Celestron CR-150 HD - Manuals

The CR-150 HD • 9 The tripod comes fully assembled with the metal plate, called the tripod head, thatholds the legs together at the top. In addition, the brackets that support the acces-sory tray are also attached to the tripod. Stand the tripod upright and pull the tripod legs apart until the leg b...

10 • The CR-150 HD With the tripod set up, you are ready to attach the accessory tray to the tripod.There are three wing bolts that hold the accessory tray to the bracket. 1. Locate the three wing bolts. 2. Place the accessory tray over the bracket and position it so the thread holes in the accessor...

12 • The CR-150 HD Attaching the R.A. Slow Motion Knob With the mount securely in place, you are ready to attach some of the accessories(the telescope tube will be added last). Start with the Right Ascension (R.A.) slowmotion knob. The R.A. slow motion knob allows you to make fine pointing adjust-me...

The CR-150 HD • 13 Attaching the Declination Slow Motion Knob Like the R.A. slow motion knob, the DEC slow motion knob allows you to make finepointing adjustments in the direction the telescope is pointed. The DEC slow motion knob attaches in the same manner as the R.A. knob. The shaftthat the DEC s...

14 • The CR-150 HD Attaching the Counterweight Bar and Counterweights The last item to be mounted before the telescope tube is the counterweight bar andcounterweights. Used to balanced the telescope, the counterweight bar attaches tothe opposite side of the mount as the telescope. To install the cou...

The CR-150 HD • 15 With the mount fully assembled, you are ready to attach the telescope to themount.The optical tube attaches to the mount using a dovetail slidebar that is fastened totwo tube rings that clamp around the tube. • Before you attach the optical tube, fully tighten the right ascension ...

Telescope Basics • 21 Eyepieces are commonly referred to by focal length and barrel diameter. The focallength of each eyepiece is printed on the eyepiece barrel. The longer the focal length(i.e., the larger the number) the lower the eyepiece magnification (i.e., power) and theshorter the focal lengt...

22 • Telescope Basics To focus your telescope, simply turn either of the focus knobs located under the focustube (see figure 4-1). Turn the focus knobs until the image is sharp. Once sharp, turn theknobs toward you to focus on an object that is closer than the one you are currentlyobserving. Turn th...

Telescope Basics • 23 Figure 4-2 Figure 4-2 Figure 4-2 Figure 4-2 Figure 4-2 The finder comes mounted in the finder bracket. To mount the finder to the telescope, The finder comes mounted in the finder bracket. To mount the finder to the telescope, The finder comes mounted in the finder bracket. To ...

Telescope Basics • 25 N i g h t t i m e O b s e r v i n g N i g h t t i m e O b s e r v i n g N i g h t t i m e O b s e r v i n g N i g h t t i m e O b s e r v i n g N i g h t t i m e O b s e r v i n g Looking at objects in the sky is quite different than looking at objects on Earth.For one, many ob...

26 • Telescope Basics You can change the power of your Celestron CR-150 HD telescope just by chang-ing the eyepiece (ocular). To determine the magnification for your telescope, youwould simply divide the focal length of the telescope (1200mm) by the focal lengthof the eyepiece that you are using. In...

Telescope Basics • 27 Your Celestron telescope can be used for both terrestrial and astronomicalphotography. Your telescope has a fixed aperture and, as a result, a fixed f/ratio.To properly expose your subjects photographically, you need to set your shutterspeed accordingly. Most 35mm single lens r...

28 • Astronomy Basics A S T R A S T R A S T R A S T R A S T R O N O M Y B O N O M Y B O N O M Y B O N O M Y B O N O M Y B A S I C S A S I C S A S I C S A S I C S A S I C S This section deals with observational astronomy in general. It includes infor-mation on the night sky, polar alignment, and usin...

Astronomy Basics • 29 Like the Sun, the stars also appear to move across the sky. This motion is causedby the Earth’s rotation. For observers in the northern hemisphere, all stars appearto move around the north celestial pole. For observers in the southern hemisphere,all stars appear to move around ...

30 • Astronomy Basics Figure 5-3 Figure 5-3 Figure 5-3 Figure 5-3 Figure 5-3 When the telescope’s axis of rotation is parallel to the Earth’s axis, stars viewedthrough the telescope appear stationary when using a motor drive. In order for the telescope to track the stars it must meet two criteria. F...

