AZ EQ6 GT - solar observing in alt az mode

[moriniboy]

Hi I want to use this mount is alt az mode for the solar eclipse with 2 scopes.

Apart from setting the tracking to solar rate is there anything else I need to do.

I'm assuming that the usual alignment procedure will not need to happen as only the sun will be visible (or get there before dawn so that I can 2 star align)

[Uplooker]

Use a large T-Square and a compass to get polar alignment as close as possible, will mean that you can keep the sun centred in the EP for longer with few adjustmenst required.

[johnpd]

As he said he wants to mount two telescopes on the AZ-EQ6, he could not use the mount in EQ mode unless he got a dual scope dovetail adapter. Aligning the mount the night before would be the best alternative. If this is not feasible, use the following procedure to get the best possible alignment in daytime:

1. Mount and balance the primary telescope.

2. Mount and balance the secondary telescope. Then align it with the primary telescope. NOTE: Using the standard AZ-EQ6 secondary saddle, you can align them in altitude. However, there is to way to align the secondary scope to the primary scope in azimuth. If you use relatively long focal length scopes, you may have a problem getting the Sun in both. If possible, you might want to consider using a ring system for the secondary scope.

3. Set the telescope(s) pointing north and parallel to the ground (0-AZ, 0-Alt).

4. Turn on the mount. Enter Date/Time/Loc, etc. DO NOT SELECT ALIGN.

5. Instead, from the "Utility" > "Park Scope" menu, select "Current Position". This sets the Home position for the mount.

4. Get the current RA and Dec for the Sun.

5. Access the "User Object" menu > "New Object"

  a. Select "1)RA/Dec" as the coordinates to use.

  b. Enter the RA and Dec for the Sun.

  c. When it asks to "Save", press the "ESC" key.

  d. When it asks to "View Object", press "ENTER".

  e. The mount should now slew to the neighborhood of the Sun.

  f. Adjust the mount to center the Sun in the scopes.

The mount will need to be adjusted from time to time, but hopefully not too often.

Good luck,

  JohnD

[johnpd]

I wish this site had an "Edit" function. Hopefully one of these days Synscan will add the Sun as an object in the Solar System object list rather than having to go through hoops to align to it.

JohnD