Instruction Manual

8" LX90 Schmidt-Cassegrain Telescope with Autostar Hand Controller
Meade Instruments Corporation
The Meade Schmidt-Cassegrain Optical System
(2) (1) Ray (2) Ray (1) (2) (1) Focal Plane Secondary Mirror Primary Baffle Tube Field Stops Primary Mirror Correcting Plate Secondary Baffle (1) (2)
In the Schmidt-Cassegrain design of the Meade LX90, light enters from the right, passes through a thin lens with 2-sided aspheric correction (correcting plate), proceeds to a spherical primary mirror, and then to a convex secondary mirror. The convex secondary mirror multiplies the effective focal length of the primary mirror and results in a focus at the focal plane, with light passing through a central perforation in the primary mirror. The Meade 8" LX90 Schmidt-Cassegrain includes an oversize primary mirror of an 8.25" diameter, yielding a fully illuminated field-of-view significantly wider than is possible with a standard-size primary mirror. Note that light ray (2) in the figure would be lost entirely, except for the oversize primary. It is this phenomenon which results in Meade SchmidtCassegrains having off-axis field illuminations about 10% greater, aperture-for-aperture, than other Schmidt-Cassegrains utilizing standard-size primary mirrors. Field stops machined into the inside-diameter surface of the primary mirror baffle tube significantly increase lunar, planetary, and deep-space image contrast. These field stops effectively block off-axis stray light rays.
The name "Meade" and the Meade logo are trademarks registered with the U.S. Patent Office and in principal countries throughout the world. "LX90" is a trademark of Meade Instruments Corporation. 2000 Meade Instruments Corporation.

CONTENTS

WARNING!
Never use a Meade LX90 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.
Quick-Start Guide... 4 Telescope Features.. 6 Autostar Features... 9 Getting Started..12 Parts Listing..12 How to Attach the Tripod to the Telescope.12 How to Assemble Your Telescope..12 Choosing an Eyepiece...14 Mounting and Adjusting the Viewfinder..14 Observing...15 Observing By Moving the Telescope Manually.15 Terrestrial Observing..15 Observing Using Autostar's Arrow Keys.15 Slew Speeds..16 Observe the Moon..16 Astronomical Observing..17 To Track an Object Automatically..17 Alt/Az Home Position..17 Moving Through Autostars Menus..17 Initializing Autostar...17 Observe a Star Using Automatic Tracking..18 Easy (Two-Star) Align...19 Go To Saturn..20 Using the Guided Tour...20 Basic Autostar Operation..21 Autostar Navigation Exercise.21 Entering Data into Autostar..22 Navigating Autostar..22 Menus and Menu Options...23 Complete Autostar Menu Structure.23 Objects Menu..23 Event Menu..24 Glossary Menu...25 Utilities Menu..25 Setup Menu..26 Advanced Autostar Features..29 Adding Observing Sites..29 Finding Objects Not in the Database.30 Observing Satellites..31 How to Create Your Own Guided Tour..32 Landmarks...35 Identify...36 Advanced Alt/Az Alignment..37 Browse...37 Photography with the LX90..38 Optional Accessories..39 Maintenance...41 Collimation...41 Inspecting the Optics..43 Gauging the Movement of the Telescope.43 Meade Customer Service.43 Specifications..44 Appendix A: Equatorial (Polar) Alignment..45 Appendix B: Helpful Charts..48 Appendix C: Training the Drive..49 Basic Astronomy..50 A Roadmap to the Stars..52
CAUTION: Use care to install batteries in the orientation indicated by illustration in the battery slots of the battery holder. Follow battery manufacturer's precautions. Do not install batteries backwards or mix new and used batteries. Do not mix battery types. If these precautions are not followed, batteries may explode, catch fire, or leak. Improperly installed batteries void your Meade warranty.
If you are anxious to use your telescope for the first time, read the QUICK-START GUIDE on pages 4 and 5.

QUICK-START GUIDE

It is recommended that you attach the supplied tripod to the LX90 for observing. Perform the telescope and Autostar setup indoors in the light so that you become familiar with the parts and operation before moving the telescope outside into the dark for observing.

Autostar with coil cord - See page 9 for a description of Autostars features. Dust Cover- Gently pry the dust cover from the front lens of the telescope. NOTE: The dust cover should be replaced after each observing session and the power turned off to the telescope. Verify that any dew that might have collected during the observing session has evaporated prior to replacing the dust cover.
Battery Compartments - Insert four (user-supplied) C-cell batteries in each compartment (eight batteries total). Viewfinder - A low-power, wide-field sighting scope with crosshairs that enable easy centering of objects in the telescope eyepiece. Viewfinder Collimation Screws - Use these screws to adjust the alignment of the viewfinder. See "Mounting and Adjusting the Viewfinder," page 14.

AUTOSTAR FEATURES

Fig. 2: The LX90 Autostar Handbox.
Tour the Cosmos with Just the Push of a Button
Control of the LX90 is through the operation of the standard-equipment Autostar. Nearly all functions of the telescope are accomplished with just a few pushes of Autostars buttons. Some of the major features of Autostar are: Automatically move the telescope to any of over 30,000 objects stored in the database or manually enter the astronomical coordinates of any celestial object. Take a guided tour of the best celestial objects to view on any given night of the year. Download the latest satellite data and software revisions directly from the Meade website (www.meade.com) and share software with other Autostar enthusiasts. (Requires optional #505 AstroFinder Software and Cable Connector Kit. See OPTIONAL ACCESSORIES, page 39.) Control your LX90 with your PC using an RS-232 interface. Access a glossary of astronomical terms. Calculate which eyepiece to use for optimum viewing of a celestial object. Mount the telescope in the Alt/Az mode (Altitude - Azimuth, or vertical - horizontal) for fully automatic tracking of celestial objects. Extensive long-exposure astrophotography and CCD imaging capability is available when the LX90 is mounted in the "Equatorial" (Polar) mode using an optional mounting wedge.
The Autostar Computer Controller provides control of virtually every telescope function within a compact handbox. Autostar has soft-touch keys designed to have a positive feel. The LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) is backlit with a red LED (Light Emitting Diode) for easy viewing in the dark. The backlit display, key arrangement, and sequential database make Autostar extremely user friendly. NOTE: Autostar does not require batteries; the telescopes batteries supply power to Autostar. NOTE: Throughout this manual, you will notice the term "Alt/Az." Alt/Az is frequently used to refer to Altitude (vertical) and Azimuth (horizontal). Alt/Az is just one of many methods used by amateur astronomers to help locate stars in the night sky.

Number Keys - Input digits 0 - 9 and changes the slew speeds (see "SLEW SPEEDS," page 16). The "0" key also turns on and off the red utility light on the top of the handbox.
Scroll Keys - Accesses database options within a selected menu. The menu is displayed on the first line of the screen. Options within the menu are displayed, one at a time, on the second line. Press the Scroll keys to move through the options. Press and hold a Scroll key to move quickly through the options. The Scroll keys also scroll through the letters of the alphabet and numerical digits. NOTE: The Scroll Down key and the Down Arrow key move forward through the alphabet & digits (A to Z, 0 to 9). The Scroll Up key and the Up Arrow key move backward (Z to A, 9 to 0). Common symbols are also available in the list.
? Key - Accesses the "Help" file. "Help" provides on-screen information on how to accomplish whatever task is currently active. Hold down the ? key and then follow the prompts on the display to access details of Autostar functions in the Help feature. The Help system is essentially an on-screen instruction manual. If you have a question about an Autostar operation, e.g., INITIALIZATION, ALIGNMENT, etc., hold down the ? key and follow the directions that scroll on the second line of the LCD screen. When a word appears in [brackets], press ENTER to access the Autostar Glossary. A definition or more detailed information is displayed. Press MODE to return to the scrolling Autostar Help display. When satisfied with the Help provided, press MODE to return to the original screen and continue with the chosen procedure.
Coil Cord Port - Plug one end of the Autostar coil cord into this port (11, Fig. 2) located at the bottom of the Autostar handbox. Coil Cord - Plug one end of the Autostar coil cord into the HBX port (13A, Fig. 1) of the computer control panel of the telescope. RS-232 Port - plug an RS-232 cable into Autostar for downloading functions such as "Download" or "Clone." See page 28 for more details. Utility Light - Use this built-in red light to illuminate star charts and accessories without disturbing your eye's adaptation to darkness.

