ORION TELESCOPES & BINOCULARS SkyView Pro 80mm ED EQ 9884 User manual

IN 223 Rev. A 12/03
Providing Exceptional Consumer Optical Products Since 1975
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INSTRUCTION MANUAL
Orion®
SkyView™ Pro 80mm ED EQ
Equatorial Apochromatic Refractor Telescope
#9884

2
Figure 1.The SkyView Pro 80mm ED EQ
Tube ring mounting plate
Declination slow-motion
control knob
Declination lock knob
Right ascension
lock knob
Right ascension slow-
motion control knob
Counterweight shaft
Counterweight
Counterweight
lock knob
“Toe saver”
Eyepiece
1.25"
Adapter
Finder scope Finder scope bracket 1/4"-20 Mounting block Tube ring
2" Star diagonal Focus knob
Latitude adjustment
L-bolts
Tripod support
tray
Tube ring

3
Congratulations on your purchase of a quality Orion telescope.Your new SkyView Pro 80mm ED EQ is
an exceptional instrument for observing and imaging astronomical objects.The ED glass of the objective
lens ensures you’ll enjoy star, Moon, and planetary images with far less color distortion than seen in
standard refractors. Other features, such as the smooth Crayford focuser, precision machined lens cell,
and deluxe aluminum focusing wheels also attest to the overall high quality of the telescope.With the
sturdy SkyView Pro equatorial mount, you’ll be able to enjoy steady viewing of thousands of the night
sky’s fascinating celestial targets.
These instructions will help you set up, properly use, and care for your telescope.Please read them over
thoroughly before getting started.
Table of Contents
1. Unpacking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3
2. Parts List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3
3. Assembly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3
4. Balancing the Telescope . . . . . . . . . . . . .5
5. UsingYour Telescope . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6
6. Setting Up and Using the
Equatorial Mount . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8
7. Astronomical Observing . . . . . . . . . . . .12
8. Terrestrial Observing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15
9. Astrophotography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15
10. Care and Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . .16
11. Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17
1. Unpacking
The SkyView Pro 80mm ED EQ will arrive in one box;be care-
ful unpacking the box.We recommend keeping the box and all
original packaging.In the event that the telescope needs to be
shipped to another location, or returned to Orion for warranty
repair, having the proper box and packaging will help ensure
that your telescope will survive the journey intact.
Make sure all the parts in the Parts List are present.Be sure to
check each 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 support@tele-
scope.com for assistance.
2. Parts List
Box #1: Optical Tube Assembly and Accessories
Qty. Description
1 Tripod
1 Equatorial mount
1 Tripod support tray
1 Central support shaft (attached to tripod)
1 Tube ring mounting plate
2 Tube rings with mounting screws
1 Counterweight shaft
1 Counterweight
2 Slow-motion control knobs
1 R.A. axis rear cover
2 Latitude adjustment L-bolts
1 Optical tube assembly
1 25mm Sirius Plössl eyepiece, 1.25" barrel diameter
1 10mm Sirius Plössl eyepiece, 1.25" barrel diameter
1 2" Star diagonal with 1.25" adapter
1 6x30 Finder scope
1 Finder scope bracket with O-ring
1 Dust cover (attached to optical tube)
1 Camera adapter (attached to optical tube)
1 Small crescent wrench
3. Assembly
Assembling the telescope for the first time should take about
30 minutes.No tools are needed other than the provided cres-
cent wrench. All screws should be tightened securely, but be
careful not to over-tighten or the threads may strip. Refer to
Figure 1 during the assembly process.
During assembly (and anytime, for that matter), do not touch
the surfaces of the lenses of the telescope, finder scope, or
eyepieces with your fingers.The optical surfaces have delicate
coatings on them that can easily be damaged if touched inap-
propriately. Never remove any lens assembly from its housing
for any reason, or the product warranty and return policy will
be voided.
WARNING: Never look directly at the Sun
through your telescope or its finder scope—even
for an instant—without a professionally made
solar filter that completely covers the front of the
instrument, or permanent eye damage could
result.Young children should use this telescope
only with adult supervision.

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1. Stand the tripod legs upright and spread the legs out as far
as they will go. 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 into 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.Thread the central support shaft into the equatorial mount
until tight.This will secure the equatorial mount to the tripod
head.
4. 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 accesso-
ry tray should be facing up.Make sure the “V” of each tray
arm is against a tripod leg. Place the washer back on the
center support shaft against the tray, and thread the secur-
ing knob all the way up the center support shaft until it is
tight against the tray.The tripod support tray provides addi-
tional stability for the tripod, and holds five 1.25" eyepieces
and two 2" eyepieces.
5.Thread the latitude adjustment L-bolts into the equatorial
mount where shown in Figure 1.Thread one L-bolt in about
halfway, then thread the other L-bolt in until tight.
6.Thread the counterweight shaft into the equatorial mount at
the base of the declination axis until tight. Make sure the
casting at the top of the shaft is threaded clockwise as far
as it will go before attaching the shaft. Once the shaft is
installed, turn the casting counter-clockwise until the top of
the casting is flush with the mount.
7. Remove the knurled “toe saver” retaining screw on the bot-
tom of the counterweight shaft and slide the counterweight
onto the shaft. Make sure the counterweight lock knob is
adequately loosened to allow the counterweight shaft to
pass through the hole. Position the counterweight about
halfway up the shaft and tighten the lock knob.Replace the
toe saver at the end of the bar. The toe saver prevents the
counterweight from falling on your foot if the lock knob hap-
pens to come loose.
8.Attach the slow-motion control knobs to the right ascension
and declination worm gear shafts of the equatorial mount
by sliding them onto the shafts. Line up the flat on the end
of the shaft with the corresponding feature on the interior of
the knob to connect them properly. The knobs can be
attached to either end of the shafts; use whichever end is
most convenient.
9. Attach the tube mounting rings to the tube ring mounting
plate using the attachment screws that are on the tube
rings.The screws should go through the holes on 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 the small crescent wrench
to secure the tube rings to the mounting plate.
10.Loosen the black mounting plate securing knob as well as
the metal safety screw on the top of the equatorial mount.
Place the tube ring mounting plate, with the tube rings
attached, in the dovetail slot on top of the equatorial mount.
Position the mounting plate so that it is centered on the
dovetail slot. Re-tighten the mounting plate securing knob
until the mounting plate is secure.Then, tighten the safety
screw.The safety screw will ensure that the mounting plate
(and telescope tube) will not fall off the EQ mount if the
mounting plate securing knob should come loose.
11. Lay the telescope optical tube in the tube rings at about
the midpoint of the tube’s length.Center the 1/4"-20 mount-
ing block on the optical tube relative to the tube rings.
Positioning the optical tube this way will automatically bal-
ance the telescope in declination (see section 4). Rotate
the optical tube so that the focus wheels are pointed down.
Close the rings over the tube and tighten the knurled ring
clamps finger-tight to secure the telescope in position.
Installing the Finder Scope
To place the finder scope (Figure 3a) in the finder scope
bracket, unthread the two black nylon screws until the screw
ends are flush with the inside diameter of the bracket. Place
the O-ring that comes on the base of the bracket over the
body of the finder scope until it seats into the slot on the mid-
dle of the finder scope. Slide the eyepiece end (narrow end)
of the finder scope into the end of the bracket’s cylinder oppo-
site the adjustment screws while pulling the chrome,
spring-loaded tensioner on the bracket with your fingers
(Figure 3b). Push the finder scope through the bracket until
the O-ring seats just inside the front opening of the bracket
cylinder. Release the tensioner and tighten the two black
nylon screws a couple of turns each to secure the finder
scope in place. Insert the base of the finder scope bracket
into the dovetail holder on top of the focuser.Lock the bracket
into position by tightening the knurled thumb screw on the
dovetail holder.
Figure 2. Orient the equatorial mount so that the post on the
tripod head lines up with the azimuth adjustment knobs on the
equatorial mount.
Post
Azimuth
adjustment
knobs

