Paramount ME User’s Guide
80
Performing a Telescope Synchronization
The procedure below ensures that your mount will be synchronized properly. (See
“Appendix D – Southern Hemisphere Setup and Use” for details about setting up the
Paramount ME in the southern hemisphere.)
1. Set the computer’s clock. Accurate time is crucial for consistent, accurate pointing.
Consider using an internet time server or a GPS-based clock to regularly update
your computer’s clock.
2. From TheSky6 Professional Edition, click Data > Time and click the Use Computer’s
Clock button ( ). Using the computer’s clock is required for telescope control.
3. Click Data > Location and set your observing site’s latitude, longitude, time zone
and Daylight Saving option if necessary. Consider using a GPS to obtain your site’s
latitude and longitude, and make sure the time zone value and daylight saving
options are correct for your location. Errors in latitude “appear” to TPoint as a
vertical misalignment in the polar axis, and pollute the TPoint model. If your time
zone is off by one hour or more, then pointing will be off by the same amount. If the
wrong Daylight Saving option is selected, then time will be off by an hour (or more)
and the mount will not slew to the correct position.
4. Click Telescope > Link > Establish. When prompted, click Yes to home the mount.
If you’ve previously homed the mount, click Telescope > Options > Find Home to
slew the mount to the home position again.
5. Locate a bright star to sync on that is:
on the west side of the meridian and
relatively near the home position (within a few degrees or so) and
more than five degrees away from the meridian.
Partial clouds or twilight can make this task more difficult than it might seem.
When located in the northern hemisphere, the Paramount ME can be synchronized
to virtually any position on the celestial sphere on the east or west side of the
meridian (See “Best Synchronization Practices” on page 75). In the southern
hemisphere, the Paramount ME must be synchronized to a star that is on the east
side of the meridian. Figure 50 shows the Virtual Sky with the telescope cross hair
on the west side of the meridian. Betelgeuse, Bellatrix, Mintaka, Alnitak, Rigel, or
Saiph are all good candidates to sync on. Sirius Procyon or Alphard are all on the
wrong side of the meridian.
6. Center the bright star in the eyepiece, CCD detector or video display using the
joystick or TheSky6’s Telescope > Motion Controls command.
7. From TheSky6 Professional Edition, click Edit > Find to search for this star (or click
on the star if it is visible on screen) and display the large Object Information dialog
box.
8. Click Sync on the Telescope tab of the large Object Information dialog box (see
XFigure 52X). When the Sync Confirmation dialog box appears, click OK.
If you are doing the preliminary polar alignment as described in “XInitial
Polar AlignmentX” on page X44, you will be centering the star using the
polar adjustments rather than synchronizing.
To Next Page
Loading...
