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Celestron 91518 Instruction Manual
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Celestron 91518 Instruction Manual

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Summary of Contents for Celestron 91518

  • Page 1 & & ● ●...
  • Page 2 Figure 2.1 – Advanced Series (Advanced C8-S Shown) Optical Tube Tripod Finderscope Counterweight(s) Finderscope Bracket Counterweight Bar Equatorial Mount Declination Setting Circle Latitude Adjustment Scale Dovetail Mounting Bar Tripod Center Leg Brace/Accessory Tray Schmidt Corrector Lens...
  • Page 3 Figure 2.2 – Advanced Series GT (Advanced C8-SGT Shown) Optical Tube Counterweight Bar Finderscope Declination Setting Circle Finderscope Bracket Dovetail Mounting Bar Equatorial Mount Schmidt Corrector Lens Latitude Adjustment Scale Hand Control Tripod Center Leg Brace/Accessory Tray R.A. Motor Drive / Control Panel Tripod Declination Motor Drive Counterweight(s)
  • Page 4 Remove all the pieces from their respective boxes and place on a flat, clear work area. A large floor space is ideal. When setting up your Celestron telescope you must start with the tripod and work up from there. These instructions are laid out in the order each task must be performed.
  • Page 5 The tripod comes fully assembled with a metal plate, called the tripod head, that holds the legs together at the top. In addition, there is a central rod that extends down from the tripod head that attaches the equatorial mount to the tripod.
  • Page 6 To properly balance the telescope, the mount comes with a counterweight bar and one counterweight To install the counterweight bar: Lock Nut Thread the counterweight bar lock nut onto the threaded end of the counterweight bar. Counterweight Locate the opening in the equatorial mount on the DEC axis Thread the counterweight bar into the opening until tight.
  • Page 7 Figure 2-5 Hand Control The Advanced GT telescope models come with a hand control Holder holder to place the computerized hand control. The hand control holder comes in two pieces: the leg clamp that snaps around the tripod leg and the holder which attaches to the leg clamp. To attach the hand control holder: Place the leg clamp up against one of the tripod legs and press firmly until the clamp wraps around the leg.
  • Page 8 An optical tube attaches to the mount via a dovetail bar which mounts along the Advanced bottom of a telescope tube. The CG-5 mount comes with a mounting bar that Declination GT Users! Index Marks mates to the mounting head of the mount. The mounting bar can be used to attached a desired telescope to the CG-5 mount.
  • Page 9 accurate tracking. To balance the mount: Verify that the telescope is securely attached to the telescope mounting platform. Loosen the R.A. lock lever and position the telescope off to one side of the mount. The counterweight bar will extend horizontally on the opposite side of the mount. Release the telescope —...