5
Inserting the Diagonal and Eyepiece
The SkyView Pro 80mm ED EQ comes with a camera
adapter attached to its focuser drawtube. Loosen the two
thumb screws securing the camera adapter to the focuser
drawtube and remove the camera adapter (see Figure 4).
Insert the chrome barrel of the star diagonal into the focuser
and secure it with the thumb screws on the drawtube.The star
diagonal comes with a 1.25" adapter in it; this part allows for
use of 1.25" barrel diameter eyepieces in the 2" diameter
diagonal (see Figure 5). Make sure the 1.25" adapter is
secure in the diagonal by tightening the thumb screw on the
diagonal. Loosen the thumb screw on the 1.25" adapter and
insert the barrel of the 25mm eyepiece into it.Secure the eye-
piece with the thumb screw on the 1.25" adapter.
Your telescope is now completely assembled and should
appear as shown in Figure 1.
4. Balancing the Telescope
To ensure smooth movement of the telescope on both axes of
the equatorial mount, it is imperative that the optical tube is
properly balanced. You will only need to balance the tele-
scope with respect to the right ascension (R.A.) axis; the
telescope should be balanced on the declination (Dec.) axis
already if you have properly centered the 1/4"-20 mounting
block on the optical tube relative to the tube rings.
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. Loosen the counterweight lock knob and slide the weight
along the shaft until it exactly counterbalances the tele-
scope (Figure 6a). That’s the point at which the shaft
remains horizontal even when you let go with both hands
(Figure 6b).
Finder scope
Finder scope bracket Nylon
alignment
thumbscrews
(2)
Focus lock ring
Figure 3b.
Pull back on
the tensioner
and slide the
finder scope
into its bracket
until the O-ring
is seated in the
bracket ring.
Figure 3a. The 6x30 finder scope.
Tensioner
Figure 4. Before installing the 2" star diagonal, you must remove
the camera adapter that comes attached to the telescope.
Focuser drawtube Thumb screws
Figure 5a. and 5b. To use 1.25" barrel diameter eyepieces,
the 1.25" adapter must be installed in the 2" star diagonal. 5b.To
use 2" eyepieces, remove the 1.25" adapter.
1.25" Barrel diameter eyepiece
5a. 5b.
Camera adapter
2" Star diagonal
1.25" Adapter 2" Barrel diameter eyepiece
(optional)

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3. Retighten the counterweight lock knob. The telescope is
now balanced on the right ascension axis.
Now when you loosen the lock lever on one or both axes and
manually point the telescope, it should move without resist-
ance and should not drift from where you point it.
5. Using Your Telescope
This section will get you used to the functions and features of
your new telescope.
Focusing the Telescope
With the 25mm eyepiece inserted in the diagonal, move the
telescope so the front (open) end is pointing in the general
direction of an object at least 1/4-mile away. Now, with your
fingers, slowly rotate one of the focus knobs until the object
comes into sharp focus.Go a little bit beyond sharp focus until
the image just starts to blur again, then reverse the rotation of
the knob, just to make sure you’ve hit the exact focus point.
Note: The image in the telescope will appear reversed
left-to-right..This is normal for astronomical telescopes
that utilize a star diagonal.The finder scope view will be
rotated 180°. (Figure 7)
If you have trouble focusing, rotate the focus knob so the
drawtube is in as far as it will go. Now look through the eye-
piece while slowly rotating the focus knob in the opposite
direction. You should soon see the point at which focus is
reached.
Note About the Crayford Focuser
The SkyView Pro 80mm ED EQ comes equipped with a
Crayford focuser.The Crayford design allows for smooth, pre-
cise focusing without any image shift that typical
rack-and-pinion designs experience.If you find that the focus
knobs are too tight or too loose, you can make adjustments to
the focuser tension by using the focuser tension thumb screw
located on the bottom of the optical tube. Make adjustments
to this thumb screw until the focuser motion feels comfortable,
but you must have at least some tension applied to the
focuser drawtube, or else it will not move when you turn the
focus knobs.
Viewing with Eyeglasses
If you wear eyeglasses, you may able to keep them on while
you observe, if the eyepiece has enough "eye relief" to allow
you to see the whole field of view.You can try this by looking
through the eyepiece first with your glasses on, and then with
them off, and see if the glasses restrict the view to only a por-
tion of the full field. If they do, you can easily observe with
your glasses off by just re-focusing the telescope the needed
amount. If you suffer from severe astigmatism, however, you
may find images noticeably sharper with your glasses on.
Aligning the Finder Scope
The SkyView Pro 80mm ED EQ comes with a 6x30 achro-
matic finder scope (Figure 3a). The number 6 means
six-times magnification and the 30 indicates a 30mm diame-
ter front lens.The finder scope makes it easier to locate the
Figure 6a, 6b. Proper operation of the equatorial mount
requires that the telescope tube be balanced on the R.A. axis. (a)
With the R.A. lock lever released, slide the counterweights along the
counterweight shaft until it just counterbalances the tube. (b) When
you let go with both hands, the tube should not drift up or down.
The telescope tube should already be balanced in the Dec. axis if
you have properly centered the 1/4"mounting block between the
tube rings.
6a.
6b.
Naked-eye view
Figure 7. The view through a standard finder scope and reflector
telescope is rotated 180°.This is true for the SkyView Pro 80mm
ED EQ and its finder scope as well.
View through finder scope and telescope

