What to use for Star Map

[TwinkleMcStar]

I have a android phone with no compass and at time in places with no internet connection. I would like to be able to use one of those star map app. Thinking I could buy a used apple Ipad 2 because that is the first to have a gyroscope, thinking would be cheaper. Is that reasonable-would that work? Does having a gyroscope mean I can download a compass app? Do you need a connection to use a star map app. As a add on, top star map apps??

[Sureshks]

Hello Twinkle,

I too am on Android and am partial to SkySafari. It does pretty much everything. They have it for both Android and Apple.

There are a few different versions. The cheaper versions will give you star maps and information on every planet and most deep sky object. The more expensive ones have more objects in the database plus additional functionality, like telescope control.

Other popular astronomy apps for Android include Stellarium, Mobile Observatory and StarryNight.

I hope this helps!

Suresh

[pkarri]

+1 for Sky Safari on Android, the free version.

While its fine to use a smart phone app, I've found myself abandoning the apps in favor of a planisphere to orient myself to the night sky and get my bearings. Once I have that I use Sky and Telescope's Pocket Atlas to find specific objects. This way, I'm becoming really familiar with the night sky, understanding how the ecliptic and celestial equator interact, how the sky changes with the seasons...etc. Maybe its just me, but I found that I wasn't getting too familiar/intimate with the sky when I was using an app.

[DahnGee]

Another +1 for Sky Safari on Android. I paid the $20 for the Pro version with the fainter stars and catalogs

I went the opposite direction from Prabhakar, I was exclusively a paper map user (primarily Skyatlas 2000) up until a couple of years ago. I still starhop everything, but starhopping using SkySafari is so easy it feels like cheating. I can set my FoV to match what I see in the finder or scope and can match orientation easily. Knowing exactly which two faint stars to look between to see a threshold comet or galaxy makes finding those faint fuzzies so much easier.

With that said, does anyone know of a good tablet to run Sky Safari on that properly red screen modes everything? I've used it on two different phones with different versions of android and both come up a bit short. Are iPads any better at it?

[setnes]

I use Sky Safari on a Chromebook (with a touch screen) as part of my astrophotography rig. Chromebooks have a "Night Light" feature that can turn the entire screen reddish if you need to do stuff outside of Sky Safari. I think all new Chromebooks should run Android apps. So... another +1 for Sky Safari if you stay with apps.

For visual observing, I still prefer paper. I often give away laminated copies of my three sheet sky charts. They have a little more detail than what fits on most planispheres.

If you want to go really deep, I like the Deep Sky Hunter atlas. It's a serious commitment to print though. I suggest plastic page protectors and a large 3-ring binder.

[Sureshks]

I agree with Don. I have used paper atlases for more than 35 years - Sky Atlas 2000.0 and then the Uranometria V I & II. More recently I have used the S&T Pocket Sky Atlas when I have traveled overseas with my scopes.

But phone apps like Sky Safari provide an ease of use that paper atlases cannot. Phone apps greatly speed up my searches and make it easier to star hop. I can hold my phone right up close to the eyepiece one-handed to locate field stars instead of constantly having to return to the table to look at the paper atlas. I can set the screen to match the entire sky for orientation, or zoom in as needed all the way down to finding Triton around Neptune. I can add/delete objects and fainter stars as needed too, so as to not add congestion to the field. And, as Don mentioned, in Sky Safari I adjust the FOV to match my view thru the eyepiece, or of my DSLR when I am imaging. Also, when imaging with my ASIAir, I use SkySafari as my planetarium software. One click, and the app directs the mount to center on the target.

I still bring my Uranometria along when I go observing. But I find that as I am getting older, my vision is making it harder to see things on the pages, particularly in red light. I have resorted to using a magnifying glass at times. On my phone, I can simply zoom in or make the screen brighter.

Suresh

[setnes]

Some visual observers will chuck phones into the woods while their eyes are dark adapted. Be aware of the crowd you're in.

[Sureshks]

Not in red mode.

[SEmert]

Not in red mode.

Not too sure about that. I've used my iPhone several times in red mode while using the Celestron StarSense Explorer app as a sort of digital setting circles with my Dob. It's still rather bright! Maybe it's OK at brighter sites (Metcalf, ELO), but at darker sites like LLCC people may not appreciate it!

Edit: Well, maybe when using planetarium apps like Sky Safari you can use caution and minimize irritating neighbors - keep the phone down and shielded from others as much as possible. I didn't have that option with the SkySense Explorer app as the phone is mounted to the scope while it is acting as a finder.

[Sureshks]

Hi Steve,

Maybe not all phones can do this... but with mine not only can I put it in red and dim it down to almost nothing, but I can also turn off the white "navigation" buttons. You can hardly see the screen on the lowest setting, and like you said, you can always point it away from people, or keep it in your pocket.

The bigger issue at star parties these days is actually the map readers. People are bringing massively bright red lights that blind everyone in their vicinity. Many of these are head lamps. And to make things worse, very often people forget that their lights are on and they walk around and visit others with these head lamps on... oblivious to how bright they actually are, and how disruptive they are to their neighbors.

(You know who you are! ).

Suresh

[SEmert]

... Many of these are head lamps. ...

Oh, yes! Headlamps are the worst. Most (maybe all?) are non-dimmable, and when someone wearing one looks at you, you've lost your night vision for at least the next 20 minutes.

[DahnGee]

Maybe not all phones can do this... but I can also turn off the white "navigation" buttons.

Turning off the nav buttons seems to be a Samsung feature (at least for now, see below). What's worse is that with my Android 10 phone I could use an app to hide the nav buttons. Google removed the api the app was using in Android 11 so I'm now using tape over the bottom 1/2" of the phone to hide the buttons.

[Dick Jacobson]

Speaking of headlamps, I've recently begun using the Black Diamond "Cosmo" model which is much better than any other that I've used. Its red light is dimmer than most, and is dimmable to a very low level though not quite as dim as the Orion Dual Beam flashlight. It has two buttons, one of which switches between bright white/dim white/red. The other larger button is on/off which stays at the same color selection and brightness. You hold down the on/off button to cycle the brightness up and down in any of the three modes. Very convenient, compact, and well built. See blackdiamondequipment.com.

[tugger]

Speaking of headlamps, I've recently begun using the Black Diamond "Cosmo" model which is much better than any other that I've used. Its red light is dimmer than most, and is dimmable to a very low level though not quite as dim as the Orion Dual Beam flashlight. It has two buttons, one of which switches between bright white/dim white/red. The other larger button is on/off which stays at the same color selection and brightness. You hold down the on/off button to cycle the brightness up and down in any of the three modes. Very convenient, compact, and well built. See blackdiamondequipment.com.

Second this. They are amazing but not that good on dim WHEN LOOKING AT A COMPUTER SCREEN ALL NIGHT.