Meade LX200R Advanced UHTC Ritchie - Chretien Telescopes
Featuring Precision GPS Alignment: Telescope alignment is accomplished automatically using signals from the Global Positioning System (GPS), a satellite system that enables extremely precise communication to the telescope of the observer"s latitude and longitude, as well as local time. Integrated true-level and North electronic sensors in combination with a 16-channel GPS receiver located in the left-hand fork arm result in accurate telescope alignment to the sky at the touch of a button: Just press the ENTER button on the Autostar II hand controller and watch as the telescope measures level, points North, and slews at 8°/sec. to its first alignment star. Magnetic declination compensation designed into the telescope software automatically engages during the alignment process.
New Heavy-Duty Fork Mounts:
All LX200R fork mounts are the strongest, most rigid mountings ever made available for telescopes of these apertures. DC-servo-motor-controlled (12v DC) worm gear drives with almost two hundred selectable drive speeds, combined with the Meade Smart Drive on both telescope axes, permit observatory-level precision in tracking, guiding, and slewing.
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Photo-guide speeds are selectable from 0.01x to 1.0x sidereal, in increments of 0.01x; fast-slew speeds are selectable from 1°/sec. to 8°/sec. in 0.1°/sec. increments. Use the 8°/sec. speed for rapid motion of the telescope across the skies; once near the target, switch instantly to a speed of 1.5°/sec. or 3°/sec. for centering in the viewfinder. Observing in the main telescope, use the 16x or 64x sidereal speed to place the object in the center of the field.
Autostar II Control System: Completely redesigned and updated for the LX200R series, the Meade Autostar II control system includes the widest array of telescope capabilities ever offered in a commercial telescope:
Built-in 145,000-Object Library Included as Standard Equipment: Enter into the Autostar II handbox any of the 145,000 celestial objects stored in the LX200R onboard database, press GO TO, and the telescope automatically slews (moves) to the object at 8°/sec., centering it precisely in the main telescope field. Additionally, the display reads out for each selected object its magnitude, size, object-type, visual quality rating, RA and Dec. Or, let the telescope take you on an automatic guided tour of TONIGHT"S BEST.
Stored in an expanded 3.5-Megabyte flash memory, Autostar II"s database is immediately accessible on the Autostar II display and includes an incredible array of phenomena — virtually a lifetime of deep-space study, even for the advanced observer. A partial listing includes:
| Object List | No. of Objects |
| New General Catalog (NGC) | 7480 |
| Index Catalog (IC) | 5386 |
| Uppsala Galaxy Catalog | 12,940 |
| Morphological Catalog of Galaxies | 12,939 |
| General Catalog of Variable Stars | 28,484 |
| SAO and Hipparcos Star Catalogs | 42,277 |
| Draper Star Catalog (HD) | 21,127 |
| Yale Bright Star Catalog (BSC5) | 6150 |
| Large Bright Quasars Survey (LBQS) | 1055 |
| Messier Catalog (M) | 110 |
| Caldwell Catalog | 109 |
| Named Objects | 227 |
| Herschel Catalog | 400 |
| Abell Catalog of Galaxy Clusters | 2712 |
| Arp Catalog of Irregular Galaxies | 645 |
| Major Planets from Mercury to Pluto | 9 |
| Lunar Features | 1870 |
| Asteroids and Comets | 120 |
| Earth orbiting satellites | 50 |
| Centroids of the Constellations | 88 |
Additional Autostar II Functions: Dozens of additional handbox functions, all easily and immediately accessible, make Autostar II the most powerful electronic tool ever developed for the serious amateur. A partial listing of fewer than half of these functions includes: GO TO capability to any input RA and Dec. coordinates; a 200-object user-defined library; event menus displaying the times and/or dates of Sunrise/Sunset, Moonrise/Moonset, Moon phases, meteor showers, minimum of Algol, equinoxes and solstices; custom-guided tours defined by the user; standard tours including Tonight's Best; 24-hour timer with beeper; alarm function with beeper sounds at selected times; 16-level display brightness adjust; 16-level display contrast adjust; red-LED utility light; battery alarm for low-battery warning; 7 alignment modes; sidereal, lunar, or any of 2000 custom tracking rates; factory-trained Smart Drive periodic error correction on both telescope axes with field-training capability.
Altazimuth Operation: For all visual observing applications, for lunar and planetary photography, and for most CCD imaging applications, Meade LX200R models may be set up in the altazimuth mode just attach the telescope"s drive base directly to the tripod, use the GPS alignment procedure, and the telescope"s computer actuates 2-axis tracking that keeps objects precisely centred in the field, even at high powers, during the entire observing session. For long-exposure astrophotography (longer than about 5 minutes) altazimuth-induced field rotation requires an equatorial wedge or the #1220 Field De-rotater, either of which may be purchased separately.
Field Operation: LX200R telescopes operate for over 20 hours from eight C-cells neatly stored inside the fork arms. Alternately, telescope powering may be effected from an automobile cigarette lighter plug (using the optional #607 Power Cord) or from a standard home outlet (using the optional #547 AC Adapter).
Primary Mirror Lock: This revolutionary new rear-cell system is designed for the advanced visual observer, astrophotographer, and CCD imager. Turn a knob located just above the manual coarse-focus knob, and lock the telescope"s primary mirror rigidly in place. Used in conjunction with the Zero Image-Shift Microfocuser (below) the progressive-tension primary mirror lock completely cancels any residual image shift while focusing during visual, photographic, or CCD imaging applications.
Zero Image-Shift Microfocuser: Now you can obtain the most precise image focus possible _ truly to a microscopic level _ during visual and astrophotographic applications, and, during CCD applications, simultaneously maintain precise image centration on even the smallest CCD chips. Included as standard equipment on all LX200R Ritchie Chretien models, the Meade Zero Image-Shift Microfocuser operates at 4 speeds from extremely slow to fast; the entire microfocusing operation is actuated through the Autostar II handbox and powered from the telescope's control panel. Coarse manual focusing is effected through the telescope's manual focus knob
You can read on for a complete list of the specifications for the 8" 10" 12" 14" and 16" LX200R Ritchie Chretien Telescopes
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