Animated Equatorial Mount Tutorial
Click the image to re-run the animation.

Moving to View the Southwest Sky
Here we see the telescope moving from the Start Position to view the southwest sky. In the first two frames the Declination (DEC) axis is locked. The telescope moves in Right Ascension (RA) only, to the east side of the mount. The final three frames show the scope moving in DEC only, with the RA axis locked.

In practice, the telescope is usually moved in both axes at at the same time. Once you are familiar with the motions of the GEM, moving in both axes at once becomes second-nature. When first practicing with a GEM, however, it may be easier to move in one axis at a time.

Introduction
Moving to View Near the Zenith
Moving to View the Southeast Sky
Moving to View the Southwest Sky
Moving to View Due South