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14 I ENGLISH
Your equatorial mount has the ability to easily track celestial targets by turning the RA slow motion knob or by using an
optional motor drive that will turn it for you. In order for the mount to do this accurately, your mount will need to be “polar
aligned” or setup so the RA axis of rotation is parallel to Earth’s rotational axis. This sounds more complicated than it is and
after you have done it a few times, it will be second nature. The first step of polar aligning is to set your mount at the proper
latitude setting for your observing site.
To set the latitude on your mount:
1. Adjust the height of all three tripod legs so that your mount is level. Eyeballing this is sufficient.
2. Determine your latitude on Earth. If you have GPS enabled device, such as a tablet or smartphone, you should be able to read
your latitude directly from your device. If not, you can find this information online.
3. Locate the latitude scale, found on the side of the equatorial mount near the base.
4. Use the sliding handle to loosen the latitude adjustment locking knob by rotating it counter-clockwise.
5. Adjust the latitude adjustment screw on the back of the mount by rotating it clockwise or counter-clockwise until the
pointer above the altitude scale points at your latitude on Earth.
Example: In Los Angeles, California, our latitude is 33 degrees.
6. Once you have set your latitude correctly, tighten the latitude adjustment locking knob by rotating it clockwise.
NOTE: This latitude setting generally only needs to be done once if you setup the scope in the same location every time you observe. The only time you would need
to change this is if you travel with the telescope far enough North or South to change a degree of latitude. This is approximately 70 miles. Small changes
such as moving the scope from your front yard to your back yard, or even to different locations within a city, will not require you to change this setting.
With your tripod level and your latitude set, the only thing left is to rotate the mount so that the polar axis (the RA axis of
rotation) points north. To do this:
1. Setup the telescope so that the telescope tube is directly above the equatorial mount and the front of the telescope tube
points directly over the counterweight bar. Lock down the RA and DEC clutch knobs to hold the mount in this position.
2. Locate the direction of north. There are two ways of doing this:
a. Use a magnetic compass or a smart device app to find magnetic north. This is the easiest method but unfortunately is
not very accurate. Magnetic north can vary by as much as 15 degrees from true north. This is still a good method to
get up and operating quickly since some compass apps for smart devices can compensate for magnetic variations and
show true north.
Latitude Adjustment Screw
(Rear)
Latitude Adjustment Screw
(Locking Bolt)
POLAR ALIGNMENT
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