Quote:
Originally Posted by sydney_vt
Hi Everyone,
Is there a trick to polar alignment? I have recently purchased a HEQ5 Pro mount and a Skywatcher ED80 scope and am having a **** of a time trying to align it. I have gone through all the steps leading up to Star Alignment with the synscan hand control but my alignment fails every time. Am i just doing it wrong? is there a trick to it? or is it just something that takes time and practice? Is there another was other then having to find the Astrism in Octans????? 4 little stars I dont like very much.
Thanks for any help guys.
David
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The 4 little stars in Octans is the way I do it. They are not too hard to find. I have attached 2 finder charts. You should be able to identify the general area of the south pole with the larger finder chart using just your unaided eye. Find delta octans visually and aim the finder scope at it. From there use the more magnified chart and move the mount until you can see the 4 star asterism in the finder. I then turn the illuminator on and align the stars with the little asterism pic in the finder. Once you have found the asterism once it is much easier to find the next time. I usually observe from the same place and there are now 3 little divots in the grass where the tripod sits. If I put the tripod in the same divots then the asterism is almost correctly aimed before I start. It only needs a little adjustment. Hope this helps.