zoomion Apollo 80 User manual

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Instructions Manual
Zoomion® Apollo 80
English version 7.2015 Rev A

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The Zoomion® Apollo 80
Congratulations on the
purchase of the new
Zoomion® Apollo 80. This
telescope will give you hours
of fun, with its optical glass
lenses and light gathering
capability, it is the ideal
companion to start in the
world of amateur astronomy.
With this telescope you will
be able to see the craters on
the Moon, star clusters, some
nebulae, the Jupiter’s disc
features and its Galilean
moons and the rings of
Saturn.
Included parts. Besides the complete telescope we have also included the following accessories:
Eyepiece H12.5mm, Eyepiece H20mm, Barlow lens 2x, Red-dot finder scope;
1. Knowing your telescope.
1- Focuser; 8- Counterweight stop/foot saver;
2- Red-dot finderscope; 9- Tripod leg;
3- Optical tube; 10- Altitude adjuster;
4- Tube studs; 11- Declination adjustment handle;
5- R.A. clutch; 12- R.A. adjustment handle;
6- Altitude side fix knob; 13- Dec. clutch;
7- Counterweight;
2. Getting Started. It is very simple to get started. Here is how the telescope works. The telescope
should point to the object being observed. The lens at the front of the telescope’s tube gathers the
object’s light and brings it to the eyepiece. The focuser is at the other end of the objective lens. The
focuser’s tube moves in and out to get a precise focused image. At the focuser one can use the
supplied accessories. Different accessory combinations provide different results, such as different
image magnifications or a correct image. But all this will be explained in detail in the next pages.
3. Assembly. Start by setting up the tripod as shown in figure 2. Use the supplied bolts and nuts.
Next place the accessory tray and fix it using the wing nuts and small screws –fig. 3. After this, the
tripod should be stable. Place the equatorial mount head on top of the tripods base, as shown in
figure 4. Use the supplied hand-bolt to fix it. Thread the counter-weight shaft and slide the counter-
weight (figure 5). Use the counter-weight’s thumbscrew to avoid it from slipping. Place the control-
handles as shown in figure 6. Now use the tube’s nuts and fix the tube (figure 7). The mount’s
altitude axis can be adjusted as shown in figure 8. Use the side hand-knob to tighten or release the
altitude’s axis (fig. 9). Release the R.A. locking thumb-screw so that the R.A. axis is loose. Slide the
counter-weight and adjust its position to balance the tube with the counterweight (figure 10).
Balancing means the tube should be in balance with the counterweight and should not tip to one of
the sides. Balancing is very important as it not only makes movements smoother but it allows the
telescope not to wear the gears with its weight.
Figure 1. Parts description.

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Figure 2. Tripod assembly.
Figure 3. Tray placement.
Figure 4. Place equatorial head on top of tripod.
Figure 5. Thread the counter-weight shaft. Insert counterweight.
Figure 6. Fix Dec. and R.A. handles.
Figure 7. Fix the tube’s ring.

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4. How to use the equatorial mount. The equatorial mount is a
powerful tool for astronomical observation. The main purpose of an equatorial mount is to
accurately point a telescope to a certain object. There are two axis in the equatorial mount. A R.A.
axis and a Dec. axis. The telescope’s tube sits on the Dec axis.
Equatorial mount parts description
1- Declination Handle 2- Declination Fixing Knob 3- R.A. Axis
4- Latitude/altitude adjustment 5- Counterweight 6- Counterweight shaft
7- R.A. Handle 8- R.A. Fixing Knob 9- Dec. Axis
Figure 8. Adjust Dec. axis.
Figure 9. Tighten the side hand-knob.
Figure 10. Balance the R.A. axis with counterweight.
Figure 12. Detailed mount parts.
Figure 13. Adjusting latitude/altitude.

