Meade 8" LX90-ACF Telescope with Wedge & Adapter Plate - 0810-90-07

About the Meade LX90-ACF 8" f/10 Telescope

with Standard Field Tripod & Wedge...

The patented Meade Advanced Coma-Free (ACF) optical design offers the coma-free pinpoint star images and flatter image fields greatly desired by discerning amateur astronomers, astrophotographers and professional observatories alike. This 8" telescope system also reduces the astigmatism and eliminates the diffraction spikes found in classical Ritchey-Chretien designs. No competing Schmidt-Cassegrain Telescope can make those claims.

The Meade 8" LX90-ACF has an 8" diameter f/10 ACF optical system (focal length 2000mm) and Ultra-High Transmission Coatings (UHTC) for maximum image brightness and contrast. The electronics include the advanced Meade 497 AudioStar computer system with over 30,000 object library, multiple guided tours, High Precision Pointing capability, Meade SmartDrive with Permanent Periodic Error Correction, and a 8" Wedge with adapter plate.  The equatorial wedge goes between the telescope & tripod, allowing the user to take longer celestial images without the star trails introduced by a telescope that does not have the ability to be aligned with the polar axis.  

The Meade LX90-ACF 8" features the solid and stable LX90 aluminum double fork mount, with fast slew speed adjustable from 1 to 7 degrees per second. Fine slewing and photographic guiding speeds can be adjusted from .01x to 1x sidereal in one one-hundredth increments. The mount and all electronics are internally powered by 8 (user supplied) C-cell batteries which will typically operate the telescope for a generous 60 hours (optional Meade Universal AC adapter also available). The mount also has mechanical locks in both axis allowing adjustment even without power.

Precise and quick star alignment of the Meade LX90-ACF 8" is done near effortlessly with an incorporated 16 channel genuine Sony GPS receiver. The innovative AudioStar is flash-updatable via free downloads at Meade.com (optional cable required).

The Meade LX90-ACF 8" comes fully equipped with a heavy duty height adjustable Meade Field Tripod, a wedge adapter plate, the 8" equatorial wedge, a 1.25" diagonal prism, Series 4000 26mm 5-Element Plossl eyepiece, and Meade AutoStar Suite Astronomer Edition Software for PC and an 8x50 optical viewfinder with quick release bracket. 

• The LX90 can locate over 30,000 objects including itself. Turn it on and the built-in GPS receiver immediately determines your precise date, time, and location. In just minutes, your scope is ready to give you a tour of the most spectacular sights in the universe with GPS precision.

    

• GPS Receiver - LX90 can do more than track satellites. It talks to them as well. Turn it on and the built-in Sony GPS sensor immediately determines your precise date, time and location. AutoAlign then uses this info to align your scope for a tour of the most spectacular sights in the universe.

    

• Easy Align - LX90s are smart scopes that know the night sky right out of the box. Easy Align picks two alignment stars for you and places them right in your viewfinder. Just center them to fine tune your alignment and the wonders of the universe are at your fingertips.

   

• Oversized Primary Mirror - Only Meade manufactures their primary mirrors in diameters larger than their listed aperture (e.g. the diameter of the 8" LX90's primary mirror is actually 8.25").This additional 1/4" yields a wider, fully illuminated field-of-view, and allows you to see the light other telescopes leave behind.

    

• 8 x 50 Viewfinder - Quickly and easily locate and center deep sky objects.

   

• Slew Speed - The LX90 slews (moves) from star to star at 7 degrees per second. That is more than twice as fast as the competition. This means that over the course of an evening, a Meade LX90 will show you two to three times more objects.

    

• Rigid cast aluminum fork mount - The Meade LX90's Optical Tube Assembly is mounted on two sturdy fork arms giving you a rock solid platform for astrophotography.

    

• Smart Drive - Meade's AutoStar provides Periodic Error Correction (in polar mode). Over the course of one or more training periods your LX90 will minimize guiding corrections during long exposure astrophotography.

   

• AudioStar Computer Controller - The AudioStar computer controller with speaker helps you quickly find and GoTo over 30,000 objects in the night sky. View planets, stars, galaxies, nebulae, comets and more-all at the push of a button. Don''t know what you want to view this evening? Then go to the Tonight''s Best tour in your AudioStar. It automatically selects the best objects in the sky for that particular time and location.

 About the Wedge Adapter Plate...

The Meade LX90 Wedge Adapter Plate is designed to allow the mounting of Meade LX90 models to Meade Equatorial Wedges so the LX90 series can be polar aligned for astrophotography. This adapter converts the standard three hole mounting pattern of Meade wedges to the single central mounting bolt required by all LX90 models. Provides secure and stable mounting for all sizes of LX90 to any Meade Equatorial Wedge.

About the 8" Equatorial Wedge...

The Meade 8" Equatorial Wedge allows for polar alignment of the Meade 8" LX90 as required for long exposure astrophotography and imaging. For use with Meade Field Tripod and wedge adapter plate supplied with this model.

Equatorial alignment is required for astrophotography and imaging exposures longer than about 5 minutes. The Meade 8" Wedge is mounted between a telescope and the standard field tripod to accomplish the tilt of an equatorial type mount that matches the observer's latitude and permits precise polar alignment of your telescope. The wedge allows the astrophotographer to align the telescope's axis of rotation with the Earth's axis of rotation. This alignment eliminates stars in your long exposure photograph from appearing as a long arc, trail or streak due to an effect known as field rotation. For short planetary and lunar photography, a wedge is not necessary and the telescope can be set up in altitude-azimuth configuration as normally used for visual observation.

Features heavy duty cast aluminum construction with latitude and longitude fine adjustments and a compass to use the magnetic pole as a starting reference.

Clear Aperture: 8" (203mm)

Optical Design: Schmidt-Cassegrain or Advanced Coma-Free

Focal Length: 2000mm

Focal Ratio: f/10

Telescope Mounting: Rigid Cast-Aluminum Fork mount; double-tine

Optical Coatings: Ultra-High Transmission Coatings (UHTC)

Resolving Power (Dawes Limit): 0.570 arcseconds

AutoStar Controller: AudioStar

Object Database: 30,000 objects

Viewfinder: 8x50mm with cross-hair reticle

Eyepiece: 26mm Series 4000 Super Plossl

Diagonal: 1.25" diagonal prism

Pointing Precision (High-Precision Mode): 3 arcminutes

Go-To Pointing Precision (Approx.): 5 arcminutes

Periodic Error Correction: Polar mode only

Slow Motion Controls: Electronic

Slew Speeds: RA and Dec: 1x, 2x, 8x, 16x, 64x, 128x sidereal and 1.5/sec., 3/sec., 6.5/sec.

Tracking Rates: Sidereal, lunar, or custom-selected from 2000 incremental rates

Tripod: Standard field Tripod with black finish on legs.  Some photos may show stainless legs.

Wedge:  Included with adapter plate

Batteries (User-Supplied): 8 x C cells

Battery Life (Typical): 60 hrs.

Power: 12V DC, 5 amp power supply (optional)

GPS Receiver: Included

Smart Drive: Yes

Oversized Primary Mirror: Yes

AutoStar Suite Planetarium Software: Included

Primary Mirror & Secondary Mirrors: Low expansion borrosilicate glass

Correcting Plate/Lens:Borosilicate Glass

Optical Tube: Aluminum

Mount: Aluminum

Tripod Weight: 19 lb.

Tripod Dimensions: 30" to 44" variable

Meade Product Number: 0810-90-07