LX90 TIPS

Join an Astronomy Club Attend a Star Party
One of the fun ways to learn about astronomy is to join an astronomy club. Check your local newspaper, school, library, or telescope dealer/store to find out if theres a club in your area. At club meetings, you will meet other astronomy enthusiasts with whom you will be able to share your discoveries. Clubs are an excellent way to learn more about observing the sky, to find out where the best observing sites are, and to compare notes about telescopes, eyepieces, filters, tripods, and so forth. Often, club members are excellent astrophotographers. Not only will you be able to see examples of their art, but you may even be able to pick up some tricks of the trade to try out on your LX90 telescope. See page 38 for more information about photography with the LX90. Many groups also hold regularly scheduled Star Parties at which you can check out and observe with many different telescopes and other pieces of astronomical equipment. Magazines such as Sky & Telescope and Astronomy print schedules for many popular Star Parties around the United States and Canada.

GETTING STARTED

Parts Listing
Getting the telescope ready for first observations requires only a few minutes. When first opening the packing box, note carefully the following parts: LX90 Telescope with fork mount system Autostar handbox and interface coil cord 8 x 50mm viewfinder assembly Eyepiece holder and 1.25 diagonal prism Super Plssl 26mm eyepiece, packed in a plastic storage container Variable height tripod and mounting base Set of hex wrenches
How to Attach the Tripod to the Telescope Assembly
The telescopes fork mount attaches directly to the field tripod. The telescope in this way is mounted in an Altazimuth (Altitude-Azimuth, or vertical-horizontal) format. The telescope in this configuration moves along vertical and horizontal axes, corresponding respectively to the Declination (vertical) and Right Ascension (horizontal) axes in an astronomical observing mode. The field tripod also can be used in conjunction with the optional equatorial wedge (see "EQUATORIAL WEDGE," page 47) for long exposure astrophotography. The equatorial wedge permits alignment of the telescopes Polar Axis with the Celestial Pole (or North Star). 1. After removing the field tripod from its shipping carton, stand the tripod vertically, with the tripod feet down and with the tripod still fully collapsed (see Fig. 3). Grasp two of the tripod legs and, with the full weight of the tripod on the third leg, gently pull the legs apart to a fully open position. Thread in the 6 lock-knobs (2 on each tripod leg) near the foot of each tripod leg (Fig. 3). These lock-knobs are used to fix the height of the inner, extendible tripod leg sections. NOTE: Tightening to a firm-feel is sufficient; over-tightening may result in stripping of the knob threads or damage to the tripod legs and results in no additional strength. 3. The spreader bar (4, Fig. 3) has been removed for shipment. To install, first remove the threaded rod (2, Fig.3) from the tripod head (1, Fig. 3); a small piece of plastic holds the threaded rod in place. Remove the small plastic bag that is stapled to the threaded rod. This bag contains the C clip retainer and an extra clip. Slide the spreader bar onto the threaded rod (note the correct orientation as shown in Fig. 4) and position the threaded rod back through the tripod head. Place the clip retainer ( a C clip) into the slot in the threaded rod. This clip holds the threaded rod in place. See Fig. 3.

Fig. 5: Four C-cell batteries mounted inside one of the battery holders. Note position of rib in the battery compartment.

Choosing an Eyepiece

A telescopes eyepiece magnifies the image formed by the telescopes main optics. Each eyepiece has a focal length, expressed in millimeters, or mm. The smaller the focal length, the higher the magnification. For example, an eyepiece with a focal length of 9mm has a higher magnification than an eyepiece with a focal length of 26mm. NEVER point the telescope directly at or near the Sun at any time! Observing the Sun, even for the smallest fraction of a second, will result in instant and irreversible eye damage, as well as physical damage to the telescope itself. Your telescope comes supplied with a Super Plssl 26mm eyepiece which gives a wide, comfortable field of view with high image resolution. Low power eyepieces offer a wide field of view, bright, high-contrast images, and eye relief during long observing sessions. To find an object with a telescope, always start with a lower power eyepiece such as the Super Plssl 26mm. When the object is located and centered in the eyepiece, you may wish to switch to a higher power eyepiece to enlarge the image as much as practical for prevailing seeing conditions. For information about optional eyepieces for the LX90, see "OPTIONAL ACCESSORIES," page 39.
NOTE: Seeing conditions vary widely from night-to-night and site-to-site. Turbulence
in the air, even on an apparently clear night, can distort images. If an image appears fuzzy and ill-defined, back off to a lower power eyepiece for a more wellresolved image (Fig. 7a and 7b). The power, or magnification of a telescope is determined by the focal length of the telescope and the focal length of the eyepiece being used. To calculate eyepiece power, divide the telescope's focal length by the eyepiece's focal length. For example, a 26mm eyepiece is supplied with the LX90. The focal length of the LX90 is 2000mm (see "Specifications," page 44). Eyepiece Power = Telescope Focal Length Eyepiece Focal Length = 2000mm 26mm = 77X
NOTE: For a list of magnification ratings of the eyepieces available for the LX90 telescope, see "OPTIONAL ACCESSORIES," page 39.
The eyepiece power, or magnification is therefore 77X (approximately).
Mounting and Adjusting the Viewfinder

To align the viewfinder, perform steps 1 through 5 during the daytime; perform step 6 at night. 1. Slide the track on the bottom of the viewfinder into the slot in the viewfinder mounting assembly. See Fig. 6a. To secure the viewfinder to the mounting assembly, tighten the two thumbscrews (Fig. 6a) to a firm feel only. If you have not already done so, insert the Super Plssl 26mm eyepiece into the diagonal prism. Unlock the R.A. (9, Fig. 1) and Dec (6, Fig. 1) locks so that the telescope moves freely on both axes. Point the telescope at some well-defined and stationary land object at least 200 yards distant, such as the top of a telephone pole or street sign. Center the object in the telescope eyepiece. Re-tighten the R.A. and Dec locks. Look through the viewfinder eyepiece (Fig. 6b) and loosen or tighten, as appropriate, one or more of the viewfinder collimation screws (Fig. 6b) until the viewfinder crosshairs are precisely centered on the object you previously centered in the telescope eyepiece. Check this alignment on a celestial object, such as the Moon or a bright star, and make any necessary refinements, using the method outlined in steps 3 and 4.
Mounting Slot Collimation Screws

2. 3. 4.

Viewfinder Eyepiece Track Thumbscrews
Fig. 6a: Viewfinder Assembly.
Fig. 6b: Viewfinder Assembly.

OBSERVING

IMPORTANT NOTE: Objects appear upside-down and reversed left-for-right when observed in the viewfinder and also in the eyepiece when inserted directly into the (straight-through) eyepiece holder with the diagonal prism in place, images will be rightside-up, but reversed left-for-right. This image inversion is of no consequence when observing astronomical objects and, in fact, all astronomical telescopes yield inverted images. During terrestrial observing, where a fully-correctly-oriented image (right-side-up and correct left-forright) is desirable, an optional #Erecting Prism is available. See OPTIONAL ACCESSORIES, page 39.
Observing By Moving the Telescope Manually
If you wish to observe a distant land object, such as a mountain top or a bird, you can observe by merely pointing the telescope and looking through the eyepiece. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Loosen the telescopes R.A. lock (9, Fig. 1) and Dec lock (6, Fig. 1). Move your telescope to observe distant street signs, mountains, trees, and other structures. Use your viewfinder to to help site-in on an object. Center the object in the viewfinders crosshairs and then in the telescope eyepiece. When the object is centered in your eyepiece, remember to re-tighten the R.A. and Dec locks. Practice focusing objects with the focus knob (8, Fig. 1). Once you get a feel for how your telescope moves and focuses, try to view something more challenging, like a bird or a distant moving train. NOTE: Viewing conditions vary widely from night-to-night and site-to-site. Turbulence in the air, even on an apparently clear night, can distort images. Lowpower eyepieces, such as the Super Plssl 26mm supplied with your telescope, are better suited to resolving images in poor viewing conditions. You can also observe stars and objects in the night sky using this method, but note that objects begin to slowly drift across the eyepiece field. This motion is caused by the rotation of the Earth. As you become familiar with the Autostar handbox operation, you can counteract the drift using the automatic tracking feature in the Autostar Setup menu (see "TO TRACK AN OBJECT AUTOMATICALLY," page 18), or by using Autostar's GO TO capabilities (see "GO TO SATURN," page 20).