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There are two axis in the eq. mount. One is the R.A. (Right Ascension) axis as shown in fig. 14. This
means the telescope can rotate around this axis. The R.A. should point north to Polaris. Tracking (see
what this is below) is made using the R.A. axis. Use the R.A. fixing knob (clutch) to lock the R.A. axis –
figure 15. The second axis is the Dec (Declination) axis –fig. 16. To lock this axis use the Dec locking
knob as shown in figure 17.
4.1. What is tracking?
Star’s positions rotate, slowly but surely, in the night sky. This is caused by the Earth’s rotation. Every
24 hours Earth will make a complete turn. So does the night sky. This means that, when observing
through a telescope, the stars will move away from the field of view after a few seconds. This is even
more evident when using high power eyepieces. They go away quite easily from the field of view.
Use the Dec and R.A. handles to precise point the telescope. Make sure the axis are securely locked.
To keep a star in the centre of the field of view tracking is required. Tracking can be done manually
or by a motor. Manual tracking can be done using the two Dec and R.A. handles. They allow small
Figure 14. R.A. Axis.
Figure 15. Locking the R.A. axis.
Figure 17. Locking the Dec. Axis.
Figure 16. Dec. Axis.

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corrections to be made in each axis. However this is not the recommend procedure to track an
object. The mount should be placed in station i.e. aligned in such a way that only the R.A. is required
to turn to track a Star. 4.2. How to set the mount in station. Point the telescope’s R.A. axis to
north –fig. 18. Release the altitude break - fig. 19- so that the R.A. inclination can be adjusted.
Rotate the latitude adjustment so that the inclination of the mount is the same as the latitude of
observers. For an observer in Munich the latitude is 48 degrees. The inclination angle (Ɵ) should be
approximately 48 degrees. Make sure to re-tighten the altitude break. Now that the mount is
pointing north and has the observer’s location latitude your mount is set on station. This mean that
the mount and tripod should not be moved during observation. The two R.A. and Dec. axis can be
used to position and point the telescope to any part of the sky. Use the handles and clutches for this.
The altitude/latitude adjustment should NOT be used when
observing. Continuous use can cause wear or even break the knob.
Figure 18. Mount points north.
Figure 19. Release altitude break and adjust inclination.
Figure 20. Adjust inclination to latitude.
Figure 21. Check your latitude.

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5. How to install and use
the finder scope. The
included LED finder scope is a
powerful aid to point the
telescope to a ground or sky
objects. Install the finder
scope as shown in figure 23.
Make sure to tighten the two
supplied finder scope nuts as
shown . Make sure the finder
scope is pointing to the same
direction as the telescope’s
aperture.
1. Knowing your
finderscope.
1- Aperture; 5- Finder bracket;
2- Battery compartment; 6- Finder’s altitude adjust. thumbscrew;
3- LED swtich; 7- LED beam exit;
4- Finderscope to telescope connection; 8- Finder’s azimuth adjustment.thumbscrew;
The finder scope is used as an aiming device. It
projects a tiny red dot on the transparent screen –figure 25. The finder should be aligned with the
telescope. When pointing the led finder the area around the red point should match the one seen
through the telescope’s eyepiece. Use the side switch to turn the led on/off or to increase its
brightness. There are 3 positions: 0, 1, 2. Position 0 is off –the led is off. When not in use please
switch it always to the off position to increase battery’s life. Position 1, led is on at its dimmest
brightness. Position 2, led is on at its brightest position. Depending on the sky quality choose
position 1 or 2 (more light pollution 1 is better than 2)
Make sure to always turn off the finder scope after use, this will increase
battery’s life. If the LED starts to become too dim replace the supplied
CR2032 battery.
Figure 22. Place the finder scope.
Figure 24. Point to the aperture’s direction.
Figure 22. Red dot Finder scope main parts.

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The finder scope’s pointing direction can be adjusted. This is important because the finder scope
should always point in the same direction as the telescope –this is called aligning. Alignment can be
done using the two adjustment screws (6 and 8 –figure 22). The altitude adjustment thumbscrew,
when rotated clock wise, moves the led screen down around the pivot screw as shown in figure 27.
The other adjustment (the azimuth thumbscrew) allows to adjust side wards the finder scope.
Combine both thumbscrew movements to centre and overlap the led’s red point with the object as
shown in the following page.
Do not look at the Sun with the telescope! Children should
be supervised when using a telescope during day time!
Figure 25. The led projects a bright red point.
Figure 26. Selection brightness.
Figure 27. Use the altitude thumbscrew to adjust the finder.
Figure 28. Use the altitude thumbscrew to adjust the finder.

