Meade Autostar 494 Instruction Manual page 15

6. Select Alignment: "Align: Easy" displays. Press
ENTER.
7. Set Home Position: Autostar then prompts you to set
the telescope in the "Alt/Az" Alignment home position
(Altitude-Azimuth or vertical-horizontal).
To set your telescope in the "Alt/Az" home position:
Level the optical tube and the tripod base so that
they are parallel (horizontal) to the ground. See Fig. 8a.
Tighten the horizontal and vertical locks to a "firm feel" only.
Physically move the telescope so that it points North.
Learn the position of Polaris (Fig. 8b), the North star, or
use a small pocket compass, to determine which direc-
tion is North.
Press ENTER.
8. Star Alignment: Autostar then chooses two stars to
align upon. When the telescope slews to the first star
for alignment, it may not appear in the field of view in
the eyepiece. Use the
Arrow keys to move the
telescope until the star
is visible and centered
N
in the eyepiece. The
alignment star should
be easily recognized
and be the brightest
star in the area of the
sky where the tele-
Fig. 8a: DS Home Position.
scope is pointing. Press ENTER. Repeat procedure for
the second alignment star.
NOTE: Autostar locates alignment stars based
on the date, time, and location entered during
Initialization. Alignment stars may change from
night to night, and hour to hour. All that is
required from the observer is to center the
selected stars in the eyepiece using the Arrow
keys when prompted.
TIP: Another method to find the alignment star if
it does not appear in the eyepiece is to perform
a "spiral search." If the alignment star is not
visible in the eyepiece when the telescope fin-
ishes its search, press GO TO and the telescope
starts slewing in a spiral pattern at a very slow
speed around the search area. Look through the
eyepiece and when the object becomes visible,
press MODE to stop the spiral search. Use the
Arrow keys to center the object.
Little Dipper
Big Dipper
Fig. 8b: Locating Polaris.
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Polaris
Cassiopeia