Meade Maksutov-Cassegrains

More Information  · Supplied Accessories  · Recommended Accessories  · Related Documents  · Images of Some Features Price $899.00 Supplied Eyepiece SP26 Highest Useful Magnification 272x Visual Limiting Magnitude 13 Focal Length 1900mm Focal Ratio f/15 Resolution 0.91arc seconds Aperture 5" Weight 28.5 lbs. Heaviest Single Component 15.2 lbs. Warranty 1 year

We’ll send your two free Meade Super Plössl eyepieces along with your scope. There’s no form to fill out, no wait to get your $98 value bonus. Simply buy this Meade ETX and the Meade Super Plössl eyepieces are yours for free.

The new blue-tube Meade ETX-125PE Premier Edition Maksutov-Cassegrain telescope with UHTC optics may be the ideal telescope for the serious amateur astronomer who doesn’t have the time or space for a big instrument. Its UHTC optics compare quite favorably with the image quality of 5" apochromatic refractors that are four and five times its reasonable price. The 125PE fits neatly halfway between the extreme portability but limited light-gathering of a 90mm (3.5") Meade ETX-90PE and the bigger light-gathering power but reduced portability (and incredibly higher price) of a 178mm (7") Questar Maksutov. With 125mm (5") of clear aperture, the 125PE provides twice the light-gathering of the 90mm ETX, a significant boost that adds many objects to the thousands already visible in the 90mm scope. It has half the light gathering of a 7" Maksutov, but less than one-third the weight and bulk, providing an ease of storage, transport, and use unmatched by the bigger and more expensive scope.
    This scope’s standard equipment Autostar computer has proprietary LNT (Level North Technology) that makes it amazingly simple to set up and operate. It automatically aligns the scope on the sky for you. You don't have to know Polaris from the Pleiades, or Albireo from Zubeneschamali. All you have to do is tell the Autostar where you are on Earth (and if you don’t know your latitude and longitude, simply knowing your zip code will do). The Autostar computer with LNT will do the rest, aligning the scope on the skies and letting you locate dozens of deep space objects like a seasoned observer your first night out.

This Telescope’s Optical System . . .

• Maksutov-Cassegrain optics: 125mm (5") aperture, 1900mm focal length, f/15 focal ratio. The meniscus corrector lens is Grade-A BK7 optical glass. The primary mirror is Pyrex. Guaranteed diffraction-limited optical performance.

• UHTC (Ultra High Transmission Coatings) multicoated optics: The primary mirror and secondary mirror spot on the rear of the meniscus corrector lens are coated with highly reflective aluminum enhanced with a complex stack of multi-layer coatings of titanium dioxide and silicon dioxide. Both aluminized surfaces are overcoated with quartz for long life. There are antireflection multicoatings on both sides of the Maksutov corrector lens. These multicoated optics add the equivalent of almost half an inch of additional aperture to the scope’s light grasp, for brighter deep space images than a scope with standard coatings. They also improve the contrast for sharper-appearing lunar and planetary images.

• Dust covers: A thread-in metal dust cover protects the meniscus lens. A thread-on metal cap seals the Cassegrain focus on the rear cell.

• Finderscope: A straight-through red dot SmartFinder allows easy non-magnified views of the sky, with a projected red dot of light showing exactly where the scope is pointed at all times.

• Star diagonal: Built-in first surface flip-mirror. For astronomical observing, the internal flip-mirror directs the image to the 26mm Super Plössl eyepiece in the eyepiece holder at the top of the scope. Touch a lever, and the flip-mirror redirects the image through the Cassegrain focus at the rear of the scope to an optional #64 T-adapter and T-ring for lunar or terrestrial photography, or to an optional #932 45 degree viewing angle image-erecting diagonal for upright and right-reading terrestrial viewing.

• Eyepiece: 1.25" 26mm Series 4000 Super Plössl (73x) specially shortened to fit the scope's low profile eyepiece holder. The eyepiece field of view is 0.68 degrees, over a third wider than the diameter of the full moon.