  • Page 10: Adjusting The Mount In Altitude

    rotate the telescope so that the counterweight bar is pointing down before loosening the mounting platform screw. Tighten the knobs on the telescope mounting platform to hold the telescope in place. Like R.A. balance, these are general balance instructions and will reduce undue stress on the mount. When taking astrophotographs, this balance process should be done for the specific area at which the telescope is pointing.
  • Page 11 12v AC 12v Power Input adapter. Use only adapter supplied by Celestron. Using any other adapter may damage On/Off Switch the electronics and will void your manufacturer's warranty. Figure 2-15 To power the telescope with the car battery adapter (or 12v AC adapter), simply plug the round post into the 12v outlet on the electronic panel and plug the other end into your cars cigarette lighter outlet or portable power supply (see Optional Accessories).
  • Page 12 The following is a supplemental addendum to the included instruction manual that explains the new features of Celestron's Advanced Series Telescopes. Please refer to this addendum for information concerning the new hand control features included with your telescope. Refer to the owner's manual for step-by-step instruction on assembling and using your telescope.
  • Page 13 Figure 3-1 The Advanced GT Hand Control 4. Catalog Keys: The Advanced Series has keys on the hand control to allow direct access to each of the catalogs in its database. The hand control contains the following catalogs in its database: Messier –...
  • Page 14 quadruple stars in the sky. Select list of the brightest variable stars Variable Stars with the shortest period of changing magnitude. Asterisms A unique list of some of the most recognizable star patterns in the sky. CCD Objects A custom list of many interesting galaxy pairs, trios and clusters that are well suited for CCD imaging with the Advanced GT telescope.
  • Page 15 In order for the telescope to accurately point to objects in the sky, it must first be aligned with known positions (stars) in the sky. With this information, the telescope can create a model of the sky, which it uses to locate any object with known coordinates. There are many ways to align your telescope with the sky depending on what information the user is able to provide: Two Star Align uses the entered time/location information and allows the user to select which two alignment stars the telescope will automatically slew to.
  • Page 16 list of either international or U.S. location. Custom Site allows you to enter the exact longitude and latitude of your observing site. Select City Database and press ENTER. The hand control will allow you to choose from either U.S. or international locations. For a listing of U.S.
  • Page 17 Meridian, simply press the MENU button before selecting your first alignment star. By default, Meridian filtering is enabled with the side of the Meridian that has the largest number of stars above the horizon. Meridian filtering is indicated in the upper right hand corner of the LCD display with an “E” (East) or “W” (West).

