Alt-azimuth with GoTo

With an altazimuth mount, a telescope can be slewed upwards and across the horizon. This horizontal angle is also called azimuth.

Altazimuth mounts can be quite simply constructed, similar to a photographic tripod. Another popular version is the single arm mount. The illustration shows a typical example. A bracket attaches the telescope to the side of the mount arm.

The term GoTo describes a computer control with a database. The motorised system allows you to select and automatically point at objects. The motors also take care of the tracking: the selected object always remains visible in the eyepiece.