Instruction Manual 7" LX200 Maksutov-Cassegrain Telescope 8", 10", and 12" LX200 Schmidt-Cassegrain Telescopes Meade Instruments Corporation
NOTE: Instructions for the use of optional accessories are not included in this manual. For details in this regard, see the Meade General Catalog. (2) (1) (1) (2) Ray (2) 1/2° Ray (1) 8.218" 8.016" (2) 8.0" (1) 8.
-3- ✵ WARNING! ✵ Never use the LX200 telescope to look at the Sun! Looking at or near the Sun will cause instant and irreversible damage to your eye. Eye damage is often painless, so there is no warning to the observer that damage has occurred until it is too late. Do not point the telescope or its viewfinder at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope or its viewfinder as it is moving. Children should always have adult supervision while observing.
-4- Contents 7" LX200 Maksutov-Cassegrain Telescope 8”, 10”, & 12" LX200 Schmidt-Cassegrain Telescope Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 1. What is the LX200? An Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 a. Heavy-Duty Mounts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 b. Built-In 64,359 Object Library. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 c. Altazimuth Mode Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 d. Terrestrial Operation. . . . . . . .
-5- INTRODUCTION As a new LX200 owner, you are preparing for a journey into the universe with the most advanced amateur telescope ever produced. The advent of this instrument is the culmination of twenty years of innovation and design at Meade Instruments; never before have the features you have in your hands been available to amateur astronomers: from robotic object location to the revolutionary Smart Drive and the most stable mounting structure ever.
-6celestial software library; 25 ft. power cord and adapter for telescope operation from 115v.AC; 8 x 50mm viewfinder; eyepiece-holder and diagonal prism (1.25"); Series 4000 SP26mm eyepiece; variable-height field tripod; operating instructions. d. 12" Model LX200 lncludes 12" Schmidt-Cassegrain optical tube assembly with EMC super multi-coatings (D = 305mm, F = 3048mm-f/10); heavy-duty fork mount, with 4"-dia. sealed polar ball bearing, quartz-microprocessor-controlled 5.
-7- TELESCOPE ASSEMBLY Use the following steps to assemble your telescope. NOTE: If the section is not applicable to all LX200 models, it is noted at the beginning of each section. 1. The Field Tripod The field tripods (Figs. 2 and 3) for Meade 8", 10", and 12" LX200 telescopes are supplied as completely assembled units, except for the spreader bar (4, Fig. 2) and the 6 lock knobs (2 knobs for each of the 3 tripod legs) used to adjust the height of the tripod.
-8- 2. Mounting the Viewfinder 4. Checking the Collimation of the Optics Each 7", 8", 10", and 12" LX200 telescope is supplied as standard equipment with an 8x50mm straight-through viewfinder. The bracket for this viewfinder is packed separately from the finder itself, and 6 black nylon thumbscrews for collimation are pre-threaded into the viewfinder bracket. The viewfinder bracket mounts onto the telescope with a quickrelease mount. See Fig. 1.
-9- QUICK START To utilize all the features of the telescope, it is necessary to enter some information into the telescope’s computer memory, and learn the menu structure of the keypad hand controller, which is described in the rest of this manual. As advanced as LX200 electronics are, the telescope is very straightforward to operate — even if you have no experience whatsoever in using a personal computer.
- 10 Method to Use?, page 13). Follow steps 4 through 8 in Setting Up the Telescope, page 11, to change the telescope’s operation to Altazimuth (ALTAZ) mode before proceeding. 1 You should find the position of your observing site to within 1 or 2 minutes of arc in both latitude and longitude. Many automobile, pilot, and topographical maps, as well as most atlases show latitude and longitude in 15 minute increments or better.
- 11 8. Press ENTER to complete the site information input. The display will go back to Display 3. 9. Press MODE to go back to Display 2. U.S.A. TIME ZONES 10. Press MODE again to go back to Display 1. It is important to note that the longitude standard used in the LX200 starts at 0 degrees in Greenwich U.K. and increases Westerly only to 359 degrees 59 minutes. Many maps will show Easterly longitudes which cannot be entered into the keypad display.
