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Polar alignment of your equatorial mount can be done in several ways. A frequently used method is to point to Polaris. This star is located only one degree from the north celestial pole, the point in the sky around which all the other stars appear to rotate, and where the polar axis of a properly aligned equatorial mount should point.

First, set up the mount so that the polar axis is pointing north.

Second, unlock the declination clamp and move the scope in declination so that the tube is parallel to the polar axis. Your declination setting circles should read 90 degrees in this orientation. Clamp the declination lock.

The last steps involve moving the entire mount. Don’t use either the RA or Dec motions to change the position of the tube.

Third, move the mount in altitude and azimuth until Polaris is in your finder’s field of view or centered in your StarPointer.

Fourth, tweak the position of the mount by again moving the mount, this time centering Polaris in the eyepiece field of view. Altitude can be adjusted using the latitude adjustment screw or shortening-lengthening tripod legs.

The alignment is now good enough for visual purposes.

To refine this alignment, get a chart showing the offset of Polaris from the pole and move the mount so that this point in the sky is centered in the eyepiece field of view. You now have an excellent polar alignment well within one degree of the true north celestial pole.