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5. Aligning the Finder scope
Figure A. A distant object is centered at the telescope’s
field of view. In this example we have a house with a
chimney. The chimney is the reference point to place at
the center of the field of view. We first look through the
telescope with the lowest magnification possible, so we
have the widest field of view.
STEP 1
Figure B. Looking through the finderscope (it should be
powered ON) we see the same building ,but in this case
the red dot and chimney are not centered. We adjust
the finderscope using the two altitude and azimuth
knobs so that the finderscope red point moves slightly
until it matches the chimney. This is enough to correct
the objects position in the finderscope. Trial and error
is required to get a satisfactory result.
STEP 2
Figure C. After playing with the two findercope
thumbscrews and some trial and error, we get the
finderscope red dot close to the center (in this case the
chimney). The finderscope is now ready to use!
STEP 3

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6. What can been seen with this telescope?
Below you will find some examples of what you can expect to see when using this telescope.
6.1. The Moon is one of the most spectular objects
to be seen through a telescope. Even a small
telescope will reveal high detail of the Moon’s
surface. You will be able to see the craters on the
Moon’s surface and other features like the Marea.
The moon is a very bright object. It is better to
observe it when the Moon is not full. Try the
crescent Moon and look for features along the
terminator (between illuminated and dark surfaces).
6.2. Jupiter is the biggest planet of our solar system.
It is also one of the favorite targets for beginners.
Galileo was able to discover that the four tiny dots
that turn around the planet were in fact part of
Jupiters system of moons. With this telescope you
will not only be able to see Jupiter’s planet disc with
its two major discernible bands, but also its biggest
moons, Io, Europa, Ganymedes and Callisto.
6.3. The “lord of the rings” of the night skies, Saturn
is by far the most popular target for small
telescopes. Saturn’s rings are discernible even at
60x magnification. In a very good night you will be
able to see the Cassini’s division (the darker band
on the Saturn’s rings).

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7. Using the accessories, a bit of math
to understand how all it works.
Using the accessories is easy and fun. To
change magnification simply swap
eyepieces. To get more magnification
simply use the barlow lens. But how does
all of this work?
7.1. Power (magnification)
Your telescope has a focal length of
900mm. This is approximately the distance
between the telescope lens and its focal
point (very similar to the distance between
the focus point of a loupe and the loupe
lens). This is a very important feature, that
allows to determine several interesting
facts such as magnification.
The magnification is determined by the
telescope’s focal length and the used
eyepiece. You probably noticed that the
two supplied eyepieces are H20mm and
H12.5mm. This means that the H20mm is a
20mm focal length eyepiece while the
H12.5mm is a 12.5mm focal length
eyepiece.
To determine the magnification just divide
the telescope’s focal length by the
eyepiece’s focal length. Let’s give an
example for our telescope and the supplied
eyepieces:
Telescope’s focal length is 500mm.
H20 eyepiece’s focal length is 20mm.
900𝑚𝑚
20𝑚𝑚 =45 𝑝𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟
This means that the H20mm eyepiece
provides a 45x power (magnification). This
seems low, but when you try it, you will
see a bright image with some (very good)
details.
7.2. Barlow Lens
The barlow lens is a very interesting device.
It is a negative lens, that multiplies the
telescope’s focal length. So a 2x Barlow
multiplies the original focal length by 2x, in
this case 900𝑚𝑚 𝑥 2 = 1800𝑚𝑚.
A 3x Barlow lens multiplies by 3x.
Your telescope is supplied with a 2x Barlow
lens. When used with the H20mm eyepiece
you get 2x the power obtained before
45 𝑝𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟 𝑋 2𝑥 𝐵𝑎𝑟𝑙𝑜𝑤 = 90 𝑝𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟
7.3. Erecting lens (not included)
The erecting lens gets you an upright image
view with the telescope. It also adds some
power like the barlow lens. The Erecting
Lens provides an extra 1.5x power.
Some possible accessory combinations
Terrestrial
View
Moon
Deep Sky
Jupiter and
Saturn
Barlow Lens 2x
Yes
H20mm Eyepiece
Yes
Yes
H12.5mm Eyepiece
Yes
Power
Does not apply
40x
25x
50x