- 12 3. Loosen the R.A. lock (7, Fig. 1) and rotate the telescope so that the R.A. pointer (9, Fig. 1) and the HA pointer (16, Fig. 1) are approximately in line with each other. This will position the fork arms so that they are parallel to the power panel (11, Fig. 1). lock the R.A. lock. use the next month’s chart. Once you identify the constellation, pick any of the labeled stars that is not within a 10 degree radius of overhead, but do not choose Polaris, for reasons made clear below.
- 13 2. Telescope Position. The first display shows the RA and DEC (telescope position in stellar coordinates) and the second display (accessed by pressing the ENTER key) shows the telescope position in ALTAZ coordinates. 3. Time and Date. The first display shows local and Sidereal time and the second display (accessed by pressing the ENTER key) shows the date. 4. Timer and Freq. This display is a countdown timer and allows the user to change drive rates. These are advanced features. 5. All Off.
- 14 - THE LX200 KEYPAD HAND CONTROLLER Designed to make you a better astronomer, the integration of optics, mechanics, electronics, and software in the LX200 Maksutov Cassegrain or Schmidt Cassegrain Telescope is easily mastered. So easy, in fact that the telescope becomes a natural extension of the observer. The LX200 gives you virtually every telescope function possible with every control in a compact hand held console.
- 15 - 7. FOCUS Key The FOCUS key (9, Fig. 6) allows 2 speed electric focus control of the optional Meade #1206 Electric Focuser (or equivalent corded electric focusers such as the Meade Model #1200A). To activate, press either the SLEW or FIND key (for fast focusing), or the CNTR or GUIDE key (for slow focusing), press and hold the FOCUS key, and then press and hold the PREV or NEXT keys for near and far focus. 8. MAP Key The Map key (11, Fig.
- 16 - MODE FUNCTIONS 5. CCD Connector The CCD Port (10, Fig. 7) allows direct interface from popular aftermarket CCD autoguiding/imaging cameras with their compatible connecting cables to accomplish autoguiding for non-attended astrophotography. The CCD cameras effectively watch a star and detect slight movements. When star movements are detected, signals from the CCD electronics make drive corrections in the LX200, to bring the star to a home position.
- 17 options, which are; ALTAZ, POLAR, and LAND. TELESCOPE mode and press the ENTER key. Assuming that you have already entered correct local time, latitude, and longitude (see QUICK START, page 9) you are ready to choose a particular type of alignment, by pressing the NEXT or PREV key to run the arrow beside the desired option of ALTAZ, POLAR, or LAND, and then pressing the ENTER key.
- 18 side of the keypad. Altazimuth coordinate readings can still be displayed in the coordinates mode (see MODE 2, page 22). Refer to QUICK START (page 9) for the LAND menu option, for full operating procedures. You will also find that the addition of the Meade #928 45-Degree Erect Image Prism or the Meade #924 Porro Prism instead of the standard supplied star diagonal prism, will give the normal right-side-up and left-to-right views that you are accustomed to when using a spotting scope. 3.
- 19 9. HI-PRECISION: The High-Precision Pointing feature of LX200 allows for very precise pointing of the telescope. By incorporating the unique LX200 SYNC command, 0.3 arc-sec resolution encoders, and high-speed DC servo motors, observers can now place objects in the telescope’s field of view with 1 arc-minute or better pointing accuracy. This makes critical image placement applications, such as CCD imaging, possible.
- 20 step c, above. Press ENTER when the number is entered. e. Press the ENTER key and the hand control will display the first object in its finding sequence. This first object is selected by the LX200, based off of where the instrument is pointing in the sky when you entered START FIND. To point your LX200 to the object displayed, press the GO TO key and it will slew to the object. Check the time delay as described in step b. If there is a delay, increase the compensation number.
- 21 - 4. menu selection, the OBJECT INFORMATION menu selection, or the FIELD menu selection. so that your LX200 will not try to find objects below your setting. PARAMETERS: It is here that you can edit the Press ENTER to find eight options which can be reviewed by scrolling through this menu selection using the PREV or NEXT key.
- 22 in a given eyepiece while in the FIELD menu. At power up the RADIUS menu file option is set to 15 arc minutes, the radius of 1/2 a degree (30 arc minutes), which is about the proper setting for a 26mm eyepiece used in an 8" f/10 LX200. To calculate the true field of an eyepiece in the telescope, first divide the focal length of the telescope (e.g.