  • Page 18: Tips For Using Solar System Align

    One-Star Alignment works much the same way as Two-Star Align but uses only a single star in the sky for alignment. This method of alignment is not as accurate as the two-star alignment and is recommended only for telescopes that are permanently and accurately polar aligned.
  • Page 19 The Last Alignment method will automatically recall the last stored index positions to continue using the alignment that was saved when the telescope was last powered down. This is a useful feature should your telescope accidentally lose power or be powered down. NOTE: Just like with Quick-Align, you can use the Alignment Stars or Sync feature (see below) to improve your telescopes pointing accuracy after using the Last Alignment method.
  • Page 20 1. Select the desired star (or object) from the database and slew to it. 2. Once centered, press the UNDO button until you are at the main menu. 3. With Advanced GT displayed, press the ALIGN key on the hand control. 4.
  • Page 21 Now that the telescope is properly aligned, you can choose an object from any of the catalogs in the telescope's extensive database. The hand 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 through the named object lists and entering object numbers.
  • Page 22 its filter limits). To locate the planets, press the PLANET key on the hand control. The hand control will display all solar system objects that are above the horizon: Use the Up and Down keys to select the planet that you wish to observe. Press INFO to access information on the displayed planet.
  • Page 23 Pressing the RATE key (11) allows you to instantly change the speed rate of the motors from high speed slew rate to precise guiding rate or anywhere in between. Each rate corresponds to a number on the hand controller key pad. The number 9 is the fastest rate (3º per second, depending on power source) and is used for slewing between objects and locating alignment stars.
  • Page 24 EQ North Used to track the sky when the telescope is polar aligned in the Northern Hemisphere. EQ South Used to track the sky when the telescope is polar aligned in the Southern Hemisphere. When using the telescope for terrestrial (land) observation, the tracking can be turned off so that the telescope never moves.
  • Page 25 number of the object you wish to select and press ENTER. The telescope will automatically retrieve and display the coordinates before slewing to the object. Save Sky Object: Your telescope stores celestial objects to its database by saving its right ascension and declination in the sky. This way the same object can be found each time the telescope is aligned.
  • Page 26 Identify Identify Mode will search any of the telescope's database catalogs or SCOPE SETUP lists and display the name and offset distances to the nearest matching objects. This feature can serve two purposes. First, it can be used to SETUP TIME-SITE ANTI-BACKLASH identify an unknown object in the field of view of your eyepiece.
  • Page 27 Scope Setup Features - Allows the user to customize the telescope's display by changing time and Setup Time-Site location parameters (such as time zone and daylight savings). – All mechanical gears have a certain amount of backlash or play between the Anti-backlash gears.
  • Page 28 If you want to explore the entire object database, set the maximum altitude limit to 90º and Observing Tip! the minimum limit to –90º. This will display every object in the database lists regardless of whether it is visible in the sky from your location. The direction a star appears to move in the eyepiece changes depending on Direction Buttons –...
  • Page 29 Cone Value – This is the cone error value set when calibration stars are added DEC Index - This is the declination index error value set when calibrations stars are added. RA Index - This is the R.A. index error value set when Utilities / Calibrate Mount / R.A.
  • Page 30 R.A. Index Calibration - This procedure records the offset of the RA index marker from the meridian. To perform an RA Index Calibration, the mount must be polar aligned and a two star alignment must have been performed with calibration stars. Calibrating the RA index will improve the pointing accuracy to the initial alignment stars when the mount has been polar aligned To successfully calibrate the R.A.
  • Page 31 center Polaris in the eyepiece, the mount will then be pointed towards the actual North Celestial Pole. Once Polar Align is complete, you must re-align your telescope again using any of the alignment methods described earlier. To polar align the mount in the Northern Hemisphere: 1.
  • Page 32 Pressing UNDO at the Wake Up screen allows you to explore many of the features of the hand control without waking the telescope up from hibernate mode. To wake up the telescope after UNDO has been pressed, select Hibernate from the Utility menu and press ENTER.
  • Page 33 ADVANCED GT MENU ALIGNMENT LIST NAMED STAR TRACKING START-UP PROCUDURE MODE SET TO INDEX SOLAR SYSTEM SELECT LOCATION TOUR EQ NORTH VARIABLE STAR CITY DATABASE EQ SOUTH ABELL CUSTOM SITE ASTERISM ENTER TIME RATE CALDWELL DLS/ST CCD OBJECTS TIME ZONE CONSTELLATION SIDEREAL ENTER DATE- MM/DD/YY...
  • Page 34 Latitude Scales The easiest way to polar align a telescope is with a latitude scale. Unlike other methods that require you to find the celestial pole by identifying certain stars near it, this method works off of a known constant to determine how high the polar axis should be pointed. The Advanced Series mount can be adjusted from 30 to 60 degrees (see figure 5-3).
  • Page 35 3. Adjust the mount in altitude until the latitude indicator points to your latitude. Moving the mount affects the angle the polar axis is pointing. For specific information on adjusting the equatorial mount, please see the section “Adjusting the Mount.” This method can be done in daylight, thus eliminating the need to fumble around in the dark.

  • Page 36: Declination Drift

    (see Figure 5-5). Observers in the southern hemisphere are not as fortunate as those in the northern hemisphere. The stars around the south celestial pole are not nearly as bright as those around the north. The closest star that is relatively bright is Sigma Octantis.
  • Page 37 Again, make the appropriate adjustments to the polar axis to eliminate any drift. Unfortunately, the latter adjustments interact with the prior adjustments ever so slightly. So, repeat the process again to improve the accuracy checking both axes for minimal drift. Once the drift has been eliminated, the telescope is very accurately aligned. You can now do prime focus deep-sky astrophotography for long periods.

  • Page 38: Celestron Two Year Warranty

    Celestron will repair or replace such product or part thereof which, upon inspection by Celestron, is found to be defective in materials or workmanship. As a condition to the obligation of Celestron to repair or replace such product, the product must be returned to Celestron together with proof-of-purchase satisfactory to Celestron.
  • Page 39 Celestron 2835 Columbia Street Torrance, CA 90503 U.S.A. Tel. (310) 328-9560 Fax. (310) 212-5835 Web site at http//www.celestron.com Copyright 2006 Celestron All rights reserved. (Products or instructions may change without notice or obligation.) Item # 91517 -INST $10.00 03-06...

This manual is also suitable for:

91517Advanced cg-5Advanced cg-5 gt