A message displays that warns not to look at the Sun. At the end of this message, press the key prompted by Autostar to signify that the message has been read and understood. The Arrow keys are now activated. Press the Arrow keys (5, Fig. 2) to slew (move) the telescope up, down, right, or left. Press a Number key (8, Fig. 2) to change the telescopes slew speed. See "SLEW SPEEDS," below, for more information. Use the viewfinder (17, Fig. 1) to locate an object and practice using the Autostars Arrow keys to center the object in the telescopes field of view. Use the telescopes focus knob (8, Fig. 1) to bring the object into focus.

Slew Speeds

Autostar has nine slew speeds that are directly proportional to the sidereal rate and have been calculated to accomplish specific functions. Pressing a Number key changes the slew speed, which is shown for about two seconds on Autostars display. The nine available speeds are: Number Key 1 = Number Key 2 = Number Key 3 = 1x = 2x = 8x = 1 x sidereal (0.25 arc-min/sec or 0.004/sec) 2 x sidereal (0.5 arc-min/sec or 0.008/sec) 8 x sidereal (2 arc-min/sec or 0.033/sec) 16 x sidereal (4 arc-min/sec or 0.067/sec) 64 x sidereal (16 arc-min/sec or 0.27/sec) 32 arc-min/sec or 0.5/sec 90 arc-min/sec or 1.5/sec 180 arc-min/sec or 3/sec 390 arc-min/sec or 6.5/sec)
Number Key 4 = 16x = Number Key 5 = 64x = Number Key 6 = 128x = Number Key 7 = 1.5 = Number Key 8 = 3 = Number Key 9 = Max =
Speeds 1, 2, or 3: Best used for fine centering of an object in the field of view of a higher power eyepiece, such as a 12mm or a 9mm eyepiece. Speeds 4, 5, or 6: Enables centering an object in the field of a low-to-moderate power eyepiece, such as the standard Super Plssl 26mm. Speeds 7 or 8: Best used for rough centering of an object in the eyepiece. Speed 9: Moves the telescope quickly from one point in the sky to another NOTE: Do not look through the telescope's eyepiece or viewfinder while it is rapidly moving. Children should always have adult supervision while observing.

Observe the Moon

Point your telescope at the Moon (note that the Moon is not visible every night) and practice using the Arrow keys and the slew speeds to view different features. The Moon contains many interesting features, including craters, mountain ranges, and fault lines. The best time to view the Moon is during its crescent or half phase. Sunlight strikes the Moon at an angle during these periods and adds a depth to the view. No shadows are seen during a full Moon, causing the overly bright surface to appear flat and rather uninteresting. Consider the use of a neutral density Moon filter when observing the Moon. Not only does it cut down the Moon's bright glare, but it also enhances contrast, providing a more dramatic image.

The rule of thumb is that an alignment star is usually the brightest star in that area of the sky. When you view an alignment star in an eyepiece, it stands out dramatically from the rest of the stars in that portion of the sky. If you have an obstruction, such as a tree or a building blocking your view of the alignment star, or if you have any doubts at all about the star that has been chosen, no problem. Just press the Scroll Down key and Autostar will find another star to align upon.
NOTE: The GO TO key also allows you to perform a "spiral search." A spiral search is useful when the telescope slews to an object, but that object is not visible in the eyepiece after the telescope finishes it search. (This sometimes occurs during an alignment procedure.) Press GO TO when the slew is finished 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 does become visible, press MODE to stop the spiral search. Then use the Arrow keys to center the object.

Go To Saturn

After performing the Easy Align procedure, the motor drive begins operating and the telescope is aligned for a night of viewing. Objects in the eyepiece should maintain their position even though the Earth is rotating beneath the stars. IMPORTANT NOTE: Once aligned, only use the GO TO or Arrow keys to move the telescope. Do not loosen the telescope locks (6 and 9, Fig. 1), or move the base manually, or alignment will be lost. This exercise demonstrates how to select a celestial object, the planet Saturn, for viewing from Autostars database. NOTE: Saturn is not visible the entire year and you may need to choose another object from Autostar's database; however, the procedure, as described below, remains the same. 1 2. 3. 4. 5. After the telescope is aligned, Select Item: Object displays. Press ENTER. Object: Solar System displays. Press ENTER. Solar System: Mercury displays. Keep pressing the Scroll Down key until Solar System: Saturn displays. Press ENTER. Calculating displays. Then Saturn and a set of coordinates displays. Note that Saturns (and other planets) coordinates change throughout the year. Press GO TO. Saturn: Slewing. displays and the telescope slews until it finds Saturn. You may need to use the Arrow keys to center Saturn precisely in the eyepiece. Autostar then automatically moves the telescope so that it "tracks" Saturn (or whatever other object you may have chosen); i.e., Saturn remains centered in the eyepiece.

Using the Guided Tour

This example demonstrates using Tonights Best Guided Tour. 1. 2. 3. After observing Saturn, press MODE twice so that Select Item: Object displays again. Press the Scroll Down key twice. Select Item: Guided Tour displays. Press ENTER. Guided Tour: Tonights Best displays. Press ENTER. NOTE: If you wish to try out other Guided Tours, press the Scroll Down key to scroll through other tour choices. When the tour you wish to select displays, press ENTER. 4. Tonights Best: Searching. displays. After calculating, Tonights Best: Jupiter displays. NOTE: Different objects may be displayed on a tour list on any given night. Press ENTER to display information about the object. Press GO TO to move the telescope to the object. 5. 6. Press MODE to return to the Tour list. Press the Scroll keys to scroll through the list. Press ENTER when you find the next object you wish to observe. Press and hold down MODE for two seconds to leave the Guided Tour menu.

Select Item: Object

Solar System Mercury Etc. Moon Asteroids Comets Constellations Andromeda Etc. Deep Sky Named Object Galaxies Nebulae Planetary Neb. Etc. Star Named SAO Catalog Double Messier Other Star Catalogs Satellite Select Add Delete Edit User Objects Select Add Delete Edit Landmarks Select Add Delete Identify Browse Start Search Edit Parameters

Select Item: Event

Sunrise Sunset Moonrise Moonset Moon Phases Next Full Moon Next New Moon Next 1st Qtr Next 3rd Qtr Meteor Showers Quadrantids Lyrids Eta Aquarids Delta Aquarids Perseids Orionids Taurids Leonids Geminids Ursids Solar Eclipses Lunar Eclipses Min. of Algol Autumn Equinox Vernal Equinox Winter Solstice Summer Solstice

Select Item: Guided Tour

Tour Objects Tonight's Best How Far is Far A Star's Life
A. Accretion Disk Etc. B. C. D. E. F. G. H. I. J. K. L. M. N. O. P. Q. R. S. T. U. V. W. X. Y. Z.

Select Item: Utilities

Timer Set Start & Stop Alarm Set On & Off Eyepiece Calc. Field of View Magnification Suggest Display Options Sun Warning Getting Started Brightness Adj. Contrast Adj. Battery Alarm Landmark Survey Sleep Scope Park Scope Cord Wrap

Select Item: Setup

Align Easy One Star Two Star Date Time Daylight Saving Telescope Model Focal Length Az/Alt Ratio Mount Alt Percent Az Percent Train Drive Tracking Rate Reverse L/R Reverse Up/Dn Calibrate Motor High Precision Targets Astronomical Terrestrial Site Select Add Delete Edit Owner Info Clone Download Statistics Reset
Figure 12: The Complete Autostar Menu Structure.
Landmarks stores the location of terrestrial points of interest in the permanent Autostar database. IMPORTANT NOTE: To use the Landmark function, the telescope must be located and aligned exactly as when the landmark was added to the database. " Select: To select a Landmark already in the database (see "Add" below), choose the "Select" option and scroll through the list. Press ENTER to select a Landmark, then press GO TO and the telescope slews to the object. Add: To add a Landmark, choose the "Add" option. Enter a name for the Landmark. Locate and center the Landmark in the eyepiece, then press ENTER.