7
object you want to observe in the telescope, because the find-
er scope has a much wider field-of-view.
The finder scope uses a spring-loaded bracket that makes
alignment of the finderscope very easy. As you turn either of
the thumb screws, the spring in the bracket’s tensioner moves
in and out to keep the finder scope secure in the bracket.
The finder scope must be aligned accurately with the tele-
scope for proper use.To align it, first aim the main telescope at
an object at least a 1/4 mile away - the top of a telephone pole,
a chimney, etc. First loosen the R.A. and Dec. lock levers and
move the telescope until it is pointing towards the desired
object. Then sight along the tube to precisely aim the tele-
scope.Turn the focus knob until the object is properly focused.
Make sure to position the object in the center of the tele-
scope’s eyepiece by turning the R.A. and declination
slow-motion control knobs (the R.A.and Dec. lock levers must
be tightened to use the slow-motion control knobs).
Now look in the finder scope.Is the object visible? Ideally it will
be somewhere in the field of view. If not, some coarse adjust-
ment to the finder scope bracket’s alignment thumb screws will
be needed until the object comes into the finder scope’s field
of view.
With the image in the finder scope’s field of view, you now
need to fine-adjust the alignment thumb screws to center the
object on the intersection of the crosshairs. Adjust the aim of
the finder scope by turning the thumb screws, one at a time,
until the object is centered. Make sure the object is still cen-
tered in the telescope’s eyepiece as well. If it isn’t, you will
need to repeat the entire process.
The finder scope alignment needs to be checked before every
observing session. This can easily be done at night, before
viewing through the telescope.Choose any bright star or plan-
et, center the object in telescope eyepiece, and then adjust the
finder scope bracket’s alignment thumb screws until the star or
planet is centered on the finder’s crosshairs.
Focusing the Finder Scope
If, when you look through the finder scope, the images appear
somewhat out of focus, you will need to refocus the finder
scope for your eyes. Loosen the lock ring located behind the
objective lens cell on the body of the finder scope (see Figure
3a). Back the lock ring off by a few turns, for now. Refocus the
finder scope on a distant object by threading the objective lens
cell in or out of the finder scope body. Precise focusing will be
achieved by focusing the finder scope on a bright star. Once
the image appears sharp, retighten the lock ring behind the
objective lens cell.The finder scope’s focus should not need to
be adjusted again.
Magnification & Eyepieces
Magnification, or power, is determined by the focal length of
the telescope and the focal length of the eyepiece.Therefore,
by using eyepieces of different focal lengths, the resultant
magnification can be varied.
Magnification is calculated as follows:
Telescope Focal Length (mm)
Magnification= Eyepiece Focal Length (mm)
The SkyView Pro 80mm ED EQ has a focal length of 600mm,
which when used with the supplied 25mm eyepiece yields:
600 mm = 24x
25 mm
The magnification provided by the 10mm eyepiece is:
600 mm = 60x
10 mm
The maximum attainable magnification for a telescope is
directly related to how much light it can gather.The larger the
aperture, the more magnification is possible. In general a fig-
ure of 2x per millimeter of aperture is the maximum attainable
for most telescopes.Your SkyView Pro 80mm ED EQ has an
aperture of 80 millimeters, so the maximum magnification
would be about 160x.This level of magnification assumes you
have ideal conditions for viewing.
Keep in mind that as you increase magnification, the bright-
ness of the object viewed will decrease; this is an inherent
principle of the laws of physics and cannot be avoided.If mag-
nification is doubled, an image appears four times dimmer. If
magnification is tripled, image brightness is reduced by a fac-
tor of nine!
Always start with your lowest power eyepiece and work your
way up. Start by centering the object being viewed in the
25mm eyepiece.Then increase the magnification to get a clos-
er view, if you wish.If the object is off-center (i.e., it is near the
edge of the field of view) you will lose it when you increase
magnification, since the field of view will be narrower with the
higher-powered eyepiece. To change eyepieces, first loosen
the securing thumb screw on the 1.25" adapter on the star
diagonal.Then carefully lift the eyepiece out of the holder. Do
not tug or pull the eyepiece to the sides, as this will knock the
telescope off its target.Replace the eyepiece with the new one
by sliding it gently into the holder. Re-tighten the thumb screw,
and refocus for your new magnification.
Use of 2" Eyepieces
A feature of the SkyView Pro 80mm ED EQ is its ability to use
either 1.25" or 2" barrel-diameter eyepieces.At low magnifica-
tions, 2" eyepieces can give a wider field of view than standard
1.25" eyepieces. This is especially desirable for observing
deep-sky objects, as many of them appear quite large, but
faint. Many observers own at least one 2" eyepiece in order to
achieve the widest field of view possible for deep sky-observ-
ing.The expansive view will make you feel like you’re floating
in space!
To use 2" eyepieces, simply loosen the thumb screw on the
star diagonal that secures the 1.25" adapter, and remove the
adapter. Insert a 2" eyepiece directly into the diagonal, and

8
secure it in place with the thumb screw on the diagonal. You
are now ready to observe with the 2" eyepiece. If you attempt
to place a 2" eyepiece directly into the focuser drawtube with-
out using the star diagonal, images will not come into focus. If
you wish to view with 2" eyepieces without using the diagonal,
you will need to purchase an optional 2" extension tube.
Note About Chromatic Aberration
Chromatic aberration literally means color distortion.
Whenever light passes through one material to another, light
of different wavelengths (color) is bent by different amounts.
This is a problem that plagues refractor-type telescopes, since
light passes through both air and glass to form an image.Most
astronomical objects emit a spectrum comprised of many dif-
ferent wavelengths of light, so each wavelength will be bent by
a slightly different amount when passing through a lens.This
results in each color of light reaching precise focus at a slight-
ly different point, which will provide unacceptable images.
The 80mm ED is designed to minimize chromatic aberration.
The objective lens is actually comprised of two individual lens-
es, called elements, one of which is made of ED (Extra-low
Dispersion) glass, a special type of glass that has superior
refractive properties when compared to normal types of glass.
The use of this ED glass minimizes the amount of chromatic
aberration, resulting in a much more pleasing view when com-
pared to telescopes that do not use ED glass.
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 8) is designed to
compensate for that motion, allowing you to easily “track”the
movement of astronomical objects, thereby keeping 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 only the R.A. slow-motion
knob. But first the R.A. axis of the mount must be aligned with
the Earth’s rotational (polar) axis - a process called polar align-
ment.
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 9).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).
Figure 8. The SkyView Pro mount.
R.A. setting circle
Polar axis finder scope
(optional)
Latitude scale
(opposite side)
Latitude
adjustment
L-bolts
Dec. slow-motion
control knob
Dec. setting circle
Dec. lock lever
Front opening
R.A. lock lever
R.A. slow-motion
control knob
Declination
Axis
Right
Ascension
Axis
Big Dipper
(in Ursa Major)
Little Dipper
(in Ursa Minor)
Cassiopeia
N.C.P.
Pointer
Stars
Polaris
Figure 9. 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).