- 23 FREQ RATE DESCRIPTION NOTES 60.1 Hz Q Sidereal rate; Quartz setting Default rate at power up. Gives sidereal frequency accuracy to ±.005%; Best for astrophotos 60.0 Hz Solar and planetary rate Average rate for tracking planets; Actual rates vary due to retrogrades, oppositions, etc. 57.9 Hz Lunar rate Best rate for tracking the Moon There are three menu file options in FREQ =. To see or set the options, move the arrow to FREQ = and press ENTER. At power up, the FREQ = default is the 60.
- 24 - MAGNIFICATION AND FIELD OF VIEW 1. Magnification The magnification (power) of the telescope depends on two characteristics: the focal length of the main telescope and the focal length of the eyepiece used during a particular observation.
- 25 - APPENDIX A: EQUATORIAL WEDGE There are two equatorial wedges used on Meade LX200 telescopes. Please read the section, below, that applies to your telescope. Wedge Body Tripod Head 1. 8" Equatorial Wedge (For 7" and 8" LX200) The equatorial wedge permits use of the 8" LX200 telescope in an astronomical, or “equatorial,” mode. The wedge fits onto the field tripod, described below, and accepts the base of the 7" or 8" LX200 fork mount (Fig. 8).
- 26 the tilt-plate. If the main crossbar of the DLA is already tightened into place this will inhibit your installation of the tiltplate. You will therefore see that by releasing the screws on the ends of the DLA crossbar your installation of the wedge tiltplate will be facilitated. c. Holding the threaded rod in position, place the Superwedge on top of the tripod head so that the threaded stud extending from the tripod head passes through the center hole on the wedge floor.
- 27 - 1 4. Magnetic Compass 2 The magnetic compass helps the observer to set-up the telescope without actually seeing the pole star Polaris. This allows setting up before dark or in locations where the view of Polaris is obstructed. The magnetic compass has an adjustment to compensate for the local angle of Magnetic Declination. Note: Magnetic Declination is the difference between Magnetic North (which the compass shows) and true north (where the telescope should be pointed).
- 28 2. Point of knob and “North” line up 16° West Declination Magnetic Pointing Arrow N E W W Rotate the knob/compass so that the magnetic pointing arrow lies directly over the painted black alignment arrow (painted on the bottom surface of the compass, Fig. 18). The “North” position on the direction scale (and the point on the knob/compass) now point directly north. Magnetic North Centerline of wedge E True North W W N S E S Orienting Arrow E Fig. 16: Magnetic Compass. c.
- 29 - APPENDIX B: EQUATORIAL USE 1. Celestial Coordinates Celestial objects are mapped according to a coordinate system on the Celestial Sphere, an imaginary sphere surrounding Earth on which all stars appear to be placed. This celestial object mapping system is analogous to the Earth-based coordinate system of latitude and longitude.
- 30 As an aside procedure, during your first use of the telescope, you should check the calibration of the Declination setting circle (3, Fig. 1), located at the top of each side of the fork. After performing the polar alignment procedure, center the star Polaris in the telescope field. Remove the knurled central hub of the Declination setting circle and slightly loosen the two bolts located under the knob. Now turn the circle unit until it reads 89.
- 31 - APPENDIX C: LX200 ALIGNMENT STAR LIBRARY AND STAR CHARTS: 1. Alignment Stars The LX200 utilizes 33 bright and well known stars to calibrate the telescope’s Object Library in the ALTAZ and POLAR alignments. These stars were selected to allow observers from anywhere in the world on any given night, to be able to easily and quickly make precision alignments.
- 32 - 2.
- 33 - Overhead Overhead Vega Vega Alkaid Deneb Deneb Alkaid Polaris Polaris NORTH NORTH July 7:00 to 9:00 August 7:00 to 9:00 Overhead Vega Overhead Deneb Deneb Vega Polaris Alkaid Polaris NORTH NORTH September 7:00 to 9:00 October 7:00 to 9:00 Overhead Altair Overhead Deneb Aldebaran Vega Polaris Betelgeuse Rigel NORTHWEST SOUTHEAST November 7:00 to 9:00 December 7:00 to 9:00
- 34 - APPENDIX D: LX200 64,359-OBJECT LIBRARY 1. The LX200 64,359-Object Library The following guide to VQs was used in the visual observation process: SUPER Very bright object with very interesting shape or structure. The LX200 64,359-Object Library is a collection of the most studied and fantastic objects in the sky. It includes: • 15,928 SAO (Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory) Catalog of Stars: All stars brighter than 7th magnitude.