"

Identify is an exciting feature for an observer who wants to scan the night sky and start exploring. After the telescope has been properly aligned, use the Autostar Arrow keys to move about in the sky. Then follow this procedure: IMPORTANT NOTE: Only use the Arrow keys to move the telescope during the Identify procedure. Do not loosen the telescope locks or move the base or alignment is lost. 1. 2. 3. 4. When a desired object is visible in the eyepiece, keep pressing MODE until the Select Item: Object menu is displayed. Press ENTER to select this menu. Scroll through the Object menu options until the Object: Identify screen appears. Press ENTER. Autostar searches the database for the identity of the object being observed. If the telescope is not directly on an Autostar database object, the nearest database object is located and displayed on the screen. Press GO TO and the telescope slews to that object.

Look into the Future

The Autostar Date option in the Setup menu is much more than just an entry of today's date; with it you can look far into the future or learn about past events. Autostar can calculate the date and times of future events and, except for eclipses, past events as well (based on the current calendar system). E.g., a Sunrise on March 6, 2043 A.D. or the Vernal Equinox in 1776 A.D. To use this feature, enter the desired date in the Setup menu and select an option in the Event menu. Autostar can calculate dates and times for Sunrises, Sunsets, Moonrises, Moonsets, Moonphases, Solar and Lunar Eclipses (for the next 100 years), meteor showers, equinoxes and solstices, and the minimums of Algol. One very practical use of the date menu is to check the Sunset option to determine when you can begin your astronomical observing.

5. 6. 7. 8. 9.

Press the Scroll Down key and "Edit: Latitude" displays. Press ENTER. Using the Number Keys, enter the latitude of your observing site and then press ENTER. "Edit: Latitude" displays again. Press the Scroll Down key and "Edit: Longitude" displays. Press ENTER. Using the Number Keys, enter the longitude of your observing site and then press ENTER. "Edit: Longitude" displays again. Press the Scroll Down key and "Edit: Time Zone" displays. Press ENTER. (If the site you chose from the list in step 1 has the same Time Zone as the site you are editing, just press ENTER again to go on to the next step.) "Time Zone" refers to the Greenwich Time Zone shift. Users West of Greenwich, use "-" hours (one hour per time zone) and users East of Greenwich use "+" hours. For the United States, look up the shift in Table 1.
10. After entering the shift, press ENTER. "Edit Time Zone" displays. 11. Press MODE. "Site: Edit" displays. 12. Using the Arrow keys, scroll to "Site: Select." The site you have just edited displays. Press ENTER to select the site or press MODE to exit. TIP: Entering R.A. and Dec Coordinates of an object without using the menus: If you do not wish to navigate through the menus, a more direct way to enter coordinates is to press and hold MODE for two seconds or more. R.A. and Dec coordinates display. Press GO TO. "Object Position" and a set of coordinates displays. Enter the R.A. and Dec coordinates of any celestial object using Number keys, overwriting the coordinates currently displayed. As soon as the coordinates are entered, Autostar slews the telescope to the coordinates. Note that the telescope must be initialized (see page 17) and placed in the Home position (see page 17 for this procedure to operate properly. However, if you wish to store the coordinates of an object in memory, use the method described at the right.

To GO TO a user-entered object: In this procedure, you will choose an object from the User Object list and GO TO the object. 1. 2. 3. 4. With "User Object: Add" displayed, press the Scroll Up key once. "User Object: Select" displays. Press ENTER. Use the Scroll keys (if necessary) to scroll to the desired object. Press ENTER. The name of the object and the Right Ascension and Declination coordinates display. Press GO TO and the telescope slews to the object.

Observing Satellites

In this procedure, you will prepare your telescope to observe a satellite pass. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Navigate to the "Object: Satellite" menu option and press ENTER. Use the Scroll keys to scroll through the list of satellites. Select a satellite from list and press ENTER. "Calculating." and then "Tracking." displays. If the satellite is going to make a pass, "Located" displays. Use the Scroll keys to display data about the pass: aos acquisition of signal and los loss of signal. If you subtract the aos from the los, you can calculate how long the satellite will be visible. Location information also displays. "Alarm" displays after the location information. Press ENTER and Autostar automatically sets the alarm to sound a minute before the satellite's scheduled appearance. You may return to regular observations until the alarm goes off. When the alarm goes off, return to the Satellite menu and press a Scroll key until the desired satellite is on the top line of the display. Press GO TO. Autostar slews the telescope to where the satellite should appear. The motor drive stops and a countdown is displayed. NOTE: If the scheduled appearance position of the satellite is obstructed (i.e., by a building, tree, or hill), press ENTER and Autostar starts to move the telescope along the expected satellite track. When the track clears the obstruction, press ENTER again to pause the telescope, then continue with this procedure. 9. With about 20 seconds left on the countdown timer, start watching through the telescope viewfinder for the satellite to enter the field of view.

Fig. 24: Tripod set in Polar configuration with an optional wedge.
Celestial objects are mapped according to a coordi- Fig. 25: Celestial Sphere. nate system on the Celestial Sphere (Fig. 25), 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. The poles of the celestial coordinate system are defined as those two points where the Earths rotational axis, if extended to infinity, North and South, intersect the celestial sphere. Thus, the North Celestial Pole (1, Fig. 25) is that point in the sky where an extension of the Earths axis through the North Pole intersects the celestial sphere. This point in the sky is located near the North Star, Polaris. In mapping the surface of the Earth, lines of longitude are drawn between the North and South Poles. Similarly, lines of latitude are drawn in an East-West direction, parallel to the Earths Equator. The Celestial Equator (2, Fig. 25) is a projection of the Earths Equator onto the celestial sphere. Just as on the surface of the Earth, in mapping the celestial sphere, imaginary lines have been drawn to form a coordinate grid. Thus, object positions on the Earths surface are specified by their latitude and longitude. For example, you could locate Los Angeles, California, by its latitude (+34) and longitude (118 West); similarly, you could locate the constellation Ursa Major (which includes the Big Dipper) by its general position on the celestial sphere: R.A.: 11hr; Dec: +50. Right Ascension: The celestial analog to Earth longitude is called Right Ascension, or R.A., and is measured in time on the 24 hour clock and shown in hours or hr," minutes or min," and seconds or sec," from an arbitrarily defined zero line of Right Ascension passing through the constellation Pegasus. Right Ascension coordinates range from 0hr 0min 0sec to 23hr 59min 59sec. Thus there are 24 primary lines of R.A., located at 15 degree intervals along the celestial equator. Objects located further and further East of the prime Right Ascension grid line, 0hr 0min 0sec, carry increasing R.A. coordinates. Declination: The celestial analog to Earth latitude is called Declination, or Dec, and is measured in degrees, arc-minutes and arc-seconds, e.g., 15 27' 33". Declination shown as North of the celestial equator is indicated with a + sign in front of the measurement, e.g., the Declination of the North Celestial Pole is +90, with Declination South of the celestial equator indicated with a sign, e.g., the Declination of the South Celestial Pole is 90. Any point on the celestial equator itself which, for example, passes through the constellations Orion, Virgo, and Aquarius, is specified as having a Declination of zero, shown as 0 0' 0".

New Mexico Alaska Georgia Massachusetts Illinois Ohio Texas Colorado Michigan Hawaii Mississippi Missouri Nevada Arkansas California Florida Wisconsin Tennessee Louisiana New York Oklahoma Pennsylvania Arizona Oregon Virginia Utah Texas California California Washington District of Columbia Kansas

Latitude

N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N
SOUTH AMERICA City Country
Asuncion Brasilia Buenos Aires Montevideo Santiago Paraguay Brazil Argentina Uruguay Chile

34 S S S S S

ASIA City
Beijing Seoul Taipei Tokyo Victoria

Country

China South Korea Taiwan Japan Hong Kong

23 N N N N N

AFRICA City
Cairo Cape Town Rabat Tunis Windhoek
Egypt South Africa Morocco Tunisia Namibia

23 N S N N S

AUSTRALIA City
Adelaide Brisbane Canberra Alice Springs Hobart Perth Sydney Melbourne
South Australia Queensland New South Wales Northern Territory Tasmania Western Australia New South Wales Victoria

S S S S S S S S

EUROPE City
Amsterdam Athens Bern Copenhagen Dublin Frankfurt Glasgow Helsinki Lisbon London Madrid Oslo Paris Rome Stockholm Vienna Warsaw
Netherlands Greece Switzerland Denmark Ireland Germany Scotland Finland Portugal England Spain Norway France Italy Sweden Austria Poland
52 N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N
APPENDIX C: TRAINING THE DRIVE
Train the telescope motors using Autostar. Perform this procedure if you are experiencing any pointing accuracy problems. Fig. 31 depicts the complete Drive Training procedure.
NOTE: Use a terrestrial object, such as a telephone pole or lamp post, to train the drive. Complete this
exercise once every 3 to 6 months to maintain the highest level of telescope pointing accuracy.
Verify that AUTOSTAR INITIALIZATION is complete. Press MODE until Select Item is displayed.
Press > until it is centered

Further Study.

