How do you get an equatorial mount?
Setting up your equatorial mount
- The scope and mount head sit on a TRIPOD.
- Place the MOUNT HEAD onto the top of the tripod.
- Screw the COUNTERWEIGHT bar into the mount head.
- The RA axis needs to point up to the north celestial pole.
- Fit a SLOW MOTION CABLE onto the small D-shaped shafts on the RA and the Dec.
Does equatorial mount need to be level?
Properly set up, the polar axis of an equatorial mount is parallel to Earth’s axis of rotation and, therefore, doesn’t need to be adjusted further. You just have to rotate the telescope’s other axis – the declination axis – to stay on target.
What is one advantage of a Dobsonian mount?
Dobsonians have a simple design of a tube, a set of optics, and a basic mount and it’s this design that makes them cheaper than other types of telescopes offering the same aperture size and power.
How does an equatorial wedge work?
When an equatorial wedge is inserted underneath the base of such a mount, it allows the altaz head to be tilted and aligned towards the North Celestial Pole, which effectively turns the azimuth axis into a polar axis and the altitude axis into a declination axis.
What is a German equatorial mount?
An equatorial telescope mount (often called a German equatorial mount, or “GEM”) that has been accurately polar aligned with the polar axis of the Earth can follow a particular object in the night sky for an extended period of time.
Why should telescope mount be leveled?
Well, even in portable EQ setups there’s a reason to level the tripod – it means the altitude adjustment of the mount will be very close to correct, each time, so less futzing during the alignment on the pole.
How do you level a tripod for a telescope?
- If you have a bubble level on the top of the tripod mount base, and you get the bubble dead center, that’s close enough.
- Since your tripod legs are fixed in length, your choices to level the tripod will be to use shims under the footpads, or you may be able to change the ‘spread’ between the legs.