- 35 The following types are distinguished in the CNGC: TYPE LEGEND DESCRIPTION 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 A B C D E F S T None OPEN GLOB DNEB PNEB GAL OPEN + DNEB None STAR MULTI+STAR MULTI+GAL DNEB GAL+OPEN GAL+GLOB GAL+DNEB GAL+OPEN+DNEB Unverified Southern Object Open Cluster Globular Cluster Diffuse Nebula Planetary Nebula (or SN Remnant) Galaxy Open Cluster + Diffuse Nebula Non-Existent Object Star Multiple Star Multiple Galaxy (Usually Interacting) Dark Nebula in front of Diffuse Nebula Open Cluster in
- 36 - 2. CNGC Catalog CNGC# RA DEC SIZE MAG TYPE & DESCRIPTION ALT NAME Q TAGS COMMON NAME/COMMENTS GALAXY S- IV-V GALAXY SBm: PEC EMISSION GLOB CLUS sp=G3 OPEN CLUS GALAXY S(B)b+ UGC A4 c 5 ST b 5 ST B 2 ST c 1 ST c 5 ST 8.1x5.8 32.4x6.5 47 Tuc 16kly c 1 ST C 5 ST C 5 ST B 5 ST c 1 ST Oldest Open Cluster 5kly M110 Comp of M31 17.4x9.8 M32 Comp of M31 7.6x5.8 M31 Andromeda Gal 178x63 b 5 ST C 5 ST b 2 ST b 5 ST b 2 ST 20.0x7.4 25.1x7.4 0045 0055 0104 0129 0134 00 00 00 00 00 14.0 15.
- 37 - CNGC Catalog (continued) CNGC# RA DEC SIZE MAG TYPE & DESCRIPTION ALT NAME 1746 1763 1807 1817 1820 05 04 05 05 05 03.6 56.8 10.7 12.1 03.8 +23 -66 +16 +16 -67 49 24 32 42 17 2520 1500 1020 960 410 6.1p 8.3 7.0v 7.7v 9.0 OPEN OPEN OPEN OPEN OPEN CLUS CLUS + ENEB IN LMC CLUS CLUS CLUS IN LMC 1851 1857 1893 1904 1912 05 05 05 05 05 14.0 20.1 22.7 24.2 28.7 -40 +39 +33 -24 +35 02 21 24 31 51 660 360 660 522 1260 7.3v 7.0v 7.5v 8.0v 6.
- 38 - CNGC Catalog (continued) CNGC# RA DEC SIZE MAG TYPE & DESCRIPTION ALT NAME Q TAGS COMMON NAME/COMMENTS CNGC 2437 CNGC 2447 C D C C C 1 6 1 6 1 ST ST ST ST ST M46 5400ly (+CNGC 2438 PN) M93 Includes dark nebula 1000ly Open Cluster + Red Nebula C C D C C 1 1 1 1 1 ST ST ST ST ST 1200ly 2437 2447 2451 2467 2477 07 07 07 07 07 41.9 44.6 45.4 52.5 52.3 -14 -23 -37 -26 -38 49 52 58 24 33 1620 1320 2700 480 1620 6.1v 6.2v 2.8v 7.2p 5.
- 39 - CNGC Catalog (continued) CNGC# RA DEC SIZE MAG TYPE & DESCRIPTION ALT NAME Q TAGS COMMON NAME/COMMENTS 4349 4374 4382 4395 4406 12 12 12 12 12 24.2 25.1 25.5 25.8 26.3 -61 54 +12 53 +18 11 +33 32 +12 56 960 300 426 774 444 7.4v 9.3 9.2 10.2 9.2 OPEN CLUS GALAXY E1 GALAXY Ep 2-SYS GALAXY S+ IV-V GALAXY E3 UGC UGC UGC UGC 7494 7508 7524 7532 c 1 ST C 5 ST C A ST c5S C 5 ST M84 5.0x4.4 Near M86 M85 7.1x5.2 12.9x11.0 M86 7.4x5.5 4438 4472 4486 4501 4517 12 12 12 12 12 27.8 29.8 30.