This manual gives only the briefest introduction to astronomy. If you are interested in pursuing further studies in astronomy, a few topics are suggested below that are worth reading up on. Try looking up some of these topics in Autostars glossary. Also included below is a small sampling of books, magazines, and organizations that you might find helpful. Topics 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. How is a star born? How does a solar system form? How is the distance to a star measured? What is a light year? What is red shift and blue shift? How are the craters on our Moon formed? How old are the Moon and Earth? How old is the Sun? What is a black hole? A quasar? A neutron star? What are stars made of? Why are stars different colors? What is a white dwarf? A red giant? What is a nova? A supernova? What are comets? Asteroids? Meteors? Meteor showers? Where do they come from? What is a planetary nebula? A globular cluster?

Instruction Manual
8" LX90 Schmidt-Cassegrain Telescope

AutoStar LNT SmartFinder

The Meade Schmidt-Cassegrain Optical System
(2) (1) Ray (2) Ray (1) (2) (1) Focal Plane Secondary Mirror Primary Baffle Tube Field Stops Primary Mirror Correcting Plate Secondary Baffle (1) (2)
In the Schmidt-Cassegrain design of the Meade LX90, light enters from the right, passes through a thin lens with 2-sided aspheric correction (correcting plate), proceeds to a spherical primary mirror, and then to a convex secondary mirror. The convex secondary mirror multiplies the effective focal length of the primary mirror and results in a focus at the focal plane, with light passing through a central perforation in the primary mirror. The Meade 8" LX90 Schmidt-Cassegrain includes an oversize primary mirror of an 8.25" diameter, yielding a fully illuminated field-of-view significantly wider than is possible with a standard-size primary mirror. Note that light ray (2) in the figure would be lost entirely, except for the oversize primary. It is this phenomenon which results in Meade SchmidtCassegrains having off-axis field illuminations about 10% greater, aperture-for-aperture, than other Schmidt-Cassegrains utilizing standard-size primary mirrors. Field stops machined into the inside-diameter surface of the primary mirror baffle tube significantly increase lunar, planetary, and deep-space image contrast. These field stops effectively block off-axis stray light rays.

CONTENTS

WARNING!
Never use a Meade LX90 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 at or near the Sun. Do not look through the telescope or SmartFinder as it is moving. Children should always have adult supervision while observing.
Quick-Start Guide... 4 Telescope Features.. 6 AutoStar Features... 9 Getting Started..12 Parts Listing..12 How to Attach the Tripod to the Telescope.12 How to Assemble Your Telescope..12 Choosing an Eyepiece...14 Using SmartFinder..14 Aligning SmartFinder and the Viewfinder.15 Observing...16 Observing By Moving the Telescope Manually.16 Terrestrial Observing..16 Observing Using AutoStar's Arrow Keys.16 Slew Speeds..17 Observe the Moon..17 Astronomical Observing..18 To Track an Object Automatically..18 Alt/Az Home Position..18 Moving Through AutoStars Menus..18 Initializing AutoStar...18 Observe a Star Using Automatic Tracking..19 Automatic Alignment..19 Go To Saturn..20 Using the Guided Tour...20 Basic AutoStar Operation...21 AutoStar Navigation Exercise..21 Entering Data into AutoStar..22 Navigating AutoStar..22 Menus and Menu Options...23 Complete AutoStar Menu Structure.23 Objects Menu..24 Event Menu..25 Glossary Menu...25 Utilities Menu..25 Setup Menu..27 Advanced AutoStar Features..30 Adding Observing Sites..30 Finding Objects Not in the Database.31 Observing Satellites..32 How to Create Your Own Guided Tour..33 Landmarks...36 Identify...37 Advanced Alt/Az Alignment..37 Browse...38 Photography with the LX90..39 Optional Accessories..41 Maintenance...43 Collimation...43 Inspecting the Optics..44 Gauging the Movement of the Telescope.44 Meade Customer Service.44 Specifications..45 Appendix A: Equatorial (Polar) Alignment..46 Appendix B: Helpful Charts..52 Appendix C: Training the Drive..53 Appendix D: Changing the LNT Modules Battery..54 Appendix E: Basic Astronomy..55
CAUTION: Use care to install batteries in the orientation indicated by illustration in the battery slots of the battery holder. Follow battery manufacturer's precautions. Do not install batteries backwards or mix new and used batteries. Do not mix battery types. If these precautions are not followed, batteries may explode, catch fire, or leak. Improperly installed batteries void your Meade warranty.

GETTING STARTED

Getting the telescope ready for first observations requires only a few minutes. When first opening the packing box, note carefully the following parts: LX90 Telescope with fork mount system and attached SmartFinder AutoStar handbox and interface coil cord Eyepiece holder and 1.25 diagonal prism 8 x 50 Viewfinder Super Plssl 26mm eyepiece Variable height tripod and mounting base Set of hex wrenches and a plastic bag containing a C clip and a washer
How to Attach the Tripod to the Telescope Assembly
The telescopes fork mount attaches directly to the field tripod. The telescope in this way is mounted in an Altazimuth (Altitude-Azimuth, or vertical-horizontal) format. The telescope in this configuration moves along vertical and horizontal axes, corresponding respectively to the Declination (vertical) and Right Ascension (horizontal) axes in an astronomical observing mode. The field tripod also can be used in conjunction with the optional equatorial wedge (see "EQUATORIAL WEDGE," page 49) for long exposure astrophotography. The equatorial wedge permits alignment of the telescopes Polar Axis with the Celestial Pole (or North Star). 1. After removing the field tripod from its shipping carton, stand the tripod vertically, with the tripod feet down and with the tripod still fully collapsed (see Fig. 3). Grasp two of the tripod legs and, with the full weight of the tripod on the third leg, gently pull the legs apart to a fully open position. Thread in the 6 lock-knobs (2 on each tripod leg) near the foot of each tripod leg (Fig. 3). These lock-knobs are used to fix the height of the inner, extendible tripod leg sections. NOTE: Tightening to a firm-feel is sufficient; over-tightening may result in stripping of the knob threads or damage to the tripod legs and results in no additional strength. The spreader bar (4, Fig. 3) has been removed for shipment. To install, first remove the threaded rod (2, Fig.3) from the tripod head (1, Fig. 3); a small piece of plastic holds the threaded rod in place. Remove the small plastic bag that is stapled to the threaded rod. This bag contains the C clip retainer and an extra clip. Slide the washer followed by the spreader bar onto the threaded rod (note the correct orientation as shown in Fig. 4) and position the threaded rod back through the tripod head. Place the clip retainer ( a C clip) into the slot in the threaded rod. This clip holds the threaded rod in place. See Fig. 3. Position the spreader bar so that the 3 arms of the spreader bar line up with the 3 tripod legs.
Fig. 3: Field Tripod. (1) Tripod Head; (2) Threaded Rod; (3) Tension Knob; (4) Spreader Bar; (5) Lock Knobs; Fig. 4: Attaching the telescope to the tripod. Note the orientation of the spreader bar.
Place the entire telescope onto the top of the tripod head, and insert the threaded rod into the central hole in the bottom of the drive base of the telescope. Tighten the tension knob (3, Fig. 3); firm tightening of the tension knob is sufficient to result in rigid positioning of the tripod legs. To vary the tripod height, loosen the 6 lock-knobs, slide the 3 inner tripod leg sections out to the desired height, and firmly re-tighten (but do not overtighten) the 6 lock-knobs.