9
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 8);
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 lati-
tude 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 optical
tube until it is parallel with the right ascension axis, as it is in
Figure 8.
4. Move the tripod so the telescope tube and right ascension
axis point roughly at Polaris.If you cannot see Polaris direct-
ly from your observing site, consult a compass and rotate
the tripod so the telescope points north. There is a label
bearing a large “N”at the base of the equatorial mount
(Figure 10); it should be facing north.
The equatorial mount is now polar aligned for casual observ-
ing. More precise polar alignment is recommended for
astrophotography. For this we suggest 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.
Polar Alignment Using an Optional Polar Axis
Finder Scope
The SkyView Pro 80mm ED EQ mount can be equipped with
an optional polar axis finder scope (Figure 11a) which goes
inside the right ascension axis of the mount.The reticle of the
polar axis finder scope for the SkyView Pro has a tiny star map
printed on it. When properly aligned and used, it makes accu-
rate polar alignment quick and easy to do.
To install the polar axis finder scope, remove the cover at the rear
of the mount’s right ascension axis and thread the polar axis find-
er scope into the equatorial mount until tight (Figure 11b).
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 precise-
ly polar align the telescope.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 previously.
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 12).Tighten the Dec. lock lever. This
will allow you to view through the mount with the polar axis
finder scope.
3.Remove the cap on the front of the equatorial mount (Figure
8). Focus the polar finder by rotating the eyepiece. Now,
sight Polaris in the polar axis finder scope. If you have fol
lowed the approximate polar alignment procedure accurate-
ly, Polaris will probably be within the field of view. If not,
move the tripod left-to-right, and adjust the latitude up-and
down (using the latitude adjustment L-bolts) until Polaris is
Figure 10. For polar alignment, position the tripod so that the
“N”label at the base of the mount faces north.The azimuth fine
adjustment knobs above it are used to make small adjustments to
the mount’s azimuth position. Be certain to loosen the tripod
attachment knob on the central support shaft before adjusting
these knobs.
Azimuth
adjustment
knobs
Figure 11a. The optional polar axis finder scope.
Eyepiece
focus ring Focus
lock ring Objective
lens
Figure 11b. Installing the optional polar axis finder scope.
Alignment
setscrews (3)

10
somewhere within the field of view of the polar axis finder
scope.
4. Shine a red flashlight down the front end of the polar finder
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 indicated by the cross
at the center of the reticle). Rotate the reticle so the con-
stellations depicted match their current orientation in they
sky when viewed with the naked eye.To do this, release the
R.A. lock lever and rotate the main telescope about the
R.A.axis until the reticle is oriented with sky.For larger opti-
cal tubes, you may need to remove the tube from the mount
to prevent it from bumping into the tripod. 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 10) and the
latitude adjustment L-bolts (Figure 8) 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.
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 tripod.Doing so will undo
the polar alignment. The telescope 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 11a) and thread the entire objective end of the finder
inwards or outwards 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.
Use of the Right Ascension and Declination
Slow-Motion Control Knobs
The right ascension (R.A.) and declination (Dec.) slow-motion
control knobs allow fine adjustment of the telescope’s position
to center objects within the field of view. Before you can use
the knobs, you must manually “slew”the mount to point the
telescope in the vicinity of the desired target. Do this by loos-
ening the R.A.and Dec.lock levers and moving the telescope
about the mount’s right ascension and declination axes.Once
the telescope is pointed close to the object to be viewed,
retighten both lock levers.
Note: If you have an optional motor drive attached, you
will need to loosen the manual clutch on the R.A. (and
Dec. for dual-axis drives) worm gear shaft before using
the slow-motion control knob.
The object should now be visible somewhere in the tele-
scope’s finder scope. If it isn’t, use the slow-motion knobs to
scan the surrounding area of sky.When the object is visible in
the finder scope, use the slow-motion knobs to center it.Now,
look in the telescope’s eyepiece. If the finder scope is proper-
ly aligned, the object should be visible somewhere in the field
of view. Once the object is visible in the eyepiece, use the
slow-motion knobs to center it in the field of view.
Tracking Celestial Objects
When you observe a celestial object through the telescope,
you’ll see it drift slowly across the field of view. To keep it in
the field, if your equatorial mount is polar aligned, just turn the
R.A. slow-motion control knob clockwise. The Dec. slow-
motion control knob is not needed for tracking. Objects will
appear to move faster at higher magnifications, because the
field of view is narrower.
Optional Motor Drives for Automatic Tracking
An optional DC motor drive can be mounted on the R.A. axis
of the equatorial mount to provide hands-free tracking.
Objects will then remain stationary in the field of view without
any manual adjustment of the right ascension slow-motion
control knob.
Figure 12. The optical tube must be at a 90°angle to the right
ascension axis in order to view through the polar axis finder.