- 40 - CNGC Catalog (continued) CNGC# RA DEC SIZE MAG TYPE & DESCRIPTION ALT NAME Q TAGS 5927 5986 6025 6067 6087 15 15 16 16 16 28.0 46.1 03.7 13.3 18.9 -50 -37 -60 -54 -57 40 46 30 13 54 720 588 720 780 720 8.3v 7.1v 5.1v 5.6v 5.4v GLOB CLUS GLOB CLUS OPEN CLUS OPEN CLUS sp=B3 OPEN CLUS b 2 ST b 2 ST c 1 ST c 1 ST c 1 ST 6093 6101 6121 6124 6144 16 16 16 16 16 17.1 25.7 23.7 25.6 27.2 -23 -72 -26 -40 -26 00 13 31 42 03 534 642 1578 1740 558 7.2v 9.3v 5.9v 5.8v 9.
- 41 - CNGC Catalog (continued) CNGC# RA DEC SIZE MAG TYPE & DESCRIPTION ALT NAME Q TAGS COMMON NAME/COMMENTS CNGC 6523 B 6 ST b 6 ST D 1 ST b 2 ST c 4 ST M8 Lagoon Nebula 5100ly In M8 = Lagoon Nebula M21 13kly Blue-Green 300ly 6523 6530 6531 6541 6543 18 18 18 18 17 03.2 04.8 04.6 08.0 58.6 -24 -24 -22 -43 +66 23 20 30 44 38 5400 900 780 786 350 5.2 4.6v 5.9v 6.6v 8.
- 42 - CNGC Catalog (continued) CNGC# RA DEC SIZE MAG TYPE & DESCRIPTION ALT NAME Q TAGS COMMON NAME/COMMENTS CNGC 6981 CNGC 6994 D 2 ST D 1 ST b 3 ST C 4 ST c 1 ST M72 M73 North American Nebula 3kly Saturn Nebula 3000ly 6981 6994 7000 7009 7036 20 20 21 21 21 53.5 59.0 01.8 04.3 12.1 -12 -12 +44 -11 +47 33 37 12 22 43 354 168 7200 100 240 9.4v 8.9p 6.6 8.3p 6.8v GLOB CLUS OPEN CLUS DIFF ENEB HII PLAN NEB OPEN CLUS I 1 m 7039 7063 7078 7082 7086 21 21 21 21 21 12.2 24.4 30.0 29.4 30.
- 43 - 3. STAR Catalog STAR# RA DEC SIZE MAG TYPE & DESCRIPTION ALT NAME Q TAGS COMMON NAME/COMMENTS * * * * * 1 2 3 4 5 00 00 00 00 00 08.3 09.2 13.2 25.7 26.3 +29 +59 +15 -77 -42 06 10 12 15 18 2.1v 2.3v 2.8v 2.8v 2.4v STAR STAR STAR STAR STAR B8.5p IV:(Hg+Mn) F2 III-IV B2 IV G1 IV K0 IIIb Alpha And Beta Cas Gamma Peg Beta Hyi Alpha Phe 8 8 8 8 8 ST ST ST ST ST * * * * * 6 7 8 9 10 00 00 00 00 01 39.4 40.5 43.6 56.7 06.1 +30 +56 -17 +60 -46 52 33 59 43 43 3.3v 2.2v 2.0v 2.
- 44 - STAR Catalog (continued) STAR# RA DEC SIZE MAG TYPE & DESCRIPTION ALT NAME Q TAGS COMMON NAME/COMMENTS 2.8v 2.0v -0.7v 1.9v 3.2v STAR STAR STAR STAR STAR M3 IIIab B1 II-III A9 II A1 IVs B8 IIIn Mu Gem Beta CMa Alpha Car Gamma Gem Nu Pup 8 8 8 8 8 ST ST ST ST ST Tejat Posterior Murzim Canopus Alhena 3.0v -1.5v 3.3v 2.9v 1.