Align Easy One Star Two Star Date Time Daylight Saving Telescope Telescope Model Focal Length Az/RA Ratio Alt/Dec Ratio Mount Az/RA Percent Alt/Dec Percent Train Drive Tracking Rate Reverse L/R Reverse Up/Dn Quiet Slew Max Elevation Min AOS Calibrate Motor Smart Drive High Precision Targets Astronomical Terrestrial Site Select Add Delete Edit Owner Info Clone Download Statistics Reset
Fig. 12: The Complete AutoStar Menu Tree Structure.

MENUS AND MENU OPTIONS

Use the OBJECT menu to select an object from the database. When your telescope is aligned and you select an object from any of these lists, you just need to press the GO TO key to move the telescope so that it is pointed at the selected object. Over 30,000 objects are available for the LX90. The available objects include planets, constellations, individual stars, double stars, star clusters, galaxies, quasars, satellites, asteroids and comets. Also, try out the Guided Tour feature; the Tonights Best Guided Tour will point your telescope at the best objects visible in the sky for every given night of the year.

Object Menu

Almost all observing with AutoStar is performed using the Object menu category. (NOTE: Exceptions include Guided Tour and Landmark Survey.) See GO TO SATURN, page 20, for an example of observing using the Object menu. Also see USING THE GUIDED TOUR, page 20. Many AutoStar menu categories contain databases. An AutoStar database is a list of viewable objects, such as stars, planets, comets, nebulae and so forth. When one of these objects is selected from a database, AutoStar moves your telescope (if properly aligned) and points it at the selected object. The Object Menu options include: Solar System is a database of the eight planets (Earth is not included) in order out from the Sun, followed by the Moon, asteroids, and comets. Constellation is a database of all 88 Northern and Southern Hemisphere constellations. When this menu option is chosen and a constellation name appears on the first line of the screen, press GO TO once to change the second line to the name of the brightest star in the constellation. Press GO TO a second time to slew the telescope to that star. Use the Scroll keys to cycle through the list of stars in the constellation, from brightest to dimmest. Deep Sky is a database of objects outside our Solar System such as nebulae, star clusters, galaxies, and quasars. Star is a database of stars listed in different categories such as named, double, variable, or nearby. Satellite is a database of Earth-orbiting objects such as the International Space Station, the Hubble Space Telescope, Global Positioning System (GPS) satellites, and geosynchronous orbit satellites. User Objects allows the user to define and store in memory deep-sky objects of specific interest that are not currently in the AutoStar database. See "Appendix A" for more information. Landmarks stores the location of terrestrial points of interest in the permanent AutoStar database. IMPORTANT NOTE: To use the Landmark function, the telescope must be located and aligned exactly as when the landmark was added to the database.

Select: To select a Landmark already in the database (see "Add" below), choose the "Select" option and scroll through the list. Press ENTER to select a Landmark, then press GO TO and the telescope slews to the object. Add: To add a Landmark, choose the "Add" option. Enter a name for the Landmark. Locate and center the Landmark in the eyepiece, then press ENTER.
Identify is an exciting feature for an observer who wants to scan the night sky and start exploring. After the telescope has been properly aligned, use the AutoStar Arrow keys to move about in the sky. Then follow this procedure: IMPORTANT NOTE: Only use the Arrow keys to move the telescope during the Identify procedure. Do not loosen the telescope locks or move the base or alignment is lost. 1. When a desired object is visible in the eyepiece, keep pressing MODE until the Select Item: Object menu is displayed. Press ENTER to select this menu. 2. Scroll through the Object menu options until the Object: Identify screen appears. 3. Press ENTER. AutoStar searches the database for the identity of the object being observed. 4. If the telescope is not directly on an AutoStar database object, the nearest database object is located and displayed on the screen. Press GO TO and the telescope slews to that object. Browse allows you to search the database for objects with certain parameters, much like a search engine. "Edit Parameters" lets you set various parameters for the search, such as: Object Type, Minimum Elevation, Largest, etc. Once you have set the parameters of the search, select "Start Search" and press ENTER. AutoStar will display the results of the search. See page 38 for more information.
Use the Event menu to look up dates of various astronomical events, such as sunrises and sunsets, eclipses, moon phases, meteor showers, equinoxes and solstices..and not just for the current date. Set any date, past or future, when initializing AutoStar and you can check the time for other events.

Event Menu

The Event menu provides access to dates and times of astronomical events. The Event database includes: Sunrise and Sunset calculates the time that the Sun rises or sets on the current date. Find rise and set times for other dates by entering a new date into the Setup: Date menu. See "DATE," page 27. Moonrise and Moonset calculates the time that the Moon rises or sets on the current date. Find rise and set times for other dates by entering a new date into the Setup: Date menu. See "DATE," page 27. Moon Phases displays the date and time of the next Full, New, 1st Quarter, and 3rd Quarter Moon. Meteor Showers provides information on upcoming meteor showers, such as the Perseids, the Leonids, etc. Also lists the dates of the showers and when they reach maximum. NOTE: Meteors are fast moving objects that cover large areas of the sky and are usually best observed with the naked eye. Solar Eclipse lists upcoming Solar Eclipses, including the date and type (total, annular, or partial) of eclipse, and the location and time of the first and last contacts of the Moon's shadow. Use the Scroll Up and Down keys to display the available data. Remember, never use a telescope to look at the Sun! See WARNING! to the left. Lunar Eclipse lists upcoming Lunar Eclipses, including the date and type (total, partial, penumbral) of eclipse. Use the Scroll Up and Down keys to display the available data. Min. (Minimum) of Algol is the minimum brightness of the dramatic eclipsing binary star system, Algol. It is relatively close at a distance of 100 light years. Every 2.8 days during a 10hour period, Algol undergoes a major change in apparent magnitude as one of the two stars passes behind the other. The combined magnitude of the two stars thus dips from +2.1 to a minimum of +3.4 halfway through the eclipse as the second star is hidden. AutoStar calculates minimum magnitude time at mid-eclipse. Autumn and Vernal Equinox calculates the time and date of the fall or spring equinox of the current year. Winter and Summer Solstice calculates the time and date of the winter or summer solstice of the current year.

Use the Glossary menu to look up definitions of astronomical terms and get a description of AutoStar features.

Glossary Menu

The Glossary menu provides an alphabetical listing of definitions and descriptions for common astronomical terms and AutoStar functions. Access directly through the Glossary menu or through hypertext words embedded in AutoStar. A hypertext word is any word in [brackets], usually found when using the AutoStar Help function or when reading a scrolling message such as a description of a planet or star. Press ENTER whenever a hypertext word is on screen and AutoStar goes to the glossary entry for that word. To access directly from the Glossary menu, use the Scroll keys to scroll through the alphabet. Press ENTER on the desired letter. Scroll to the desired entry and then press ENTER to read the description.

Utilities Menu

Use the Utilities menu to perform many of AutoStars useful features, such as setting an alarm, adjust the display contrast, calculate the best eyepiece for viewing an object, set up your own landmark survey, and so forth.
The Utilities menu provides access to several extra features within AutoStar, including a countdown timer and an alarm. The Utilities functions include: Timer selects a countdown timer. This feature is useful for functions such as astrophotography and tracking satellites. See OBSERVING SATELLITES, page 32. To use the Timer, press ENTER, then choose Set or Start/Stop."
Set: Enter the time to be counted down, in hours, minutes, and seconds, then press ENTER. Start/Stop: Activates the timer set previously. Use the Scroll keys to toggle between ON and OFF. When ON is displayed, press ENTER to activate the timer. When the timer runs out, four beeps sound and the timer is deactivated.
Alarm selects a time for an alarm signal as a reminder. To use the Alarm, press ENTER, then choose "Set" or "Start/Stop."
Set: Enter the time of day for the alarm to sound, in hours, minutes, and seconds, then press ENTER. Start/Stop: Activates the alarm set previously. Use the Scroll keys to toggle between ON and OFF. When ON is displayed, press ENTER to activate the alarm. When the alarm time arrives, AutoStar beeps. Press ENTER to deactivate the alarm.
Eyepiece Calc calculates information about an eyepiece for the specific telescope to which AutoStar is connected.
Field of View: Scroll through a list of available eyepieces. When an eyepiece is selected, the field of view is calculated. Magnification: Scroll through a list of available eyepieces. When an eyepiece is selected, the magnification is calculated.
Suggest: AutoStar calculates and suggests the best eyepiece for viewing, based on the telescope and the object being viewed. Display Options enables or disables AutoStars two initial displays. If both displays are disabled, AutoStar begins with the Date display. Sun Warning: Turns the Sun Warning message on or off.

