Meade - ETX-LS - ACF Telescope with LightSwitch Technology and Built-in Imager

Advanced Coma Free Telescope

The revolutionary ETX-LS astronomical telescope features the most advanced electronics and optics ever
applied to a consumer telescope. Meade is producing the easiest-to-use, most entertaining, educational,
high-performance telescope on the market by combining LightSwitch Technology, Advanced Coma Free
Optics® (ACF®), Astronomer Inside® multimedia output and a completely new mechanical
design.   
 
♦ LightSwitch Technology:

Alignment system for completely hands free alignment. Using the Integrated Sensor Module and the
built-in ECLIPS CCD imager on the telescope tube, our LightSwitch Technology allows the telescope to
completely align itself with the sky without any input from the user. The user simply flips the
LightSwitch on and the telescope finds its location, time, date, north, level, then locates and centers
the alignment stars for a perfect alignment every time without user input. 
 
♦ Single arm fork Altitude-Azimuth (Alt-Az) mount.
   
o Rigid structure with large precision roller bearings on both axis designed to carry large OTAs.   
o Precision worm gear drives with 4.875� main gears in both axis for smooth and accurate 
tracking and slewing.   
o Long fork arm length to allow clearance with the base for most cameras.  
o Runs on internal “C� cell batteries for portable field operation. 
o Hand control holder built into base. 
o Off-On LightSwitch. 
o USB and other ports for accessory equipment. 
o Heavy-duty stable tripod with quick attachment of the mount. 
 
♦ 6� ACF optical tube assembly (OTA): 

o Advanced Coma-Free optical system for performance that only professionals or extreme amateurs have
had.  6" clear aperture with 1524mm focal length for an f/10 system. 
o Standard SC threaded back cell that accepts most existing accessories designed for all
Schmidt-Cassegrain models over the last 30 years.   
o Integrated Sensor Module (ISM) with GPS and Level North Technologies (LNT). 
o Electronically Controlled Locate Identify Position System (ECLIPS) CCD imaging module.  
 
♦ Multimedia output: 

o Professionally produced audio and video content for hundreds of objects and custom guided tours
designed for your location, time and date.  Multimedia presentations feature the voices of Sandy Woods
of “Star Date� astronomy radio program and George Woods, Hollywood actor and the voice on many
productions. 
o Built-in speaker in drive base and audio out jack for audio instructions and object 
descriptions. 
o Video out for video presentations and images of many objects, instant display of images from 
the ECLIPS imager and easy on-screen menu navigation. 

♦ AutoStar III hand controller: 
 
Easily control telescope for automatic location of objects, tours and many other features.  
Approximately 100,000 objects in database. 
 
♦ ECLIPS CCD Imager: 

o Essential part of the LightSwitch alignment system. 
o Sensitive wide-angle color 640x480 CCD imager for taking your own astrophotographs.  
Save your photos on a SD card (user supplied). 
o With a video monitor connected to the video out jack, see real-time images of the objects you 
see in the eyepiece. 
 
♦ New Electronics: 
o Full USB support for accessories like additional DSI CCD cameras. 
o SD card slot for easy software upgrades and storing your astrophotographs.  
 
♦ Specifications  
Model ETX-LS 6" ACF 
SKU 0610-03-10 
 
Specs 
  
Optical Design Advanced Coma Free (ACF) 
Primary Mirror Diameter 6" (152mm) 
Focal Length, Focal Ratio 1524mm f/10 
Resolving Power (arc seconds)  0.76 
Optical Coatings Ultra-High Transmission Coatings 
Limiting Visual Stellar Magnitude 14 
Eyepiece(s) Included Super Plössl 26mm 
Telescope Mounting Single Fork Arm 
RA and Dec. Motor Drive Systems  DC servo motors with encoders, both axes; 12-volts DC with 4.875�
precision worm-gear 
Slow-Motion Controls Electric, 9-speed, both axis 
Controller Autostar III Handbox with 100,000 objects 
Processor  400 Megahertz Blackfin 
Memory  256 Megabytes of Nanflash 
Input/Output USB 2.0 
Speaker  Built in Mount 
Connections  USB, AutoStar Hand Box, 12v Power In, Electric 
Focuser, Audio Out, Video Out 
Multimedia Content  Descriptions of the Planets, Moon, Stars, 
Clusters, Nebulae, Galaxies and More 
Audio  Over 4 Hours Featuring the Voice of Sandy 
Wood From "Star Date" 
Video  30 Minutes of Movies and Animations, Plus 
Hundreds of Still Images 
Hemispheres of Operation North and South 
Power  8 x C size or AC Adapter (user-supplied) 
Battery Life (approx.) 3 to 5 hours 
Tripod ETX Style Self Centering Field Tripod 
Primary Mirror Pyrex® glass