with the central
“groove”will be facing up. Use a small wrench to secure
the tube rings to the mounting plate.
2. Loosen the black mounting plate securing knobs on the
top of the equatorial mount. Place the mounting plate, with
the tube rings attached, in the slot on top of the equatorial
mount.Position the mounting plate so that it is centered on
the slot.Re-tighten the mounting plate securing knobs until
the plate is secure.
3. Open the tube rings and lay the telescope optical tube in
the rings at about the midpoint of the tube’s length. Rotate
the tube so that the focuser is at a convenient height for
viewing.Close the tube rings and tighten them.
5. Balancing a Telescope
To ensure smooth movement of a telescope on both axes of
the equatorial mount, it is imperative that the optical tube is
properly balanced. We will first balance the telescope with
respect to the right ascension (R.A.) axis, then the declination
(Dec.) axis.
1. Keeping one hand on the telescope optical tube, loosen
the R.A.lock lever.Make sure the Dec.lock lever is locked,
for now. The telescope should now be able to rotate freely
about the right ascension axis. Rotate it until the counter-
weight shaft is parallel to the ground (i.e., horizontal).
2. Now loosen both counterweight lock knobs and slide the
weights along the shaft until they exactly counterbalance
the telescope (Figure 3a). That’s the point at which the
shaft remains horizontal even when you let go with both
hands (Figure 3b).If the telescope refuses to balance than
you have either too much or too little counterweight.
Remove a counterweight, or add optional counterweights
if needed.
3. Retighten the counterweight lock knobs. The telescope is
now balanced on the right ascension axis.
Figure 2. Orient the equatorial head so that the post on the tripod
lines up with the azimuth adjustment knobs on the equatorial mount.
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Azimuth
adjustment
knobs
Post
Figure 3a-d. Proper operation of the equatorial mount requires
that the telescope tube be balanced on the R.A. and Dec. axes. (a)
With the R.A. lock lever released, slide the counterweights down the
counterweight shaft until they just counterbalance the telescope
tube. (b) When you let go with both hands, the tube should not drift
up or down. (c) With the Dec. lock lever released, loosen the tube
ring lock clamps a few turns and slide the telescope forward or back
in the tube rings. (d) When the tube is balanced about the Dec. axis,
it will not move when you let go.
a. b.
c. d.

4. To balance the telescope on the declination axis, first tight-
en the R.A. lock lever, with the counterweight shaft still in
the horizontal position.
5. With one hand on the telescope optical tube, loosen the
Dec.lock lever.The telescope should now be able to rotate
freely about the declination axis.
6. Loosen the knurled ring clamps on the tube rings a few
turns, until you can slide the telescope tube forward and
back inside the rings (this can be aided by using a slight
twisting motion on the optical tube while you push or pull
on it) (Figure 3c).
7. Position the telescope in the tube rings so it remains hori-
zontal when you carefully let go with both hands. This is
the balance point for the optical tube with respect to the
Dec. axis (Figure 3d).
8. Retighten the knurled rings clamps.
The telescope is now balanced on both axes. When you
loosen the lock lever on one or both axes and manually point
the telescope, it should move without resistance and should
not drift from where you point it.
6. Setting Up and Using the
Equatorial Mount
When you look at the night sky, you no doubt have noticed
that the stars appear to move slowly from east to west over
time.That apparent motion is caused by the Earth’s rotation
(from west to east). An equatorial mount (Figure 4) is
designed to compensate for that motion, allowing you to easi-
ly “track”the movement of astronomical objects, thereby keep-
ing them from drifting out of your telescope’s field of view
while you’re observing.
This is accomplished by slowly rotating the telescope on its
right ascension (R.A.) axis, using the built in motor drive. But
first the R.A.axis of the mount must be aligned with the Earth’s
rotational (polar) axis—a process called polar alignment.
Polar Alignment
For Northern Hemisphere observers, approximate polar align-
ment is achieved by pointing the mount’s right ascension axis
at the North Star, or Polaris.It lies within 1°of the north celes-
tial pole (NCP), which is an extension of the Earth’s rotational
axis out into space.Stars in the Northern Hemisphere appear
to revolve around the NCP.
To find Polaris in the sky, look north and locate the pattern of
the Big Dipper (Figure 5). The two stars at the end of the
“bowl”of the Big Dipper point right to Polaris.