Getting Started: Turns the Getting Started message on or off. Brightness Adj: Adjusts the brightness of the display using the Scroll keys. When complete, press ENTER. Contrast Adj: Adjusts the contrast of the display using the Scroll keys. When complete, press ENTER. NOTE: This feature is usually only required in very cold weather. Landmark Survey automatically slews the telescope to all user-defined landmarks with a short pause at each location. Press ENTER to start the survey. While a slew is in progress, press any key to skip that object and go to the next landmark on the list. To observe a landmark for a longer period, press MODE when paused on the object to stop the survey. Press ENTER to restart the survey at the first object on the list. See "LANDMARKS," page 36. Sleep Scope is a power saving option that shuts down AutoStar and the telescope without forgetting its alignment. With "Sleep Scope" selected, press ENTER to activate the Sleep function. AutoStar goes dark, but the internal clock keeps running. Press any key, except ENTER, to re-activate AutoStar and the telescope.
LX90 TIPS Observing Considerations
Try to pick an observing site away from street and house lights and car headlights. While this is not always possible, the darker the site, the better. Give your eyes about ten minutes to adjust to the darkness before observing. Give your eyes a rest from observing every ten or fifteen minutes to relieve eyestrain. Try not to use a standard flashlight. Experienced observers use red LED flashlights, the red utility light on the AutoStar handbox or tape red cellophane over their flashlights to use for setup and map reading so they dont have to continually readjust their eyes to the darkness. Be careful not to shine bright lights if there are other observers in the area. Do not shine a flashlight into the telescope while someone is observing! Dress warmly. It gets chilly when youre sitting for prolonged periods. Practice setting up your equipment during the day or in a lighted area to become familiar with it before going to a dark site. Use your 26mm eyepiece to view terrestrial objects and wider areas of space, such as open star clusters. Use optional higher power eyepieces, such as a 9mm eyepiece (see OPTIONAL ACCESSORIES, page 41 for more details), when you wish to view something up close, such as craters on the Moon or the rings of Saturn. Invite your friends and family to come and observe with you. But practice locating 3 or 4 objects to show them beforehand; if you have long delays, they will become bored and lose interest. Also, demonstrate how to focus the telescope in a well-lit area before you go to to the observing site.

Tracking Rate: Changes the speed at which the telescope tracks targets in the sky. a. b. c. Sidereal: The default setting for AutoStar; sidereal rate is the standard rate at which stars move from East to West across the sky due to the rotation of the Earth. Lunar: Choose this option to properly track the Moon over long observing sessions. Custom: Allows entry of user-defined tracking rates.
Reverse L/R: Reverses the functions of the Left and Right Arrow keys (i.e., the Right key moves the telescope to the left). Reverse UP/DOWN: Reverses the functions of the Up and Down Arrow keys (i.e., the Up key moves the telescope down).
Reverse L/R: Reverses the functions of the Left and Right Arrow keys (i.e., the Right key moves the telescope to the left). Reverse UP/DOWN: Reverses the functions of the Up and Down Arrow keys (i.e., the Up key moves the telescope down). Calibrate Sensors: This menu allows you to improve your telescope's pointing accuracy to alignment stars. It calibrates to correct slight mechanical misalignment due to transport, vibration, or aging. It is recommended that calibration be performed after the LNT Module batteries are changed (see page 54 for more information). When this menu is selected, the telescope slews to Polaris. AutoStar then prompts you to center Polaris and to press ENTER. AutoStar uses the position of Polaris to fine tune the position of North and also for detecting level.
Quiet Slew: Sets the maximum slew rate to 1.5 for quieter operation. Max Elevation: Allows you to enter a value in degrees that sets a limit as to how far the optical tube can swing upward during a programmed slew. (Note that it does not prevent you from performing a manual slew past this limit.) This is useful when you have a camera or other peripheral attached to the telescopeyou can prevent it from striking the telescope base. Min AOS (Acquisition of Signal): Allows you enter a value in degrees. This value represents the altitude at which your telescope begins to slew when acquiring a satellite track. This is useful when you are observing satellites, but a tall tree or building is obstructing the telescope. For example, you might begin to track the satellite at 15 altitude, instead of 5. See OBSERVING SATELLITES, page 32, for more information about satellites. Calibrate Motor: If the telescope motors appear to have a problem, use this option to retest the motors before performing a Reset. This option is also used if an AutoStar unit is moved between telescopes, to match AutoStar to the new telescope. To calibrate the motors, select this option and press ENTER. Smart Drive: Allows you to perform periodic error correction (PEC) on the R.A. worm gear and can only be used with polar mounted telescopes. Must be performed with a high powered reticle (eg. 9mm). PEC Training for the the LX90 telescopes will take about 8 minutes. High Precision: If High Precision is turned on, when looking for a faint celestial object (i.e., a nebula or galaxy), AutoStar first slews to a nearby bright star and displays "ENTER to Sync." Center the star in the eyepiece, then press ENTER. At that point the telescope has a high precision alignment to that part of the sky and it then slews to the object that was originally requested.

Statistics provides basic statistical data about AutoStar, including:
Reset completely resets AutoStar. Most values entered into the menus revert to factory defaults. AutoStar requires initialization again after a Reset before proceeding with observations. See INITIALIZING AUTOSTAR, page 18. NOTE: The Reset function does not affect the LNT module.
ADVANCED AUTOSTAR FEATURES

Adding Observing Sites

If you plan to observe using AutoStar at different geographic locations, you can store up to six observation sites in AutoStar's memory to help simplify your telescope setup. Perform these procedures using the Site options (Add, Select, Delete, Edit) of the Setup menu. To Add a Site to the user-defined site list: In this example, you will choose a city and add it to the database list. You will then select the site to enable it. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Navigate to the "Setup: Site" menu. Press ENTER, Scroll through the options until "Site: Add" displays. Press ENTER. You are given a choice to enter a zip code (press 1) or select a city from the list (press 2). If you choose Zip, enter the digits of your zip code and press ENTER. If you choose City, scroll through the list of countries/states. Press ENTER when the country/state you wish to add displays. Scroll through the list of cities. Press ENTER when the city you wish to select displays. The sites you choose will appear at the top of the Select list (all other available sites will be listed after the sites you have chosen). To choose a site, navigate to "Site: Select." Press ENTER. Scroll through the list of sites. Both Zip Codes and Cities are displayed. When the desired zip code or site displays, press ENTER.
To Edit a Site: In this procedure, you will enter a location that is not available in the AutoStar database by editing data of a nearby site. You will edit the location's name, latitude, longitude and the time zone shift. You will then select the site to enable it. You will need to know the latitude and longitude of your location to perform this procedure. This information is available on most maps. 1. Using the Add option, choose a site on the list that is closest to your observing site and press ENTER so that the site is added to your observing sites list. Choosing a site already on the list (as opposed to using the "Custom" feature) makes it easier to edit, as the "Time Zone" value may not need to be changed. Scroll to "Site: Edit" and press ENTER. "Edit: Name" displays. Press ENTER. The name of the site you have just entered to your list displays; if it does not, scroll to the site.