This Telescope’s Mechanics and Electronics . . .

• Dual fork arm altazimuth mount: The optical tube is aluminum, finished in classic Meade blue. We conducted an on-line survey for Meade a few months back, in which visitors to our site voted for their favorite Meade color scheme. The voting showed that many Meade fans still preferred an understated Meade blue tube to the full-color photo of the North American Nebula (NGC 7000) that wraps around the tube of the astro-tube version of the ETX-125 Premier. Meade listened, and Meade changed. Now you can have whichever tube trim suits you best – this Meade blue tube or the astrophoto-tube version (#MP5U). Either way, you still get sensational ETX Maksutov optics inside the tube.
      The rear cell, fork arms, and drive base are durable metal-reinforced injection-molded plastic that helps keep the cost of the 125PE reasonable. While the molded parts of the 125PE are quite rugged, a little extra care in setting up and using the scope might be prudent.
     There are three rubber feet on the base of the scope. These allow the 125PE to be placed on a suitably sturdy tabletop or flat surface for casual computerized observing without having to set up the supplied full length field tripod.
     The mount includes built-in right ascension and declination DC drive motors for tracking objects under the control of the supplied Autostar computer. The motors are powered for up to 20 hours by eight AA batteries (not supplied) that fit into an internal battery compartment in the telescope base. They can also be powered by optional #541 AC/DC or #607 DC adapters.
     When used in the default altazimuth mode, the supplied Autostar computer hand control moves the scope in any of four directions (right/left, up/down) at any of nine speeds. The speeds range from 2x the sidereal rate for guiding, up to 5 degrees per second for locating objects and slewing, plus the sidereal rate for tracking objects. No manual slow motion controls are provided – or needed. When set up on the supplied tripod for equatorial (polar) operation, the Autostar computer converts the right/left, up/down altazimuth directions to motions in right ascension and declination to correspond with the coordinates of objects on the celestial sphere.

• LNT (Level North Technology): The ETX-125PE contains an electronic level sensor, an electronic magnetic North sensor, and a high precision internal clock. These components combine with the Level North Technology software to make aligning on the sky as easy as remembering your own zip code. Simply take the scope outside and set it up on a level surface or on its supplied tripod. Tell the scope your location – either your latitude and longitude or your zip code. The scope will use its built-in level and magnetic North sensors to level the optical tube and point it North. The internal clock will tell the software the correct time. The software determines where and when on earth it is and what the sky looks like overhead. It then moves the scope automatically to an alignment star. If the star is not precisely centered under the red dot in the SmartFinder, you can use the Autostar hand control pushbuttons to center it to improve the pointing accuracy. Let the scope repeat the process for a second alignment star and you’re ready to start observing. The LNT system makes using the scope almost as easy as using a costly GPS-equipped telescope, but at a fraction the price.

