 IMPORTANT NOTICE! Never use a telescope or spotting scope to look at the Sun! Observing the Sun, even for the shortest fraction of a second, will cause irreversible damage to your eye as well as physical damage to the telescope or spotting scope itself. |
As a new LX200 owner, you are preparing for a journey into the universe
with the most advanced amateur telescope ever produced. The advent of this
instrument is the culmination of twenty years of innovation and design at
Meade Instruments; never before have the features you have in your hands
been available to amateur astronomers: from robotic object location to the
revolutionary Smart Drive and the most stable mounting structure ever. Your
telescope comes to you ready for adventure; it will be your tour guide and
traveling companion in a universe of planets, galaxies, and stars.
Meade 8", 10", and 12" LX200 Schmidt-Cassegrain and 7"
Maksutov-Cassegrain telescopes are instruments of advanced mirror-lens design
for astronomical and terrestrial applications. Optically and mechanically,
the 7", 8", 10", and 12" telescope models are perhaps
the most sophisticated and precisely manufactured telescopes ever made available
to the serious amateur. These telescopes enable the visual astronomer to
reach out for detailed observations of the Solar System (the planets: Jupiter,
Saturn, Mars) and beyond to distant nebulae, star clusters, and galaxies.
The astrophotographer will find a virtually limitless range of possibilities
since, with the precision Meade worm-gear motor drive system, long exposure
guided photography becomes not a distant goal, but an achievable reality.
The capabilities of the instrument are essentially limited not by the telescope,
but by the acquired skills of the observer and photographer.
The 7", 8", 10", and 12" LX200 are, with the exception
of a few assembly operations and features, almost identical operationally.
Most standard and optional accessories are interchangeable between the three
telescopes. The instructions in this manual generally apply to all three
telescopes; when exceptions to this rule occur, they are clearly pointed
out.
IMPORTANT NOTE
If you are anxious to use your Meade LX200 Telescope for the first time,
at the very least be sure to read Telescope Assembly and Quick Start sections
of this manual. Thereafter, we urge you to read the balance of this manual
thoroughly at your leisure, in order that you may fully enjoy the many features
offered by the instrument.
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1. What Is the LX200? An Overview
Meade LX200 SCT's mark a new era in telescope technology for the amateur
astronomer, whether beginner or seasoned veteran. For the beginner, LX200
electronics permit the location and observation of the major planets as
well as hundreds of deep-sky objects the very first night you use the
telescope. For the experienced amateur the telescope's pushbutton electric
slewing, digital readouts, Smart Drive, and much more open up visual and
photographic capabilities heretofore undreamed of.
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a. Heavy-Duty Mounts with 9-speed Dual-Axis Electronics
DC-servo-motor-controlled worm gear drives on both telescope axes permit
observatory-level precision in tracking, guiding, and slewing. The 9-speed
dual-axis drives cover every possible contingency of telescope positioning:
Press the SLEW button on the keypad controller for rapid motion of the telescope
across the skies at up to 8 ° per sec. (6 ° per sec. for the
12" LX200) on both axes simultaneously; once near the target, switch
instantly to the FIND speed for centering in the viewfinder at 2 °
per sec. Observing the object in the main telescope, use the CNTR speed
(32x sidereal) to place the object in the center of the field. During long-exposure
astrophotography press the GUIDE button for precise corrections at 2x sidereal
speed.
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b. Built-in 64,359-Object Library
Enter into the keypad any of the 110 Messier objects, 7,840 of the finest
NGC objects (galaxies, diffuse or planetary nebulae, star clusters), one
of the 8 major planets from Mercury to Pluto, one of 351 alignment stars
or any one of 56,050 SAO, UGC, IC or GCVS objects, press GO TO, and the
telescope automatically slews, or moves, to the object at up to 8°
per sec., centering it in the main telescope field.
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c. Altazimuth Mode Operation
For all visual observing applications, and for lunar and planetary photography,
Meade LX200's may be set up in the Altazimuth mode. Just attach the telescope's
drive base directly to the tripod, use the fast 1-star alignment procedure,
and the telescope's computer actuates 2-axis tracking that keeps objects
precisely centered in the field, even at high powers, during the entire
observing session.