Observers in the Southern Hemisphere aren’t so fortunate to
have a bright star so near the south celestial pole (SCP).The
star Sigma Octantis lies about 1°from the SCP, but it is barely
visible with the naked eye (magnitude 5.5).
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Figure 4. The Atlas EQ Mount.
Dec. lock lever
Dec. setting circle
Front opening
Azimuth adjustment knobs (2)
R.A. setting circle
R.A. lock lever
Polar axis finder
scope
Latitude scale
Latitude
adjustment L-bolts
Figure 5. To find Polaris in the night sky, look north and find the
Big Dipper. Extend an imaginary line from the two “Pointer Stars”in
the bowl of the Big Dipper. Go about five times the distance between
those stars and you'll reach Polaris, which lies within 1°of the north
celestial pole (NCP).
Big Dipper
(in Ursa Major)
Little Dipper
(in Ursa Minor)
Cassiopeia
N.C.P.
Pointer
Stars
Polaris
Right
Ascension
(R.A.) axis
Declination (Dec.) axis
Right
Ascension
(R.A.) axis
Declination(Dec.) axis

For general visual observation, an approximate polar align-
ment is sufficient.
1. Level the equatorial mount by adjusting the length of the
three tripod legs.
2. There are two latitude adjustment L-bolts (see Figure 4);
loosen one while tightening the other.By doing this you will
adjust the latitude of the mount. Continue adjusting the
mount until the pointer on the latitude scale is set at the lat-
itude of your observing site.If you don’t know your latitude,
consult a geographical atlas to find it. For example, if your
latitude is 35°North, set the pointer to 35.The latitude set-
ting should not have to be adjusted again unless you move
to a different viewing location some distance away.
3. Loosen the Dec. lock lever and rotate the telescope’s opti-
cal tube until it is parallel with the right ascension axis, as
it is in Figure 4.
4. Move the tripod so the telescope tube and right ascension
axis point roughly at Polaris. If you cannot see Polaris
directly from your observing site, consult a compass and
rotate the tripod so the telescope points north.
The equatorial mount is now polar aligned for casual observ-
ing. More precise polar alignment is recommended for
astrophotography. For this we recommend using the optional
polar axis finder scope
From this point on in your observing session, you should not
make any further adjustments to the latitude of the mount, nor
should you move the tripod.Doing so will undo the polar align-
ment.The telescope should be moved only about its R.A. and
Dec. axes.
Using Polar Alignment Using Axis Finder Scope
The Atlas EQ mount comes with a polar axis finder scope
(Figure 6) housed inside the right ascension axis of the
mount. When properly aligned and used, it makes accurate
polar alignment quick and easy to do. Unthread the cap at the
base of the mount’s right ascension axis to view through the
polar axis finder scope.
Alignment of the Polar Axis Finder Scope
1. Loosen the Dec. lock lever and rotate the optical tube on
the declination axis so that the tube is at a 90°to the right
ascension axis (Figure 7).Tighten the Dec.lock lever.
2. Look through the polar finder at a distant object (during the
day) and center it in the crosshairs.You may need to adjust
the latitude adjustment L-bolts and the tripod position to do
this.
3. Rotate the mount 180°about the R.A. axis. It may be con-
venient to remove the counterweights and optical tube
before doing this.
4. Look through the polar finder again. Is the object being
viewed still centered on the crosshairs? If it is, then no fur-
ther adjustment is necessary. If not, then look through the
polar finder while rotating the mount about the R.A. axis.
You will notice that the object you have previously centered
moves in a circular path. Use the three alignment set-
screws on the polar axis finder (Figure 7) to redirect the
crosshairs of the polar finder to the apparent center of this
circular path. Repeat this procedure until the position that
the crosshairs point to does not rotate off-center when the
mount is rotated in R.A.
The polar axis finder scope is now ready to be used. When
not in use, replace the plastic protective cover to prevent the
polar finder from getting bumped.
Using the Polar Axis Finder Scope
The reticle of the polar axis finder scope for the Atlas has a
tiny star map printed on it that makes precise polar alignment
quick and easy.To align the mount using the polar axis finder
scope, follow these instructions:
1. Approximately polar-align the mount as outlined in the pro-
cedure above.
2. Loosen the Dec. lock lever and rotate the optical tube on
the declination axis so that the tube is at a 90°to the right
ascension axis (Figure 7).Tighten the Dec.lock lever.