• Autostar computer hand control: The standard equipment #497 Autostar computer will automatically slew to, and track, more than 30,000 near and deep space objects (although some may be marginal if used in a light-polluted area given the mag 13 limiting magnitude of the scope’s 5" aperture). The objects include all 110 of the Messier objects; the complete 5386-object IC catalog, the complete 7840-object NGC catalog, the complete 109 object Caldwell catalog of the best objects for small telescopes; 16,800 stars from the SAO catalog including double starts, variable stars, and other stars of special note; the planets; 26 of the brightest asteroids; 15 periodic comets; 50 earth-orbiting satellites; the centroids of all 88 constellations; plus user-defined objects and guided tours around the sky.
     The Autostar hand control gives you a digital readout of r. a. and dec coordinates; scrolling information about the object being viewed; plus the results of calculations about sunrise, sunset, moonrise, moonset, moon phases, solar eclipses, lunar eclipses, the minimum of Algol, and more. Hypertext links on the Autostar screen display define many of the terms used in the computer (there's more than one megabyte of compressed text stored in the Autostar.) Built-in guided tours of the sky are tailored to the day of the year you are observing. They direct you to showpiece objects, including the Moon and any planets then visible. Most of the tour objects are accompanied by descriptions scrolling across the Autostar display (the description of Algol, for example, is over 300 words long). The Moon has different descriptions based on its phase, and prominent features near the terminator are highlighted.
     On-screen operation instructions guide you through setup and use of the Autostar and a help function is only a keystroke away. Alignment on the sky for proper computerized operation is exceptionally easy, as the Autostar will align itself automatically. It asks only that the observer level the scope and point it north before starting and then confirm that the Autostar computer has indeed chosen the right guide stars and aligned itself on them correctly. Objects can be accessed by their catalog number or by their common name. An RS-232 port in the Autostar allows you to control the 125PE remotely from a PC, using Meade’s AstroFinder software and #505 PC to scope cable set. The software and cable also allows you to download free Autostar software upgrades from Meade’s website.
     The Autostar can operate in an altazimuth mode, with the 125PE sitting on a table or any suitable flat surface. The scope can also operate in a polar mode, using the standard equipment #884 deluxe full-length adjustable height field tripod. Motor noise is quite audible when tracking objects in the altazimuth mode and may be objectionable to some people. Most people will probably prefer the quieter tracking of polar operation using one of the tripods mentioned above. Slewing to an object is relatively noisy in either mode of operation. However, most people consider this to be a small penalty to pay for the convenience of fully computerized go-to operation.
     The drive direction can be temporarily reversed for southern hemisphere use by a few keystrokes on the hand control. This allows you to operate the ETX-125PE anywhere in the world. Other keystrokes change the scope’s default tracking from an altazimuth to a polar mode.

• Autostar Software Suite (Astronomer Edition): This supplied software/hardware package consists of a planetarium/telescope control program and a cable to connect the ETX-125PE to your PC or laptop. The Autostar Software Suite (Astronomer Edition) is designed to integrate your telescope with a Windows-based PC or laptop computer for an enhanced range of performance features.
      It includes a planetarium program with a database of 19,000,000 stars and deep space objects to display on your computer screen. The program has all the display and star chart-printing features of an advanced planetarium-type software program for stand-alone use when nights are cloudy. If you connect the scope to your computer or laptop (using either the supplied cable), the program lets you click on objects in the sky map display on the computer screen and have your 125PE automatically slew to those objects.
      The software lets you control all Autostar functions from your computer or laptop. You can use it to create observing lists with a simple point and click and download them to the Autostar for use in the field when you don’t have your computer or laptop with you. You can use it to control your telescope remotely via the Internet. “Talking Telescope" software (included) converts the Autostar’s text displays to synthesized speech and plays it through your computer speaker. An Autostar Update Tool keeps your Autostar current by downloading the latest system firmware updates and comet, asteroid, and satellite data from the internet.
      The minimum computer requirements for installing the Autostar Software Suite are a PC running Windows 98SE or better, with 64 MB of RAM, and 100 MB of free hard disk space.

• Adjustable height tripod: The supplied full-length Meade #884 Deluxe Field Tripod provides a rigid mounting platform for virtually any observing application, astronomical or terrestrial, and can be used for either standing or seated observing. The #884 has tubular chromed steel legs and is adjustable in height from 26" to 44" when used in the altazimuth mode. It has a built-in equatorial wedge with an integral latitude scale and no-tool latitude (altitude) adjustment for use at any observing latitude between 20° and 90°. The 90° (altazimuth) position is for terrestrial observation and for quick set-up astronomical observing. Setting the wedge tilt plate to your observing latitude and aligning the scope on the celestial pole allows more accurate object location and sidereal rate tracking, but takes more time to set up.
     The ETX attaches to the tripod in seconds using two thumbscrews in the wedge tilt plate. The thumbscrews are tethered and spring-loaded so they can’t be lost in the field. The spreader bar that holds the legs open is spring-loaded as well, so setting up and taking down the tripod takes only a few seconds. There are six 1.25" diameter holes cut into the spreader bar to hold 1.25" eyepieces. The tripod comes with a padded Cordura-style carrying case with carry handle, shoulder strap, and an external zippered pocket for the spreader bar.