- 45 - STAR Catalog (continued) STAR# RA DEC SIZE MAG TYPE & DESCRIPTION ALT NAME Q TAGS COMMON NAME/COMMENTS 50 50 240 1.3v 1.7v 3.0v 1.6v 2.7v STAR STAR STAR STAR STAR B0.5 IV + B1 Vn B1 Vn + B0.5 IV B9.5 III + K2 V M3.5 III G5 II Alpha Cru A Alpha Cru B Delta Crv A Gamma Cru Beta Crv 9 9 9 8 8 ST ST ST ST ST Acrux A B=1.7 Acrux B A=1.3 Algorab B=8.3 Gacrux Kraz 2.7v 2.9v 3.0v 2.8v 3.1v STAR STAR STAR STAR STAR B2 IV-V B9.5 III + A0 III A0 III + B9.5 III F1 V + F1 V B2 V + B2.
- 46 - STAR Catalog (continued) STAR# RA DEC SIZE 11 MAG TYPE & DESCRIPTION ALT NAME Q TAGS 2.8v 1.9v 2.3v 3.0v 3.2v STAR STAR STAR STAR STAR G1 IV + G7 V K2 IIb - IIIa K2 III B1.5 IVn K2 III Zeta Her AB Alpha TrA Epsilon Sco Mu^1 Sco Kappa Oph 9 8 8 8 8 ST ST ST ST ST 3.1v 3.2v 2.4v 3.3v 3.1v STAR STAR STAR STAR STAR K4 III B6 III A2 Vs + A3 V F2p V: (Cr) M5 Ib-II Zeta Ara Zeta Dra Eta Oph AB Eta Sco Alpha Her AB 8 8 9 8 8 ST ST ST ST ST 3.1v 3.2v 3.3v 2.9v 3.
- 47 - STAR Catalog (continued) STAR# RA DEC SIZE MAG TYPE & DESCRIPTION ALT NAME Q TAGS COMMON NAME/COMMENTS *241 *242 *243 *244 *245 22 22 22 22 22 05.8 08.3 18.6 42.7 43.1 -00 -46 -60 -46 +30 19 58 16 52 14 3.0v 1.7v 2.9v 2.1v 2.9v STAR STAR STAR STAR STAR G2 Ib B7 IV K3 III M5 III G8 II + F0 V Alpha Aqr Alpha Gru Alpha Tuc Beta Gru Eta Peg 8 8 8 8 8 ST ST ST ST ST Sadalmelik Al Nair *246 *247 *248 *249 *250 22 22 23 23 23 53.6 57.7 03.8 04.8 39.
- 48 - STAR Catalog (continued) STAR# RA DEC SIZE MAG TYPE & DESCRIPTION ALT NAME Q TAGS COMMON NAME/COMMENTS *301 *302 *303 *304 *305 12 12 12 12 13 26.6 35.1 41.7 53.3 23.9 -63 +18 -01 +21 +54 06 22 28 15 55 47 202 30 8 144 1.6 5.2 3.5 5.1 2.3 STAR STAR STAR STAR STAR 1.6:2.1 5.2:6.8 3.5:3.5 5.1:7.2 2.3:4.0 @114 @271 @287 @194 @151 Alpha Cru ADS 8600 ADS 8630 ADS 8695 ADS 8891 9 9 9 9 9 ST ST ST ST ST 1943 White:White 1963 Yellow:vBlue 1980=3.9 @297 White 1980=0.
- 49 - 4. M (Messier) Catalog M# RA DEC SIZE MAG TYPE & DESCRIPTION ALT NAME Q TAGS COMMON NAME/COMMENTS M M M M M 1 2 3 4 5 05 21 13 16 15 34.5 33.5 42.3 23.7 18.6 +22 -00 +28 -26 +02 01 50 23 31 05 360 774 972 1578 1044 8.4 6.5v 6.4v 5.9v 5.8v PLAN NEB EMIS SN REM GLOB CLUS sp=F4 GLOB CLUS sp=F7 GLOB CLUS sp=G0 GLOB CLUS sp=F6 CNGC CNGC CNGC CNGC CNGC 1952 7089 5272 6121 5904 B 4 ST C 2 ST B 2 ST B 2 ST B 2 ST M1 M2 M3 M4 M5 M M M M M 6 7 8 9 10 17 17 18 17 16 40.1 54.0 03.2 19.