11
Understanding the Setting Circles
The setting circles on an equatorial mount 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 location of the right ascen-
sion coordinate indicator arrow is shown in Figure 13.
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 1. Re-tighten the lock lever.
2. Loosen one of the thumb screws 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 thumb screw.
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. Center the star in the telescope’s field of view.
Lock the R.A.and Dec. lock levers.
4. Loosen one of the R.A. setting circle thumb screws (see
Figure 13); 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. Retighten the setting circle thumb screw.
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.
2.Loosen the R.A.lock lever and rotate the telescope until the
right ascension value from the star atlas matches the read-
ing 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
finder scope, assuming the equatorial mount is accurately
polar aligned. Use the slow-motion controls 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
pointed in other directions. Let’s say you want to view an
Figure 13. The R.A. and Dec. setting circles.
Dec. setting
circle
Dec. setting
circle
thumbscrew
(2)
Dec.
indicator
arrow
R.A.
indicator
arrow R.A. setting circle
thumbscrew (2)
R.A.
setting
circle

12
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 counterweight 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
declination axes. Depending on the altitude of the object you
want to observe, the counterweight shaft will be oriented
somewhere between vertical and horizontal.
Figure 14 illustrates how the telescope will look when pointed
at the four cardinal directions: north, south, east and west.
7. Astronomical Observing
For many users, the SkyView Pro 80mm ED EQ telescope
will be a major leap into the world of amateur astronomy.This
section is intended to get you ready for your voyages through
the night sky.
Site Selection
Pick a location away from street lights and bright yard light-
ing. Avoid viewing over rooftops and chimneys, as they often
have warm air currents rising from them which distort the
image seen in the eyepiece.Similarly, you should not observe
through an open or closed window from indoors. Better yet,
choose a site out-of-town, away from any “light pollution”.
You’ll be stunned at how many more stars you’ll see! Most
importantly, make sure that any chosen site has a clear view
of a large portion of the sky.
Seeing and Transparency
Atmospheric conditions play a huge part in quality of viewing.
In conditions of good “seeing”, star twinkling is minimal and
objects appear steady in the eyepiece. Seeing is best over-
head, worst at the horizon. Also, seeing generally gets better
after midnight, when much of the heat absorbed by the Earth
during the day has radiated off into space. Typically, seeing
conditions will be better at sites that have an altitude over
about 3000 feet. Altitude helps because it decreases the
amount of distortion causing atmosphere you are looking
through.
A good way to judge if the seeing is good or not is to look at
bright stars about 40°above the horizon. If the stars appear
to “twinkle”, the atmosphere is significantly distorting the
incoming light, and views at high magnifications will not
appear sharp. If the stars appear steady and do not twinkle,
seeing conditions are probably good and higher magnifica-
tions will be possible. Also, seeing conditions are typically
poor during the day. This is because the heat from the Sun
warms the air and causes turbulence.
Good “transparency”is especially important for observing
faint objects. It simply means the air is free of moisture,
smoke, and dust. All tend to scatter light, which reduces an
object’s brightness.
One good way to tell if conditions are good is by how many
stars you can see with your naked eye.If you cannot see stars
of magnitude 3.5 or dimmer, then conditions are poor.
Magnitude is a measure of how bright a star is; the brighter a
star is, the lower its magnitude will be.A good star to remem-
ber for this is Megrez (mag. 3.4), which is the star in the “Big
Dipper”connecting the handle to the “dipper”. If you cannot
see Megrez, then you have fog, haze, clouds, smog, light pol-
lution or other conditions that are hindering your viewing (see
Figure 15).
Cooling the Telescope
All optical instruments need time to reach “thermal equilibri-
um”to achieve peak performance.When moved from a warm
indoor location to cooler outdoor air (or vice-versa), a tele-
scope needs time to cool to the outdoor temperature. The
Figure 14a-d. This illustration shows the telescope pointed in
the four cardinal directions (a) north, (b) south, (c) east, (d) west.
Note that the tripod and mount have been moved; only the telescope
tube has been moved on the R.A. and Dec. axes.
ab
cd

13
bigger the instrument and the larger the temperature change,
the more time will be needed.
Allow at least 30 minutes for your SkyView Pro 80mm ED EQ
to equilibrate. If the scope has more than a 40°temperature
adjustment, allow an hour or more. In the winter, storing the
telescope outdoors in a shed or garage greatly reduces the
amount of time needed for the optics to reach thermal equi-
librium. It also is a good idea to keep the scope covered until
the Sun sets so the tube does not heat greatly above the tem-
perature of the outside air.
Let Your Eyes Dark-Adapt
Do not expect to go from a lighted house into the darkness of
the outdoors at night and immediately see faint nebulas,
galaxies, and star clusters - or even very many stars, for that
matter. Your eyes take about 30 minutes to reach perhaps
80% of their full dark-adapted sensitivity. Many observers
notice improvements after several hours of total darkness. As
your eyes become dark-adapted, more stars will glimmer into
view and you will be able to see fainter details in objects you
view in your telescope.Exposing your eyes to very bright day-
light for extended periods of time can adversely affect your
night vision for days. So give yourself at least a little while to
get used to the dark before you begin observing.
To see what you are doing in the darkness, use a red-filtered
flashlight rather than white light. Red light does not spoil your
eyes’dark adaptation like white light does. A flashlight with a
red LED light is ideal, or you can cover the front of a regular
incandescent flashlight with red cellophane or paper.Beware,
too, that nearby porch and streetlights and automobile head-
lights will spoil your night vision.
Eyepiece Selection
By using eyepieces of varying focal lengths, it is possible to
attain many magnifications with the SkyView Pro 80mm ED
EQ.The telescope comes with two high-quality Sirius Plössl
eyepieces: a 25mm, which gives a magnification of 24x, and
a 10mm, which gives a magnification of 60x.Other eyepieces
can be used to achieve higher or lower powers. It is quite
common for an observer to own five or more eyepieces to
access a wide range of magnifications. This allows the
observer to choose the best eyepiece to use depending on
the object being viewed. At least to begin with, the two sup-
plied eyepieces will suffice nicely.
Whatever you choose to view, always start by inserting your
lowest power (longest focal length) eyepiece to locate and
center the object. Low magnification yields a wide field of
view, which shows a larger area of sky in the eyepiece.This
makes acquiring and centering an object much easier. If you
try to find and center objects with high power (narrow field of
view), it’s like trying to find a needle in a haystack!
Once you’ve centered the object in the eyepiece, you can
switch to higher magnification (shorter focal length eyepiece),
if you wish. This is especially recommended for small and
bright objects, like planets and double stars.The Moon also
takes higher magnifications well.
Deep-sky objects, however, typically look better at medium or
low magnifications. This is because many of them are quite
faint, yet have some extent (apparent width). Deep-sky
objects will often disappear at higher magnifications, since
greater magnification inherently yields dimmer images.This
is not the case for all deep-sky objects, however. Many galax-
ies are quite small, yet are somewhat bright, so higher power
may show more detail.
The best rule of thumb with eyepiece selection is to start with
a low power, wide field, and then work your way up in magni-
fication. If the object looks better, try an even higher
magnification. If the object looks worse, then back off the
magnification a little by using a lower power eyepiece.
Astronomical Objects
Now that you are all set up and ready to go, one critical deci-
sion must be made: what to look at?
A. The Moon
With is rocky and cratered surface, the Moon is one of the
most interesting and easy subjects to view with your scope.
The best time to view it is during its partial phases when
shadows fall on the craters and canyon walls to give them
definition.While the full moon may look like a tempting target,
it is not optimal for viewing.The light is too bright and surface
definition is low.
Even at partial phases, the Moon is very bright. Use of an
optional Moon filter to helps to dim the view. It simply threads
onto the bottom of the eyepiece. You’ll find the Moon filter
improves viewing comfort, and helps bring out the subtle fea-
tures of the lunar surface.
B. The Sun
You can change your nighttime telescope into a daytime Sun
viewer by installing an optional full-aperture solar filter over
the front opening of the telescope.The primary attraction is
sunspots, which change shape, appearance, and location
2.4 1.7 3.4 2.4
4.9
1.9
1.9
2.5
Figure 15. Megrez connects the Big Dipper’s handle to it's “pan”.
It is a good guide to how conditions are. If you can not see Megrez
(a 3.4 mag star) then conditions are poor.

