5.3.8.1  Field of View Search 

This feature is useful for systematically searching for objects that you know or suspect 

are close to where the telescope is pointing, but are not in the field of view.  After 

selecting the   Object Search   menu item, you will be asked to select an FOV (field of 

view) between 5 arcmin and 2 degrees, or select "Wobble Object." 

If one of the FOVs is selected, the telescope moves in alternating, increasing movements 

around the starting position in both RA and Dec.  The selection you make affects the 

fineness or coarseness of the search; the distance between lines of search is determined 

by the selected FOV divided by the square root of 2.  

5.3.8.2  Wobble Object 

"Wobble Object" is used when you are pointing in the right place for a dim object, but 

you cannot see it.  The telescope moves continuously in a "Z" shape pattern, 5 arcmin per 

axis.  This can help you detect a faint object in the field of view since the human eye is 

more sensitive to faint objects when they are moving. 

Pressing any button on the Hand Controller stops the search.

5.3.9  Show Date/Time 

UTC Date/Time 

Julian Date 

Civil Time 

Local Sidereal 

Executing this menu item permits you to see the date and/or time stored in Gemini 

s Real 

Time Clock (RTC) displayed according to one of four different date/time standards.  The 

"UTC Date/Time" and "Civil Time" displays read from left to right as follows:  

"yymm.dd  hh:mm:ss," where yy = year, mm = month, dd = day, hh = hour, mm = 

minutes, and ss = seconds.  In addition to just taking note of the time, this is a convenient 

way to check on whether you entered the UTC date and time correctly in the "Setup" 

menu.  Remember that local Civil Time and UTC Time usually refer to different time 

zones, so their respective dates are not necessarily the same. 

This menu item anticipates that you may want to move the telescope while displaying the 

time.  It therefore returns you to Telescope Control Mode from where you can guide, 

center or slew. 

5.3.9.1  UTC Date/Time (Coordinated Universal Time) 

A full discussion of UTC is beyond the scope of this manual.  For most practical 

purposes, it corresponds to Greenwich Mean Time (the date and time in Greenwich 

England).  UTC is the time provided by all GPS receivers, and is the time that must be 

entered into Gemini 

s RTC. 

Gemini Users Manual 

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