- 50 - M (Messier) Catalog (continued) M# RA DEC SIZE MAG TYPE & DESCRIPTION ALT NAME Q TAGS COMMON NAME/COMMENTS M M M M M 61 62 63 64 65 12 22.0 17 01.3 13 15.8 12 56.7 11 18.9 +04 -30 +42 +21 +13 28 07 02 41 05 360 846 738 558 600 9.7 6.6v 8.6 8.5 9.3 GALAXY Sc I 2-SYS GLOB CLUS OBLATE GALAXY Sb+ II GALAXY SbGALAXY Sb II: UGC 7420 CNGC 6266 UGC 8334 UGC 8062 UGC 6328 D A ST D 2 ST C 5 ST C 5 ST C 5 ST M61 M62 M63 M64 M65 M M M M M 66 67 68 69 70 11 20.2 08 51.1 12 39.4 18 31.
- 51 - APPENDIX E: MAINTAINING YOUR LX200 1. Keeping Your Telescope Clean Prevention is the best recommendation that a telescope owner can follow to keep astronomical equipment in top working order. Proper measures taken during observation and when storing equipment between observing runs can add many years of trouble free use. Dust and moisture are the two main enemies to your instrument. When observing, it is advisable to use a proper fitting dew shield.
- 52 environmental pollutants, or temperature changes reacting with the interior paint, causing outgassing or water condensation, or combinations thereof. It is possible to clean the interior of the optical system yourself or to have it done professionally. In the case of the former, take great care in handling the optics. Any impact or rough handling can damage the surfaces, which may require complete optical replacement at Meade Instruments at substantial cost.
- 53 - (1) (2) (3) Fig. 27: De-focused Star Images. d. Turn the set screw that you found with the pointing exercise while looking in the eyepiece. You will notice that the star image will move across the field. If while turning, the out-of-focus star image flies out of the eyepiece field, then you are turning the screw the wrong way. Turn the opposite direction and bring the image to the center of the field. e.
- 54 - APPENDIX F: LX200 PERSONAL COMPUTER CONTROL 635241 Remote operation of a computerized telescope has only been a fanciful dream for most amateur astronomers. The realization of fully controlling a telescope through a personal computer has previously been a staggering proposition involving high monetary cost and expert knowledge of software and hardware. The LX200’s internal software supports the RS-232 interface, requiring only a serial communication program such as Procomm.
- 55 PC keyboard, this will move the LX200 North, South, East, or West respectively. Press the space bar on the PC keyboard to stop. Press X to exit the program. If the LX200 does not respond to the N, S, E, or W keys, be sure the CAPSLOCK is OFF. If it still does not work, check the PC serial port pinouts of your computer to be sure they are wired correctly to the LX200 6-line connector. DD* Example 56* Range 00* - 90* “Higher” parameter (degrees). TT.T Example 59.2 Range 56.4 - 60.1 Tracking “frequency.
- 56 Command :Sg DDD*MM# Returns Ok Sets the longitude of the currently selected site. Command :GG# Returns sHH# Gets the offset from Greenwich Mean Time. Command :SG sHH# Returns Ok Sets the offset from Greenwich Mean Time. Command :W1# :W2# :W3# :W4# Returns Nothing Sets the current site number. c. Telescope Motion Command :Mn# :Ms# :Me# :Mw# Returns Nothing Starts motion in the specified direction at the current rate.
- 57 Gets the brighter (Gb) or fainter (Gf) magnitude limit for the FIND operation. Command :Sb sMM.M# :Sf sMM.M# Returns Ok Sets the brighter (Sb) or fainter (Sf) magnitude limit for the FIND operation. Command :Gl# :Gs# Returns NNN'# Gets the larger (Gl) or smaller (Gs) size limit for the FIND operation. Command :Sl NNN# :Ss NNN# Returns Ok Sets the larger (Sl) or smaller (Ss) size limit for the FIND operation. Command :GF# Returns NNN'# Gets the field radius of the FIELD operation.
- 58 - 4. LX200 Demo Program The RS-232 interface communicates with your computer at 9600 Baud Rate, Parity = None, 8 Data Bits, 1 Stop Bits. For those who are familiar with programming, the LX200 Command Set is written in ASKII character format and can be used to write your own programs. The LX200 Demo Program on the following pages, is written in Quick Basic and is intended to demonstrate how commands are sent to the telescope and information is received from the telescope.