14
daily. Sunspots are directly related to magnetic activity in the
Sun. Many observers like to make drawings of sunspots to
monitor how the Sun is changing from day to day.
Important Note: Do not look at the Sun with any optical
instrument without a professionally made solar filter, or
permanent eye damage could result. Also, be sure to
cover the finder scope, or better yet, remove it altogether.
C. The Planets
The planets don’t stay put like the stars, so to find them you
should refer to Sky Calendar at our website, telescope.com,
or to charts published monthly in Astronomy, Sky &
Telescope, or other astronomy magazines. Venus, Mars,
Jupiter, and Saturn are the brightest objects in the sky after
the Sun and the Moon.Your SkyView Pro 80mm ED EQ is
capable of showing you these planets in detail.Other planets
may be visible but will likely appear starlike. Because planets
are quite small in apparent size, optional higher power eye-
pieces are recommended, and often needed, for detailed
observations. Not all the planets are generally visible at any
one time.
JUPITER The largest planet, Jupiter, is a great subject for
observation. You can see the disk of the giant planet and
watch the ever-changing positions of its four largest moon: Io,
Callisto, Europa, and Ganymede. Higher power eyepieces
should bring out the cloud bands on the planet’s disk and the
Great Red Spot.
SATURN The ringed planet is a breathtaking sight. The tilt
angle of the rings varies over a period of many years; some-
times they are seen edge-on, while at other times they are
broadside and look like giant “ears”on each side of Saturn’s
disk. A steady atmosphere (good seeing) is necessary for a
good view. Look closely and you may see the Cassini divi-
sion, a thin, dark gap in the rings.You should also see one or
more of Saturn’s moons, which look like faint stars. The
brightest is the moon Titan.
VENUS At its brightest, Venus is the most luminous object in
the sky, excluding the Sun and the Moon. It is so bright that
sometimes it is visible to the naked eye during full daylight!
Ironically, Venus appears as a thin crescent, not a full disk,
when at its peak brightness.Because it is so close to the Sun,
it never wanders too far from the morning or evening horizon.
No surface markings can be seen on Venus, which is always
shrouded in dense clouds.
MARS The Red Planet makes a close approach to Earth
every two years. Observing Mars is most favorable at these
times.With good conditions, you may see a salmon-colored
disk with some distinct dark patches, and you might be able
to spot a whitish polar ice cap.To see surface detail on Mars,
you will need a high power eyepiece and very steady air!
D. The Stars
Stars will appear as tiny points of light. Even the largest tele-
scopes cannot magnify stars to appear as anything more
than pinpoints.You can, however, enjoy the different colors of
the stars and locate many pretty double and multiple stars.
The famous “Double-Double”in the constellation Lyra and the
gorgeous two-color double star Albireo in Cygnus are
favorites. Defocusing a star slightly can help bring out its
color.
E. Deep-Sky Objects
Under dark skies, you can observe a wealth of fascinating
deep-sky objects; that is, objects that reside outside of our
solar system. These include gaseous nebulas, open and
globular star clusters, and a variety of different types of galax-
ies. For deep-sky observing it is important that you find an
observing site well away from light pollution. Take plenty of
time to let your eyes adjust to the darkness. As you become
more experienced and your observing skills get sharper, you
will be able to ferret out more and more subtle details and
structure from these fascinating objects.
Beginners are often surprised to discover that the deep-sky
objects they see through the eyepiece of a telescope are
mostly grayish, not colorful like those you see in long-expo-
sure photographs. The reason is that our eyes are not
sensitive to color in faint light. Still, there is something very
special about seeing an astronomical object in real time, with
your own eyes —“live,”if not in living color.
How to Find Deep-sky Objects: Starhopping
Starhopping, as it is called by astronomers, is perhaps the
simplest way to hunt down objects to view in the night sky. It
entails first pointing the telescope at a star close to the object
you wish to observe, and then progressing to other stars clos-
er and closer to the object until it is in the field of view of the
eyepiece. It is a very intuitive technique that has been
employed for hundreds of years by professional and amateur
astronomers alike. Keep in mind, as with any new task, that
starhopping may seem challenging at first, but will become
easier over time and with practice.
To starhop, only a minimal amount of additional equipment is
necessary. A star chart or atlas that shows stars to at least
magnitude 5 is required. Select one that shows the positions
of many deep-sky objects, so you will have a lot of options to
choose from. If you do not know the positions of the constel-
lations in the night sky, you will need to get a planisphere to
identify them.
Start by choosing bright objects to view.The brightness of an
object is measured by its visual magnitude; the brighter an
object, the lower its magnitude.Choose an object with a visu-
al magnitude of 9 or lower. Many beginners start with the
Messier objects, which represent some of the best and bright-
est deep-sky objects.These were first catalogued about 200
years ago by the French astronomer Charles Messier.
Determine in which constellation the object lies. Now, find the
constellation in the sky. If you do not recognize the constella-
tions on sight, consult a planisphere.The planisphere gives
an all-sky view and shows which constellations are visible on
a given night at a given time.
Now, look at your star chart and find the brightest star in the
constellation that is near the object you are trying to find.
Using the finder scope, point the telescope at this star and
center it on the crosshairs. Next, look again at the star chart

