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INSTRUCTION MANUAL
®
Orion
™
SpaceProbe 3 EQ
#9843 Equatorial Reflector Telescope
Customer Support (800) 676-1343
E-mail: support@telescope.com
Corporate Offices (831) 763-7000
P.O. Box 1815, Santa Cruz, CA 95061
Providing Exceptional Consumer Optical Products Since 1975
IN 208 Rev. B 10/02
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EZ Finder II EZ Finder II bracket Eyepiece Focuser Optical tube assembly Declination slow-motion control cable Declination lock knob Declination setting circle Right Ascension Counterweight shaft setting circle Counterweight Right Ascension Counterweight lock knob slow-motion control cable Right Ascension lock knob Latitude adjustment T-bolt (not shown) Tripod leg Accessory tray bracket Accessory tray Leg lock knob Figure 1. The SpaceProbe 3 EQ. 2
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® Welcome to the exciting world of amateur astronomy! Your SpaceProbe 3 EQ is a high-quality optical instrument designed for nighttime stargazing. With its precision optics and equatorial mount, you’ll be able to locate and enjoy fascinating denizens of the night sky, including the planets, Moon, and a variety of deep-sky objects. Lightweight and easy to use, this scope will provide many hours of enjoyment for the whole family. These instructions will help you set up, properly use, and care for
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Declination lock knob (not shown) Declination setting circle R.A. lock knob R.A. setting circle Latitude scale Latitude lock T-bolt Latitude adjustment T-bolt Azimuth lock knob Figure 2. The equatorial mount of the SpaceProbe 3 EQ. on the outside of the tripod legs. Secure the wing nuts fin- and tighten the lock knob. Replace the screw and washer ger-tight. on the end of the shaft. 2. Install and tighten the leg lock knobs on the bottom braces 8. Remove the two wingnuts from the optical tube ass
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® Battery casing Azimuth knob a. Power knob Altitude Metal knob thumbnuts Figure 4. The EZ Finder II. b. again, then reverse the rotation of the knob, just to make sure Figure 3. Proper operation of the equatorial mount requires you’ve hit the exact focus point. balancing the telescope tube on the R.A. axis (a). With the R.A. lock knob released, slide the counterweight along the counterweight Do You Wear Eyeglasses? shaft until it just counterbalances the tube (b). When you let go with If you we
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With your eyes positioned at a comfortable distance, look through the back of the reflex sight with both eyes open to see Little Dipper the red dot. The intensity of the dot can be adjusted by turning (in Ursa Minor) Big Dipper the power knob. For best results when stargazing, use the (in Ursa dimmest possible setting that allows you to see the dot with- Major) N.C.P. out difficulty. Typically, a dim setting is used under dark skies and a bright setting is used under light-polluted skies or in
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® pass and rotate the mount so the telescope points North. Understanding the Setting Circles Retighten the azimuth lock knob. The setting circles on an equatorial mount enable you to locate celestial objects by their “celestial coordinates”.Every The equatorial mount is now polar aligned. object resides in a specific location on the “celestial sphere” From this point on in your observing session, you should not That location is denoted by two numbers: its right ascension make any further adjustm
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abcd Figure 6. This illustration show the telescope pointed in the the four cardinal directions (a) north, (b) south, (c) east, (d) west. Note that the tripod and mount have not been moved; only the telescope tube has been moved on the R.A. and Dec. axes. celestial equator (Dec. = 0°), and negative when the telescope shaft is positioned horizontally. Then rotate the scope in Dec. is pointing south of the celestial equator. Retighten the lock so it points to where you want it near the horizon. kn
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regular incandescent flashlight with red cellophane or paper. Beware, too, that nearby porch and streetlights and car head- lights will ruin your night vision. 1.9 Eyepiece Selection By using eyepieces of varying focal lengths, it is possible to 4.9 attain many magnifications with the SpaceProbe 3 EQ. The 2.4 SpaceProbe 3 EQ comes with two Explorer II eyepieces, a 3.4 2.4 1.7 25mm and a 10mm. These give magnifications of 28x and 70x respectively. Other eyepieces can be used to achieve higher 2.5
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eras and have “false color” added. Our eyes are not sensitive SATURN: The ringed planet is a breathtaking sight when it is enough to see color in deep-sky objects except in a few of the well positioned. The tilt angle of the rings varies over a period brightest ones. of many years; sometimes they are seen edge-on, while at other times they are broadside and look like giant “ears” on Remember that you are seeing these objects using your own each side of Saturn’s disk. A steady atmosphere (good se
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Your SpaceProbe 3 EQ telescope requires very little mechan- 8. Specifications ical maintenance. The optical tube is steel and has a smooth painted finish that is fairly scratch resistant. If a scratch does Optical tube: Steel appear, it will not harm the telescope. Refer to the appendix B Primary mirror diameter: 76mm at the end of this manual for details of how to clean your tele- Primary mirror coating: Aluminum with silicon dioxide (SiO ) scope’s optics. 2 overcoat Secondary mirror minor axis
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tion cap is centered inside Appendix A: the ring. This center mark is also required for best results Collimation— with other collimating Aligning the devices, such as Orion’s LaserMate Laser Collimator, Mirrors obviating the need to remove Collimation is the process of the primary mirror and mark it adjusting the mirrors so they yourself. are perfectly aligned with one NOTE: The center ring another. Your telescope’s sticker need not ever be optics were aligned at the fac- removed from the primar
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Figure 9. To center the secondary mirror under the focuser, hold Figure 10. Adjust the tilt of the secondary mirror by loosening or the secondary in place with your fingers while adjusting the primary tightening the three alignment screws with a small Phillips head screw with a Phillips head screwdriver. Do not touch the mirror’s screwdriver. surface. counter-clockwise will move the secondary mirror toward the primary mirror. When the secondary mirror is centered in the focuser draw- tube, rotat
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Cleaning Mirrors You should not have to clean the telescope’s mirror very often; normally once every year or so. Covering the telescope with the dust cap when it is not in use will help prevent dust from accumulating on the mirrors. Improper cleaning can scratch mirror coatings, so the fewer times you have to clean the mir- rors, the better. Small specks of dust or flecks of paint have virtually no effect on the visual performance of the telescope The large primary mirror and the elliptical seco
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One-Year Limited Warranty This Orion SpaceProbe 3 EQ is warranted against defects in materials or workmanship for a period of one year from the date of purchase. This warranty is for the benefit of the original retail purchaser only. During this warranty period Orion Telescopes & Binoculars will repair or replace, at Orion’s option, any warranted instrument that proves to be defective, provided it is returned postage paid to: Orion Warranty Repair, 89 Hangar Way, Watsonville, CA 95076. If the p
