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CPC Re-Alignment
The CPC has a re-alignment feature which allows you to replace either of the original alignment stars with a new star or celestial object.
This can be useful in several situations:
•
If you are observing over a period of a few hours, you may notice that your
original alignment stars have drifted towards the west considerably. (Remember
that the stars are moving at a rate of 15º every hour). Aligning on a new star
that is in the eastern part of the sky will improve your pointing accuracy,
especially on objects in that part of the sky.
•
If you have aligned your telescope using the One-Star or Solar System
alignment method, you can use re-align to align to additional objects in the sky.
This will improve the pointing accuracy of your telescope without having to re-
enter addition information.
To replace an existing alignment star with a new alignment star:
1. Select the desired star (or object) from the database and slew to it.
2. Carefully center the object in the eyepiece.
3. Once centered, press the UNDO button until you are at the main menu.
4. With CPC Ready displayed, press the ALIGN key on the hand control.
5. The display will then ask you which alignment star you want to replace. Use
the UP and Down scroll keys to select the alignment star to be replaced. It
is usually best to replace the star closest to the new object. This will space
out your alignment stars across the sky. If you have used one of the single
object alignment methods then it is always best to replace the object that is
"unassigned" with an actual object.
6. Press ALIGN to make the change.
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Now that the telescope is properly aligned, you can choose an object from any of the catalogs in the CPC's extensive database. The hand
Helpful
control has a key (4) designated for each of the catalogs in its database. There are two ways to select objects from the database: scrolling
Hint
through the named object lists and entering object numbers.
Pressing the LIST key on the hand control will access all objects in the database that have common names or types. Each list is broken
down into the following categories: Named Stars, Named Object, Double Stars, Variable Stars, Asterisms and CCD Objects. Selecting
any one of these catalogs will display a numeric-alphabetical listing of the objects under that list. Pressing the Up and Down keys (10)
allows you to scroll through the catalog to the desired object.
When scrolling through a long list of objects, holding down either the Up or Down key will allow you to scroll through the catalog at a
rapid speed.
Pressing any of the other catalog keys (M, CALD, NGC, or STAR) will display a blinking cursor below the name of the catalog chosen.
Use the numeric key pad to enter the number of any object within these standardized catalogs. For example, to find the Orion Nebula,
press the "M" key and enter "042".
When entering the number for a SAO star, you are only required to enter the first four digits of the objects six digit SAO number. Once
the first four digits are entered, the hand control will automatically list all the available SAO objects beginning with those numbers. This
allows you to scroll through only the SAO stars in the database. For example, in searching for the SAO star 40186 (Capella), the first
four digits would be "0401". Entering this number will display the closest match from the SAO stars available in the database. From
there you can scroll down the list and select the desired object.
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The Meridian is an imaginary line in the sky that
starts at the North celestial pole and ends at
the South celestial pole and passes through the
zenith. If you are facing South, the meridian
starts from your Southern horizon and passes
directly overhead to the North celestial pole.
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Figure 4-3
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