Join an Astronomy Club, Attend a Star Party
One of the best ways to increase your knowledge of astronomy is to join an astronomy club. Check your local newspaper, school, library or telescope dealer/store to find out if theres a club in your area. At club meetings, you will meet other astronomy enthusiasts with whom you will be able to share your discoveries. Clubs are an excellent way to learn more about observing the sky, to find out where the best observing sites are and to compare notes about telescopes, eyepieces, filters, tripods and so forth. Often, club members are excellent astrophotographers. Not only will you be able to see examples of their art, but you may even be able to pick up some tricks of the trade to try out with your LX90 telescope. See page 39 for more information about photography with the LX90. Many groups also hold regularly scheduled Star Parties at which you can check out and observe with many different telescopes and other pieces of astronomical equipment. Magazines such as Sky & Telescope and Astronomy print schedules for many popular Star Parties around the United States and Canada. To find your local astronomy club, go to www.meade.com/astrocommunity/index.html.
Using the Arrow keys, change the name of the site so that it now reads the name of your observing location. Press ENTER. "Edit: Name" displays again. 5. Press the Scroll Down key and "Edit: Latitude" displays. Press ENTER. 6. Using the Number Keys, enter the latitude of your observing site and then press ENTER. "Edit: Latitude" displays again. 7. Press the Scroll Down key and "Edit: Longitude" displays. Press ENTER. 8. Using the Number Keys, enter the longitude of your observing site and then press ENTER. "Edit: Longitude" displays again. 9. Press the Scroll Down key and "Edit: Time Zone" displays. Press ENTER. (If the site you chose from the list in step 1 has the same Time Zone as the site you are editing, just press ENTER again to go on to the next step.) "Time Zone" refers to the Greenwich Time Zone shift. Users West of Greenwich, use "-" hours (one hour per time zone) and users East of Greenwich use "+" hours. For the United States, look up the shift in Table 1, at the left. 10. After entering the shift, press ENTER. "Edit Time Zone" displays. 11. Press MODE. "Site: Edit" displays. 4. 12. Using the Arrow keys, scroll to "Site: Select." The site you have just edited displays. Press ENTER to select the site or press MODE to exit.
TIP: Entering R.A. and Dec Coordinates of an object without using the menus: If you do not wish to navigate through the menus, a more direct way to enter coordinates is to press and hold MODE for two seconds or more. R.A. and Dec coordinates display. Press GO TO. "Object Position" and a set of coordinates displays. Enter the R.A. and Dec coordinates of any celestial object using Number keys, overwriting the coordinates currently displayed. As soon as the coordinates are entered, AutoStar slews the telescope to the coordinates. Note that the telescope must be initialized (see page 18) for this procedure to operate properly. However, if you wish to store the coordinates of an object in memory, use the method described at the right.

Fig. 18: Meade Eyepieces.
Fig. 19: #909 Accessory Port Module (APM).
* Refer to "CHOOSING AN EYEPIECE," page 14, and "TOO MUCH POWER," page 15, to determine which optional eyepieces are best-suited to your applications and how to avoid overpowering the telescope. #140 2x Barlow Lens: An amplifying lens, the #140 2x Barlow doubles the power of all eyepieces with which it is used. Insert the #140 into the telescopes eyepiece-holder first, followed by the diagonal prism and eyepiece. #909 Accessory Port Module (APM): The #909 APM (Fig. 19) attaches to the rear cell of the LX90 and connects by cable to the Aux port on the telescope's control panel. The APM includes auxiliary connectors for plug-in of such accessories as corded models of illuminated reticle eyepieces, the #1206 Electric Focuser, or a CCD autoguider. #505 AstroFinder Software and Cable Connector Kit: With Meade AstroFinder loaded into your PC, AutoStar-equipped telescopes, such as the LX90, may be remotely controlled from the PC display. The #505 Connector Cable Set, permitting connection of the LX90, AutoStar, and PC, is included with each AstroFinder package. #Erect-Image Diagonal Prism: Primarily used for terrestrial viewing, this prism (Fig. 20) presents a correctly-oriented image at a comfortable 45 viewing angle. Illuminated Reticle Eyepieces: Meade Illuminated Reticle Eyepieces (Fig. 21) are used for precise polar alignment of your telescope. During long-exposure astrophotography, in conjunction with the optional Meade Off-Axis Guider, they are used for through-the-telescope monitoring of the object being photographed while the cameras shutter is open. Two optical designs are available: Series 4000 Plssl 9mm or Modified Achromatic 12mm. Each model is available in a wireless or corded configuration. The wireless models include a variable brightness control with self-contained (user-provided) batteries. The corded models include variable brightness and blink rate functions and plug directly into the Accessory Port Module (see above), with actuation from the hand controller.
Fig. 20: #Erect-Image Diagonal Prism.

Inspecting the Optics

A Note About the Flashlight Test:" If a flashlight or other high-intensity light source is pointed down the main telescope tube, the view (depending upon the observers line of sight and the angle of the light) may reveal what appears to be scratches, dark or bright spots, or just generally uneven coatings, giving the appearance of poor quality optics. These effects are only seen when a high intensity light is transmitted through lenses or reflected off the mirrors, and can be seen on any high quality optical system, including giant research telescopes. The optical quality of a telescope cannot be judged by the flashlight test;" the true test of optical quality can only be conducted through careful star testing.
Gauging the Movement of the Telescope
A common complaint of many first-time telescope owners is that they cannot see the telescope move when the motor drive is engaged. If fact, when the batteries are installed, the power is on and the R.A. lock engaged, the telescope is moving. However, the movement is at the same speed as the hour hand of a 24-hour clock; as such, the movement is difficult to discern visually. To check the movement of your telescope, look at an astronomical object through the telescopes eyepiece with the telescope polar aligned and with the motor drive on. If the object remains stationary in the field of view, your telescope is operating properly. If not, check to ensure that you have engaged the R.A. lock and that the power switch on the control panel is on. Also check if "Astronomical" is selected in the "Targets" option of the setup menu.

Fig. 26: R.A. Lock.

Meade Customer Service
If you have a question concerning your LX90 telescope, call the Meade Instruments Customer Service Department at (949) 451-1450. Customer Service hours are 7:00 AM to 6:00 PM, Pacific Time, Monday through Friday. In the unlikely event that the LX90 requires factory servicing or repairs, write or call the Meade Customer Service Department first, before returning the telescope to the factory, giving full particulars as to the nature of the problem, as well as your name, address and daytime telephone number. The great majority of servicing issues can be resolved by telephone, avoiding return of the telescope to the factory.

Fig. 27: Dec Lock.

LX90 TIPS Look into the Future
The Date option in the Setup menu is much more than just an entry of today's date; with it you can look far into the future or learn about past events. AutoStar can calculate the date and times of future events and, except for eclipses, past events as well (based on the current calendar system). E.g., a Sunrise on March 6, 2043 A.D. or the Vernal Equinox in 1776 A.D. To use this feature, enter the desired date in the Setup menu or select an option in the Event menu. AutoStar, using the Event menu, can calculate dates and times for Sunrises, Sunsets, Moonrises, Moonsets, Moonphases, Solar and Lunar Eclipses (for the next 100 years), meteor showers, equinoxes and solstices and the minimums of Algol. One very practical use of the Event menu is to check the Sunset option to determine when you can begin your astronomical observing session.

Fig. 38: Jupiter and its four largest moons. The moons can be observed in a different position every night.
Saturn is nine times the diameter of Earth and appears as a small, round disk with rings extending out from either side (Fig. 39). In 1610, Galileo, the first person to observe Saturn through a telescope, did not understand that what he was seeing were rings. Instead, he believed that Saturn had ears. Saturns rings are composed of billions of ice particles ranging in size from a speck of dust to the size of a house. The major division in Saturn's rings, called the Cassini Division, is occasionally visible through the LX90. Titan, the largest of Saturns 18 moons can also be seen as a bright, star-like object near the planet. Deep-Sky Objects Star charts can be used to locate constellations, individual stars and deep-sky objects. Examples of various deep-sky objects are given below: Stars are large gaseous objects that are self-illuminated by nuclear fusion in their core. Because of their vast distances from our solar system, all stars appear as pinpoints of light, irrespective of the size of the telescope used. Nebulae are vast interstellar clouds of gas and dust where stars are formed. Most impressive of these is the Great Nebula in Orion (M42), a diffuse nebula that appears as a faint wispy gray cloud. M42 is 1600 light years from Earth. Open Clusters are loose groupings of young stars, all recently formed from the same diffuse nebula. The Pleiades is an open cluster 410 light years away (Fig. 40). Through the LX90, numerous stars are visible. Constellations are large, imaginary patterns of stars believed by ancient civilizations to be the celestial equivalent of objects, animals, people, or gods. These patterns are too large to be seen through a telescope. To learn the constellations, start with an easy grouping of stars, such as the Big Dipper in Ursa Major. Then, use a star chart to explore across the sky. Galaxies are large assemblies of stars, nebulae, and star clusters that are bound by gravity. The most common shape is spiral (such as our own Milky Way), but galaxies can also be elliptical, or even irregular blobs. The Andromeda Galaxy (M31) is the closest spiral-type galaxy to our own. This galaxy appears fuzzy and cigar-shaped. It is 2.2 million light years away in the constellation Andromeda, located between the large W of Cassiopeia and the great square of Pegasus.