3. Remove the cap on the front opening of the equatorial
mount (Figure 4). Focus the polar finder by rotating the
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Figure 6. The optional polar axis finder scope.
Eyepiece
focus ring Alignment setscrew (3) Focus
lock ring Objective lens
Figure 7. The optical tube must be at a 90°angle to the R.A. axis
in order to view through the polar axis finder.

eyepiece. Now, sight Polaris in the polar axis finder scope.
If you have followed the approximate polar alignment pro-
cedure accurately, Polaris will probably be within the field
of view. If not, move the tripod left-to-right, and adjust the
latitude up-and down until Polaris is somewhere within the
field of view of the polar axis finder scope.
4. Shine a red flashlight down the front end of the polar find-
er to illuminate the reticle within the field of view. Make
sure the flashlight shines in at an angle, so as not to block
the polar finder’s field of view. It may be helpful to have a
friend hold the flashlight while you look through the polar
finder. Note the constellation Cassiopeia and the Big
Dipper in the reticle.They do not appear in scale, but they
indicate the general positions of Cassiopeia and the Big
Dipper relative to the north celestial pole (which is indicat-
ed by the cross at the center of the reticle).Rotate the reti-
cle so the constellations depicted match their current ori-
entation in they sky when viewed with the naked eye.To do
this, release the R.A. lock lever and rotate the main tele-
scope around the R.A. axis until the reticle is oriented with
sky. For larger optical tubes, you may need to remove the
tube from the mount to prevent it from bumping into the
mount. Once the reticle is correctly oriented, use the right
ascension lock lever to secure the mount’s position.
5. Now use the azimuth adjustment knobs (Figure 2) and the
latitude adjustment L-bolts (Figure 5) on the mount to posi-
tion the star Polaris inside the tiny circle marked “Polaris”
on the finder’s reticle.You must first loosen the knob under-
neath the equatorial mount on the center support shaft to
use the azimuth adjustment knobs.Once Polaris is proper-
ly positioned within the reticle, you are precisely polar
aligned. Retighten the knob underneath the equatorial
mount.
If you do not have a clear view of Polaris from your observing
site, you will not be able to use the polar-axis finder to pre-
cisely polar align the telescope.
Note: From this point on in your observing session, you
should not make any further adjustments in the azimuth
or the latitude of the mount, nor should you move the tri-
pod. Doing so will undo the polar alignment. The tele-
scope should be moved only about its right ascension
and declination axes.
Additional Note Regarding Focusing the Polar
Axis Finder Scope
The polar axis finder scope is normally focused by simply
rotating the eyepiece focus ring.However, if after adjusting the
focus ring you find that the image of the reticle is sharp, but
the stars are out of focus, then you must adjust the focus of
the polar axis finder’s objective lens.To do this, first remove
the polar axis finder from the mount. Look through the polar
axis finder at a star (at night) or distant object at least 1/4 mile
away (during daylight). Use the eyepiece focus ring to bring
the reticle into sharp focus. Now, loosen the focus lock ring
(Figure 6) and thread the entire objective end of the finder
inward or outward until images appear sharp. Re-tighten the
focus lock ring. Once the polar axis finder’s objective lens is
focused, it should not need to be adjusted again.
Operation of the Atlas Mount Motor Drives
The Atlas EQ mount comes with dual built-in motor drives.
These motor drives will be used to “track”objects in the night
sky, as well as to make minute adjustments when aiming the
telescope.The motors are controlled from the hand controller
(Figure 8). To start the drives, flip the power switch on the
hand controller to “N”if you live in the northern hemisphere, or
“S”if you live in the southern hemisphere.When you flip the
power switch, the power indicator light on the mount will glow
red and the power indicator light on the hand controller will
glow green. Your mount will now be moving at the sidereal
rate, which is the same rate as the sky’s apparent motion.
To move your telescope to a new object, loosen both the R.A.
and Dec. lock levers and move the telescope until it is pointed
in the general direction of the object you wish to view.
Retighten the R.A and Dec.lock levers.To center the object in
the eyepiece’s field of view, you will need to use the hand con-
troller.