15
and find another suitably bright star near the bright star cur-
rently centered in the finder. Keep in mind that the field of
view of the finder scope is approximately 7°, so you should
choose another star that is no more that 7°from the first star,
if possible. Move the telescope slightly, until the telescope is
centered on the new star.
Continue using stars as guideposts in this way until you are
at the approximate position of the object you are trying to find
(Figure 16). Look in the telescope’s eyepiece, and the object
should be somewhere within the field of view. If it’s not, sweep
the telescope carefully around the immediate vicinity until the
object is found.
If you have trouble finding the object, start the starhop again
from the brightest star near the object you wish to view.This
time, be sure the stars indicated on the star chart are in fact
the stars you are centering in the eyepiece. Remember, the
finder scope (and main telescope eyepiece, for that matter)
gives an inverted image, so you must keep this in mind when
starhopping from star to star.
8. Terrestrial Observing
The SkyView Pro 80mm ED optical tube can be used for long-
distance viewing over land. For this we recommend using an
optional 1.25" 45°correct-image diagonal instead of the pro-
vided 2" 90°mirror star diagonal.The correct-image diagonal
will yield non-reversed images and provides a more comfort-
able viewing angle.To install the correct-image diagonal, first
remove the 2" diagonal from the focuser drawtube by loosen-
ing the two thumb screws on the drawtube. Now, place the
"camera adapter" that came attached to the telescope (see
Figure 4) into the focuser drawtube, and secure it with the two
thumb screws on the drawtube. Now, place the correct-image
diagonal into the camera adapter, and secure it with the
thumb screw on the camera adapter. Place an eyepiece into
the diagonal, secure it with the thumb screw on the diagonal,
and you’re ready for daytime viewing.
An optional altazimuth mount or a sturdy camera tripod, as
opposed to the SkyView Pro equatorial mount, is recom-
mended for terrestrial viewing.This is because the equatorial
mount is designed for tracking the motion of stars, and is not
easy to aim at terrestrial objects. Remove the telescope from
the SkyView Pro’s tube rings, and you will notice the optical
tube has a mounting block on it. The mounting block will
accept a 1/4"-20 thread used on most camera tripods.
For terrestrial viewing, it’s best to stick with low power eye-
pieces that yield a magnification of under 100x. At higher
powers, images rapidly lose sharpness and clarity due to
“heat waves”caused by Sun-heated air.
Remember to aim well clear of the Sun, unless the front of the
telescope is fitted with a professionally made solar filter and
the finder scope is covered by an opaque material or
removed altogether.
9. Astrophotography
With the included camera adapter, the SkyView Pro 80mm
ED becomes a 600mm f/7.5 telephoto lens for a single-lens
reflex camera. For long-distance terrestrial or astronomical
photography, you need only a T-ring for your particular cam-
era model. The T-ring attaches to your particular camera
model and threads onto the camera adapter, coupling the
camera body to the camera adapter. The camera adapter
connects to the telescope in place of the 2" star diagonal.
Remove the 2" diagonal by first loosening the two thumb
screws on the focuser drawtube. Insert the camera adapter
(with camera attached), and secure with the drawtube’s
thumb screws.
Use the camera’s viewfinder to frame the picture. If you wish
to rotate the field of view, simply loosen the two thumb screws
on the focuser drawtube and rotate the camera body.
Retighten the thumb screws once the desired orientation is
achieved. Use the telescope’s focuser to focus the image.
Tighten the focuser tension thumb screw to make sure the
camera does not slip out of focus.
You may want to consider using a remote shutter release
instead of the shutter release on the camera. Touching the
camera can vibrate the system and blur the resulting photo-
graphic image.
Moon Photography
This is perhaps the simplest form of astrophotography, as no
motor drive is required. Point the telescope toward the Moon,
and center it within the camera’s viewfinder. Focus the image
with the telescope’s focuser.Try several exposure times, all
Figure 16. Starhopping is a good way to locate hard-to-find
objects. Refer to a star chart to map a route to the object that uses
bright stars as guideposts. Center the first star you’ve chosen in the
finder scope and telescope eyepiece (1). Now move the scope
carefully in the direction of the next bright star (2), until it is
centered. Repeat (3 and 4).The last hop (5) should place the
desired object in the eyepiece.