Astronomy Basics • 31 For each hemisphere, there is a point in the sky around which all the otherstars appear to rotate. These points are called the celestial poles and arenamed for the hemisphere in which they reside. For example, in the northernhemisphere all stars move around the north celestial ...

Astronomy Basics • 33 Pointing at Polaris Pointing at Polaris Pointing at Polaris Pointing at Polaris Pointing at Polaris This method utilizes Polaris as a guidepost to the celestial pole. Since Polaris is lessthan a degree from the celestial pole, many amateurs simply point the polar axis oftheir t...

34 • Astronomy Basics Declination Drift Declination Drift Declination Drift Declination Drift Declination Drift This method of polar alignment allows you to get the most accurate alignmenton the celestial pole and is required if you want to do long exposure deep-skyastrophotography through the teles...

36 • Celestial Observing C E L E S T I A L O B S E R V I N G With your telescope set up, you are ready to use it for celestial observing.This section covers visual observing of both solar system and deep-skyobjects. In the night sky, the Moon is a prime target for your first look because itis extrem...

Celestial Observing • 37 Although overlooked by many amateur astronomers, solar observation is bothrewarding and fun. However, because the Sun is so bright, special precautions mustbe taken when observing our star so as not to damage your eyes or your telescope. WARNING: WARNING: WARNING: WARNING: W...

Celestial Observing • 39 Star Hopping Star Hopping Star Hopping Star Hopping Star Hopping You can use your setting circles to find these objects (as described earlier in thismanual) or try star hopping. Star hopping is done by using bright stars to guide youto an object. Here are directions for two ...

Celestial Observing • 41 Viewing conditions affect what you can see through your CR-150 HD telescopeduring an observing session. Conditions include transparency, sky illumination,and seeing. Understanding viewing conditions and the affect they have on observ-ing will help you get the most out of you...

42 • Celestial Observing Once adjusted to the outdoor temperature, don’t touch the telescope tube with yourhands. When pointing the telescope, hold the telescope by the star diagonal. Ifobserving with others, make sure no one stands in front of or directly below thetelescope tube. The images produce...

Celestial Photography • 43 C E L E S T I A L P H O T O G R A P H Y C E L E S T I A L P H O T O G R A P H Y C E L E S T I A L P H O T O G R A P H Y C E L E S T I A L P H O T O G R A P H Y C E L E S T I A L P H O T O G R A P H Y After looking at the night sky for awhile you may want to try photographi...

Celestial Photography • 45 The exposure times listed here should be used as a starting point. Always makeexposures that are longer and shorter than the recommended time. Also, trybracketing your exposures, taking a few photos at each shutter speed. This willensure that you will get a good photo. If ...

Celestial Photography • 47 The exposure time depends on the film being used. However, five minutes is usuallya good starting point. With slower films, like 100 ISO, you can expose as long as 45minutes. With faster films, like 1600 ISO, you really shouldn’t expose more than 5 to10 minutes. When getti...

50 • Optional Accessories O P T I O N A L A C C E S S O R I E S The following is a partial list of optional accessories available for your CelestronCR-150 HD. CD-ROM (93700) - Celestron and Software Bisque have joinedtogether to present this comprehensive CD-ROM called The Sky™ Level 1 - for Celestr...

56 • List of Bright Stars LIST OF BRIGHT STARS The following is a list of bright stars that can be used to align the R.A. setting circle. All coordinates are inepoch 2000.0. Epoch 2000.0 Star Name C o n s t e l l a t i o n R.A. DEC Magnitude H M S ° ‘ “ Sirius CMa 06 45 09 -16 42 58 -1.47 C a n o p ...

FOR FURTHER READING The following is a list of astronomy books that will further enhance your understanding of the night sky. Thebooks are broken down by classification for easy reference. Astronomy Texts Astronomy Now ....................................................................................

CELESTRON ONE YEAR WARRANTY A. Celestron International (CI) warrants this telescope to be free from defects in materials and workmanship for one year. CI will repair or replace suchproduct or part thereof which, upon inspection by CI, is found to be defective in materials or workmanship. As a condit...