There are four pushbuttons on the hand controller. If no but-
tons are pushed, the R.A. motor will turn on the R.A. axis at
sidereal rate to track the motion of the night sky. The left and
right buttons move the mount about its R.A. axis, and the up
and down buttons move the mount about its Dec. axis. The
rate of speed is determined by the rate switch at the top right
of the hand controller. If the switch is at the 2x position, the
mount will move at two times sidereal rate when the right hand
button is pushed, which will cause objects to viewed in the
eyepiece to move slowly eastward. If the left button is pushed,
the drive will stop turning, which will cause objects in the eye-
piece to move slowly westward.The top and bottom bottoms
will cause the telescope to move in Declination at the 2x
speed. Similarly, if the switch is at the 8x or 16x position, the
mount will move four times or eight times sidereal when a but-
ton is pushed.
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Figure 8. The Atlas EQ Mount hand controller.
Indicator light
R.A.
pushbuttons
Reverse
switches
Dec.
pushbuttons
Power switch Rate switch

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The 2x sidereal rate is the best setting for making guiding cor-
rections during long-exposure astrophotography.The 8x and
16x rates are best for centering an object within the tele-
scope’s eyepiece.
Note that whenever any of the four buttons on the hand con-
troller are pressed, the LED in the center of the controller will
shine red; when the button is released, the LED will be green.
Also, when the LED starts to blink at a constant rate, its time
to change the batteries in the battery pack.
Using the R.A. and Dec. Reversal Switches
On the side of the hand controller, there are two reversal
switches, one for the R.A. axis, and one for the Dec. axis.
When these switches are flipped to the “REV”setting, the
pushbuttons on the hand controller will be reversed. The
reversal switches allow you to orient the pushbuttons to the
direction of apparent movement of a guide star in a guide
scope.
Understanding the Setting Circles
The setting circles on an equatorial mount (Figure 9) enable
you to locate celestial objects by their “celestial coordinates”.
Every object resides in a specific location on the “celestial
sphere”. That location is denoted by two numbers: its right
ascension (R.A.) and declination (Dec.). In the same way,
every location on Earth can be described by its longitude and
latitude. Right ascension is similar to longitude on Earth, and
declination is similar to latitude.The R.A. and Dec. values for
celestial objects can be found in any star atlas or star catalog.
The R.A. setting circle is scaled in hours, from 1 through 24,
with small marks in between representing 10-minute incre-
ments (there are 60 minutes in 1 hour of right ascension).The
lower set of numbers apply to viewing in the Northern
Hemisphere, while the numbers above them apply to viewing
in the Southern Hemisphere.
The Dec. setting circle is scaled in degrees, with each mark
representing 2°increments.Values of declination coordinates
range from +90°to -90°. The 0°mark indicates the celestial
equator. When the telescope is pointed north of the celestial
equator, values of the declination setting circle are positive;
when the telescope is pointed south of the celestial equator,
values of the declination setting circle are negative.
So, the coordinates for the Orion Nebula listed in a star atlas
will look like this:
R.A. 5h 35.4m Dec. –5° 27'
That’s 5 hours and 35.4 minutes in right ascension, and -5
degrees and 27 arc-minutes in declination (there are 60 arc-
minutes in 1 degree of declination).
Before you can use the setting circles to locate objects, the
mount must be accurately polar aligned, and the setting cir-
cles must be calibrated.
Calibrating the Declination Setting Circle
1. Loosen the Dec. lock lever and position the telescope as
accurately as possible in declination so it is parallel to the
R.A. axis as shown in Figure 3. Re-tighten the lock lever.
2. Loosen one of the thumbscrews on the Dec. setting circle,
this will allow the setting circle to rotate freely. Rotate the
Dec. setting circle until the pointer reads exactly 90°.Re-
tighten the setting circle thumbscrew.
Calibrating the Right Ascension Setting Circle
1. Identify a bright star in the sky near the celestial equator
(declination = 0°) and look up its coordinates in a star
atlas.
2. Loosen the R.A. and Dec. lock levers on the equatorial
mount, so the telescope optical tube can move freely.
3. Point the telescope at the bright star whose coordinates
you know. Lock the R.A. and Dec. lock levers. Center the
star in the telescope’s field of view with the hand controller.
4. Loosen one of the R.A. setting circle thumbscrews (see
Figure 9) this will allow the setting circle to rotate freely.
Rotate the setting circle until the R.A. pointer arrow indi-
cates the R.A. coordinate listed in the star atlas for the
object. Re-tighten the setting circle thumbscrew.