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d. Terrestrial Operation
Meade LX200's make incredible land-view telescopes. Set the telescope up
in the Altazimuth format, activate the Land menu option on the telescope's
computer, and use the Keypad to track land objects on both axes at any of
the same 4 drive speeds!
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e. Keypad and Power Panel Functions
The multifunction capability of LX200's includes direct connection of popular
CCD autoguider/imagers; RS- 232 serial interface with a personal computer
(PC), allowing the user to perform all of the Keypad functions through,
or write custom telescope software for a PC; brightness level control of
an illuminated reticle eyepiece from the Keypad and including special pulse-mode
reticle operation.
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2. Standard Equipment
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a. 7" Model LX200
lncludes 7" Maksutov-Cassegrain optical tube assembly with EMC Super
Multi-Coatings (D = 178mm, F = 2670mm-f/15); heavy-duty fork mount, with
4"-dia. sealed polar ball bearing, quartz-microprocessor-controlled
5.75" worm gears on both axes; setting circles in RA and Dec; handheld
keypad Electronic Command Center with digital readout display, permanently-programmable
Smart Drive, 9-speed drive control on both axes, GO TO controller, High-Precision
Pointing, and 64,359-object onboard celestial software library; internal
tube-cooling fan for rapid image stabilization; 25 ft. power cord and adapter
for telescope operation from 115v.AC; 8 x 50mm viewfinder; eyepiece-holder
and diagonal prism (1.25"); Series 4000 SP26mm eyepiece; variable-height
field tripod; operating instructions.
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b. 8" Model LX200
lncludes 8" Schmidt-Cassegrain optical tube assembly with EMC Super
Multi-Coatings (D = 203mm, F = 1280mm-f/6.3 or 2000mm-f/10); heavy-duty
fork mount, with 4"-dia. sealed polar ball bearing, quartz-microprocessor-controlled
5.75" worm gears on both axes, and multi-function power panel display
on the drive base; manual and electric slow-motion controls on both axes;
setting circles in RA and Dec; handheld keypad Electronic Command Center
with digital readout display, PPEC Smart Drive, 9-speed drive control on
both axes, GO TO controller, High-Precision Pointing, and 64,359-object
onboard celestial software library; 25 ft. power cord and adapter for telescope
operation from 115v.AC; 8 x 50mm viewfinder; eyepiece-holder and diagonal
prism (1.25"); Series 4000 SP26mm eyepiece; variable-height field tripod;
operating instructions.
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c. 10" Model LX200
lncludes 10" Schmidt-Cassegrain optical tube assembly with EMC Super
Multi-Coatings (D = 254mm, F = 1600mm-f/6.3 or 2500mm-f/10); heavy-duty
fork mount, with 4"-dia. sealed polar ball bearing, quartz-microprocessor-controlled
5.75" worm gears on both axes, and multi-function power panel display
on the drive base; manual and electric slow-motion controls on both axes;
setting circles in RA and Dec; handheld keypad Electronic Command Center
with digital readout display, PPEC Smart Drive, 9-speed drive control on
both axes, GO TO controller, High-Precision Pointing, and 64,359-object
onboard celestial software library; 25 ft. power cord and adapter for telescope
operation from 115v.AC; 8 x 50mm viewfinder; eyepiece-holder and diagonal
prism (1.25"); Series 4000 SP26mm eyepiece; variable-height field tripod;
operating instructions.
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d. 12" Model LX200
lncludes 12" Schmidt-Cassegrain optical tube assembly with EMC Super
Multi-Coatings (D = 305mm, F = 3048mm-f/10); heavy-duty fork mount, with
4"-dia. sealed polar ball bearing, quartz-microprocessor-controlled
5.75" worm gears on both axes, and multi-function power panel display
on the drive base; manual and electric slow-motion controls on both axes;
setting circles in RA and Dec; handheld keypad Electronic Command Center
with digital readout display, PPEC Smart Drive, 7-speed drive control on
both axes, GO TO controller, High-Precision Pointing, and 64,359-object
onboard celestial software library; 25 ft. power cord and adapter for telescope
operation from 115v.AC; 8 x 50mm viewfinder; 2" diagonal mirror with
1.25" adapter; Series 4000 SP26mm eyepiece; giant field tripod; operating instructions.
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