16
less than 1 second, depending on the phase of the moon and
the ISO (film speed) of the film being used. A remote shutter
release is recommended, as touching the camera’s shutter
release can vibrate the camera enough to ruin the exposure.
Planetary Photography
Once basic Moon photography has been mastered, it’s time
to get images of the planets.This type of astrophotography
also works to get highly magnified shots of the Moon. In addi-
tion to the T-ring, you will need an optional Universal 1.25"
Camera Adapter.The TrueTrack Motor Drive System (single
or dual-axis) is also required.This is because a longer expo-
sure is necessary, which would cause the image to blur if no
motor drive was used for tracking.The equatorial mount must
be accurately polar aligned, too.
As before, connect theT-ring to your camera.Before connect-
ing the universal camera adapter to the T-ring, an eyepiece
must be inserted and locked into the body of the universal
camera adapter.Start by using a medium-low power eyepiece
(about 25mm); you can increase the magnification later with
a high-power eyepiece. Then connect the entire camera
adapter, with eyepiece inside, to the T-ring. Insert the whole
system into the focuser (with the camera adapter that comes
with the telescope attached to the drawtube) and secure firm-
ly with the thumb screws.
Aim the telescope at the planet (or Moon) you wish to shoot.
The image will be highly magnified, so you may need to use
the finder scope to center it within the camera’s viewfinder.
Turn the motor drive on.Adjust the telescope’s focuser so that
the image appears sharp in the camera’s viewfinder. The
camera’s shutter is now ready to be opened.A remote shutter
release must be used or the image will be blurred beyond
recognition.Try exposure times between 1 and 10 seconds,
depending upon the brightness of the planet to be pho-
tographed and the ISO of the film being used.
“Piggyback Photography”
The Moon and planets are interesting targets for the budding
astrophotographer, but what next? Literally thousands of
deep-sky objects can be captured on film with a type of
astrophotography called “piggybacking”. The basic idea is
that the camera with its own camera lens attached rides on
top of the main telescope. The telescope and camera both
move with the rotation of the Earth when the mount is polar
aligned and the motor drive is engaged.This allows for a long
exposure through the camera without having the object or
background stars blurred.In addition to the motor drive (dual-
axis), an illuminated reticle eyepiece is also needed. The
T-ring and camera adapter are not needed, since the camera
is exposing through its own lens.Any camera lens with a focal
length between 35mm and 400mm is appropriate.
On the top of one of the tube rings is a piggyback camera
adapter.This is the black knob with the threaded shaft pro-
truding through it. The tube ring with the piggyback adapter
should be closest to the front end of the telescope tube.
Remove the tube rings from the equatorial mount and swap
their position if necessary. Now, connect the camera to the
piggyback adapter. There should be a 1/4"-20 mounting hole
in the bottom of the camera’s body. Thread the protruding
shaft of the piggyback adapter into the 1/4"-20 mounting hole
in the camera a few turns.Position the camera so it is parallel
with the telescope tube and turn the knurled black knob of the
piggyback adapter counter-clockwise until the camera is
locked into position.
Aim the telescope at a deep-sky object. It should be a fairly
large deep-sky object, as the camera lens will likely have a
wide field of view. Check to make sure that the object is also
centered in the camera’s viewfinder. Turn the motor drive on.
Now, look into the telescope’s eyepiece and center the bright-
est star within the field of view. Remove the eyepiece and
insert the illuminated reticle eyepiece into the focuser draw-
tube.Turn the eyepiece’s illuminator on (dimly!).Recenter the
bright star (guide star) on the crosshairs of the reticle eye-
piece. Check again to make sure that the object to be
photographed is still centered within the camera’s field of
view. If it is not, recenter it by repositioning the camera on the
piggyback adapter, or by moving the main telescope. If you
move the main telescope, then you will need to recenter
another guide star on the illuminated eyepiece’s crosshairs.
Once the object is centered in the camera and a guide star is
centered in the reticle eyepiece, you’re ready to shoot.
Deep-sky objects are quite faint, and typically require expo-
sures on the order of 10 minutes.To hold the camera’s shutter
open this long, you will need a locking shutter release cable.
Set the camera’s shutter to the “B”(bulb) setting.Depress the
locking shutter release cable and lock it.You are now expos-
ing your first deep-sky object.
While exposing through the camera lens, you will need to
monitor the accuracy of the mount’s tracking by looking
through the illuminated reticle eyepiece in the main tele-
scope. If the guide star drifts from its initial position, then use
the hand controller of the motor drive to “move”the guide star
back to the center of the crosshairs. Any drifting along the
Dec. axis is a result of improper polar alignment, so if the
guide star drifts greatly in Dec., the mount may need to be
polar aligned more accurately.
When the exposure is complete, unlock the shutter release
cable and close the camera’s shutter.
Astrophotography can be enjoyable and rewarding, as well as
frustrating and time-consuming. Start slowly and consult out-
side resources, such as books and magazines, for more
details about astrophotography. Remember….have fun!
10. Care and Maintenance
If you give your telescope reasonable care, it will last a life-
time. Store it in a clean, dry, dust-free place, safe from rapid
changes in temperature and humidity. Do not store the tele-
scope outdoors, although storage in a garage or shed is OK.
Small components like eyepieces and other accessories
should be kept in a protective box or storage case. Keep the
dust cover on the front of the telescope when not in use.
Your SkyView Pro 80mm ED EQ requires very little mechani-
cal maintenance. The optical tube is aluminum and has a

17
smooth painted finish that is fairly scratch-resistant. If a
scratch does appear on the tube, it will not harm the tele-
scope.Smudges on the tube can be wiped off with a soft cloth
and a household surface cleaner.
Cleaning Lenses
Any quality optical lens cleaning tissue and optical lens clean-
ing fluid specifically designed for multi-coated optics can be
used to clean the exposed lenses of your telescope’s objec-
tive lens, eyepieces, or finder scope. Never use regular glass
cleaner or cleaning fluid designed for eyeglasses. Before
cleaning with fluid and tissue, blow any loose particles off the
lens with a blower bulb or compressed air.Then apply some
cleaning fluid to a tissue, never directly on the optics. Wipe
the lens gently in a circular motion, then remove any excess
fluid with a fresh lens tissue. Oily fingerprints and smudges
may be removed using this method. Use caution; rubbing too
hard may scratch the lens. On larger lenses, clean only a
small area at a time, using a fresh lens tissue on each area.
Never reuse tissues.
11. Specifications
Objective lens: Apochromatic, rear element made of ED
glass, air-spaced
Objective lens coating:Fully multi-coated
Objective lens diameter: 80mm (3.1")
Focal Length: 600mm
Focal Ratio: f/7.5
Optical tube: Seamless aluminum
Lens cell: Machined aluminum
Focuser: Crayford, accepts 1.25" or 2" accessories and cam-
era T-ring (with adapter)
Eyepieces: 25mm and 10mm Sirius Plössls, fully coated with
multi-coatings, 1.25", accept Orion filters
Magnification: 24x (with 25mm) and 60x (with 10mm)
Finder Scope: 6x30 Achromatic, 7°field of view, crosshairs
Diagonal: 2" Star diagonal, mirror type, includes 1.25"
adapter
1/4"-20 Mounting block:Allows direct attachment of telescope
to camera tripod
Mount: SkyView Pro, German equatorial
Counterweight: 7.5 lbs
Tripod legs: Steel
Tripod support tray: Aluminum, provides additional stability,
holds five 1.25" eyepiece and two 2" eyepieces
Weight: 36 lbs. (Mount 30 lbs., optical tube 6 lbs.)
Polar axis latitude adjustment:8°to 70°
Polar axis finder: Optional
Motor Drives: Optional

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One-Year Limited Warranty
This Orion SkyView Pro 80mm ED EQ is warranted against defects in materials or
workmanship for a period of one year from the date of purchase.This warranty is for the benefit of
the original retail purchaser only. During this warranty period Orion Telescopes & Binoculars will
repair or replace, at Orion’s option, any warranted instrument that proves to be defective, provided
it is returned postage paid to: Orion Warranty Repair, 89 Hangar Way, Watsonville, CA 95076.If the
product is not registered, proof of purchase (such as a copy of the original invoice) is required.
This warranty does not apply if, in Orion’s judgment, the instrument has been abused, mishandled,
or modified, nor does it apply to normal wear and tear.This warranty gives you specific legal rights,
and you may also have other rights, which vary from state to state.For further warranty service infor-
mation, contact: Customer Service Department, Orion Telescopes & Binoculars, P. O. Box 1815,
Santa Cruz, CA 95061; [phone].
Orion Telescopes & Binoculars
Post Office Box 1815, Santa Cruz, CA 95061
Customer Support Help Line [phone] • Day or Evening