Finding Objects With the Setting Circles
Now that both setting circles are calibrated, look up in a star
atlas the coordinates of an object you wish to view.
1. Loosen the Dec. lock lever and rotate the telescope until
the declination value from the star atlas matches the read-
ing on the Dec.setting circle.Remember that values of the
Dec.setting circle are positive when the telescope is point-
ing north of the celestial equator (Dec. = 0°), and negative
when the telescope is pointing south of the celestial equa-
tor. Retighten the lock lever.
Figure 9. The R.A. and Dec. setting circles.
Dec. setting circle
Dec. setting circle
thumbscrew (2)
Dec. indicator arrow
R.A. setting circle
R.A. indicator arrow
R.A. setting circle
thumbscrew
(2)

9
2. Loosen the R.A. lock lever and rotate the telescope until
the right ascension value from the star atlas matches the
reading on the R.A. setting circle. Remember to use the
lower set of numbers on the R.A. setting circle. Retighten
the lock lever.
Most setting circles are not accurate enough to put an object
dead-center in the telescope’s eyepiece, but they should
place the object somewhere within the field of view of the tele-
scope’s finder scope, assuming the equatorial mount is accu-
rately polar aligned. Use the hand controller to center the
object in the finder scope, and it should appear in the tele-
scope’s field of view.
The setting circles must be re-calibrated every time you wish
to locate a new object. Do so by calibrating the setting circles
for the centered object before moving on to the next one.
Confused About Pointing the Telescope?
Beginners occasionally experience some confusion about
how to point the telescope overhead or in other directions. In
Figure 1 the telescope is pointed north as it would be during
polar alignment. The counterweight shaft is oriented down-
ward. But it will not look like that when the telescope is point-
ed in other directions.Let’s say you want to view an object that
is directly overhead, at the zenith. How do you do it?
DO NOT make any adjustment to the latitude adjustment L-
bolts.That will spoil the mount’s polar alignment. Remember,
once the mount is polar aligned, the telescope should be
moved only on the R.A. and Dec. axes. To point the scope
overhead, first loosen the R.A. lock lever and rotate the tele-
scope on the right ascension axis until the counterweight shaft
is horizontal (parallel to the ground). Then loosen the Dec.
lock lever and rotate the telescope until it is pointing straight
overhead. The counterweight shaft is still horizontal. Then
retighten both lock levers.
What if you need to aim the telescope directly north, but at an
object that is nearer to the horizon than Polaris? You can’t do
it with the counterweights down as pictured in Figure 1.Again,
you have to rotate the scope in right ascension so that the
counterweight shaft is positioned horizontally.Then rotate the
scope in declination so it points to where you want it near the
horizon.
To point the telescope directly south, the counterweight shaft
should again be horizontal.Then you simply rotate the scope
on the declination axis until it points in the south direction.
To point the telescope to the east or west, or in other direc-
tions, you rotate the telescope on its right ascension and dec-
lination axes.Depending on the altitude of the object you want
to observe, the counterweight shaft will be oriented some-
where between vertical and horizontal.
Figure 10 illustrates how the telescope will look when pointed
at the four cardinal directions: north, south, east and west.
The key things to remember when pointing the telescope are
that a) you only move it in right ascension and declination, not
in azimuth or latitude (altitude), and b) the counterweight and
shaft will not always appear as it does in Figure 1. In fact it
almost never will!
7. Specifications
Mount: German equatorial
Tripod: Steel
Weight: 54 lbs.
Counterweights: Quantity 2, 11 lbs. each
Setting circles: R.A. scaled in 10 min. increments, Dec.
scaled in 2°increments for N or S hemisphere
Polar axis latitude adjustment: 10°to 65°
Polar axis finder scope: Included
Motor drives: Dual-axis, internally housed
Power requirements: 12V DC
Battery type: Eight D-cells
Operation: Northern or Southern hemisphere
Guiding rates: Sidereal ±100% sidereal
Centering rates: ±8x sidereal, ±16x sidereal
Figure 10a-d. These illustrations show the telescope pointed in the four cardinal directions. (a) north, (b) south, (c) east, (d) west. Note
that the tripod and mount have not been moved; only the telescope has been moved on the its R.A. and Dec. axes.
a. b. c. d.

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