- 59 REM KEYS IF key$ IF key$ IF key$ IF key$ IF key$ IF key$ IF key$ IF key$ IF key$ IF key$ = = = = = = = = = = CHR$(119) THEN GOSUB senddir: REM CHR$(101) THEN GOSUB senddir: REM CHR$(110) THEN GOSUB senddir: REM CHR$(115) THEN GOSUB senddir: REM "m" THEN GOSUB objects "t" THEN GOSUB objects "c" THEN GOSUB objects "p" THEN GOSUB objects "x" THEN CLS : END "r" THEN RUN a$ = "#:Mw#" a$ = "#:Me#" a$ = "#:Mn#" a$ = "#:Ms#" GO TO 20 END senddir: west: IF key$ = "w" THEN a$ = "#:Mw#": PRINT #1, a$: REM GO
- 60 OBDRAW: LOCATE 6, 31: PRINT " O B J E C T I N F O R M A T I O N"; LOCATE 7, 31: PRINT "Object: "; LEFT$(info$, 9); LOCATE 8, 31: PRINT "Rating: "; MID$(info$, 10, 7); LOCATE 9, 31: PRINT "Magnitude: "; MID$(info$, 20, 5); LOCATE 10, 31: PRINT "Size: "; MID$(info$, 27, 6); IF counter = 0 THEN LOCATE 11, 31: PRINT "RA:"; : LOCATE 12, 31: PRINT "DEC:"; : LOCATE 7, 60: PRINT "Distance to SLEW"; : LOCATE 9, 55: PRINT "RA"; : LOCATE 10, 55: PRINT "Dec"; : GO TO scale c$ = "#:Gr#": PRINT #1, c$; : d$ = INPUT$
- 61 KEY5: PRINT #1, "#:RC#" LOCATE 24, 1: PRINT " "; LOCATE 24, 34: PRINT CHR$(219); CHR$(178); CHR$(176); CHR$(176); CHR$(178); CHR$(219); RETURN KEY6: PRINT #1, "#:RG#" LOCATE 24, 1: PRINT " "; LOCATE 24, 42: PRINT CHR$(219); CHR$(178); CHR$(176); CHR$(176); CHR$(178); CHR$(219); RETURN key11: key$ = "n" GOSUB north RETURN key12: key$ = "w" GOSUB west RETURN key13: key$ = "e" GOSUB east RETURN key14: key$ = "s" GOSUB south RETURN drawbox: REM REM REM REM RETURN LOCATE BOXSTX, BOXSTY: BOX$ = CHR$(201) FO
- 62 - APPENDIX G: LX200 SPECIFICATIONS Telescope 7" LX200 f/15 8" LX200 f/6.3 10" LX200 f/6.3 Optical Design Maksutov-Cassegrain Catadioptric 178mm (7") 194mm (7.625") 2670mm (105") f/15 .64 arc sec. standard 13.5 16.0 .55°/inch 450X 50' 9.1" Dia. x 19" Long 2.5" (12.8%) Heavy-Duty Fork-Type Double Tine Dec.: 6"; R.A.: 8.75" 9-speed, microprocessor controlled 12v. DC servo motor; 5.75" worm gear with Smart Drive North and South switchable 9-speed, DC servo controlled 5.
- 63 - Telescope 8" LX200 f/10 10" LX200 f/10 12" LX200 f/10 Optical Design Schmidt-Cassegrain Catadioptric 203mm (8") 209.6mm (8.25) 2000mm (80") f/10 .56 arc sec Standard 14.0 16.5 0.72°/inch 500X 25' 9.1" Dia. x 16" Long 3.0" (14.1%) Heavy-Duty Fork-Type Double Tine Dec.: 6"; R.A.: 8.75" 9-speed, microprocessor controlled 12v. DC servo motor; 5.75" worm gear with Smart Drive North and South switchable 9-speed, DC servo controlled 5.75" worm gear with Dec drift software 5-3/4" Worm Gear Dec. and R.
MEADE LIMITED WARRANTY Every Meade telescope, spotting scope, and telescope accessory is warranted by Meade Instruments Corporation (“Meade”) to be free of defects in materials and workmanship for a period of ONE YEAR from the date of original purchase in the U.S.A. and Canada. Meade will repair or replace a product, or part thereof, found by Meade to be defective, provided the defective part is returned to Meade, freight-prepaid, with proof of purchase.
