radsdad
super member
Reged: 11/05/06
Posts: 116
Loc: Southern California
|
|
I just got a new iPhone and am wondering which apps have been found to be the most useful for astronomy. I've checked the app store, and see there's quite a bit available. Which star chart app is best? Any other recommendations for a new iPhone user that I may not have thought of? Thanks!
--------------------
Meade ETX-125AT UHTC and ETX-60AT
Zhumell 20x80 Supergiant Binoculars
|
cbwerner
sage
Reged: 08/27/05
Posts: 499
Loc: Richmond, VA
|
|
I've got Astromo and Starmap that I currently use. I've tried others, but those are the ones I liked the best when I made the rounds as it were. The tough thing is how quickly new apps seem to come out, or old ones get updated, but between those two I don't feel any need to go back and reexamine things.
--------------------
Chris Werner
|
Nick Cook
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 01/28/06
Posts: 1239
Loc: Somerset, England
|
|
I really enjoy using Star Walk, but have to admit I haven't looked at any other apps yet.
--------------------
Meade 14" RCX + Astro Physics 0.75 Reducer (27TVPH)
Meade 5000 ED80 APO (Guider/widefield)+ WO 0.8 Reducer
William Optics Zenithstar 66 Petzal
SBig STL11000M + AO-L + 3" Pyxis Rotator + 3" PDF Focuser 
Canon 20Da + IDAS Filter
Pulsar 9ft Dome
www.nick-cook.net
www.cavebear.co.uk
|
DanSchroeder
newbie
Reged: 01/21/09
Posts: 2
|
|
There are now seven serious star-charting apps for iPhone and iPod Touch. All have their strengths and weaknesses, so the best choice depends on your needs. To help reduce the confusion, I've written a detailed comparative review:
http://physics.weber.edu/schroeder/iPhoneStarApps/
(The review of Distant Suns is already out of date since a new update was released last week. I'm working on a revision to reflect that update, and I'll do my best to keep the review as up to date as I can.)
|
bicparker
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 02/07/05
Posts: 1706
Loc: Plano, TX
|
|
My biggest complaint about all of them is the sparse number deep space objects (which has kept me from buying any of them). Uranus has the most, with 500, which is still a disappointingly small number (especially if you are observing in southern constellations).
I don't really expect to use it in the field, but, instead, have it as an alternative reference when I don't have my computer.
I still think they have a way to go in this area. I would really like to see SB and Imaginova get a couple of apps in the Store (and no, the SN web app doesn't count).
Dan, that was considerate of you to put together that comparative review. It is the best and most informative collection of information on these iPhone applications that I have seen (including the information from the vendor's own literature).
--------------------
Bic Parker
17.5" f/5 dob
10" f/10 SCT
5" f/8 refractor
80mm f/6 refractor
66mm f/6 refractor
Plus a few others out of the rotation
|
DanSchroeder
newbie
Reged: 01/21/09
Posts: 2
|
|
Good point about the relatively small number of deep sky objects. There's certainly no intrinsic reason why a mobile app can't include a larger database of DSO's. The iPhone (or iPod Touch) has plenty of memory and graphics power, and it shouldn't affect ease of use for beginners as long as there's an option to hide the fainter DSO's.
Fortunately, the author of Starmap is working on an enhanced version called Starmap Pro, promised for release this March. According to the author, Starmap Pro will incorporate the full NGC and IC. It'll be a separate app (with a separate price), not an upgrade of Starmap itself.
Most of the other vendors seem to be working on upgrades, but I'm not aware of any plans that are as ambitious as Starmap Pro. Let's hope that the DSO lists in Distant Suns, GoSkyWatch, iStellar, and Star Walk at least get expanded to include some southern objects. And perhaps there's something else in the pipeline that'll take us all by surprise.
|
Nick Cook
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 01/28/06
Posts: 1239
Loc: Somerset, England
|
|
Nice one Dan – excellent work. It will be interesting to see how these apps develop, but I think they already are serious contenders to devices like Meade's MySky.
--------------------
Meade 14" RCX + Astro Physics 0.75 Reducer (27TVPH)
Meade 5000 ED80 APO (Guider/widefield)+ WO 0.8 Reducer
William Optics Zenithstar 66 Petzal
SBig STL11000M + AO-L + 3" Pyxis Rotator + 3" PDF Focuser
Canon 20Da + IDAS Filter
Pulsar 9ft Dome
www.nick-cook.net
www.cavebear.co.uk
|
FoxTrot
sage
Reged: 06/01/06
Posts: 240
Loc: Melbourne, Australia
|
|
Thanks guys for this topic! Exactly what I was looking for, and what has got me stoked in anticipation is StarMap Pro, & that telescope control might be added sometime in 2009! It's stuff like this makes me love Apple and talented software developers so much. I had been thinking about a Netbook PC, but it looks as though an iPhone app just might do the job for me. Awesome! Fox
--------------------
TV Genesis (non-sdf)
TV NP127is
Clave 6, Pentax XW 7, Vixen LVW 13, Panoptic 27
2x TeleXtender, 2.5x Powermate
LXD75 AutoStar
|
Doug D.
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 08/23/05
Posts: 1859
Loc: Virginia
|
|
Dan,
Thanks a million for the link and for all your hard work. I've only downloaded Star Walk thus far and that was mostly just for fun - it truly is a gorgeous app but not that useful from a practical stand point.
I wish that there was something similar to "Planetarium" that I've used on my Palm Tungsten T3 for years - it was great with my Dob and analog setting circles I installed. I thought it was quite feature rich with a great locator interface. Are you familiar with this program? I'm curious to hear your thoughts.
Doug
--------------------
Hooville
AP 105EDF f/6 Traveler; AP 140 EDF StarFire f/7.5; TV 76 f/6.3 with Solarscope SF70 filter; Solarscope Solarview 50; Coronado CaK 70; Orion XT-10; Baader Mk V & ZAO II's; Half-Hitch Mk II; Astrotrac TT320X, pier & wedge; AP Mach1GTO; PGR Flea 2
|
Thomas Pfleger
Vendor - Eye&Telescope Software
Reged: 04/25/06
Posts: 179
Loc: Germany
|
|
Quote:
I wish that there was something similar to "Planetarium" that I've used on my Palm Tungsten T3 for years - it was great with my Dob and analog setting circles I installed. I thought it was quite feature rich with a great locator interface. Are you familiar with this program? I'm curious to hear your thoughts.
Hi Doug,
I like Planetarium very much! My Palm is outdated, slow and not as fancy as an iPhone, but it runs very reliable, does not need to be charged almost every day and I can run "Astromist", too.
Recently I exchanged some thoughts on iPhone development with Cyrille Thieullet, the author of "Astromist". In his view, the most important obstacle with the iPhone is that you cannot use a pencil to select small things on the screen. All iPhone Apps I have seen yet (very few) come with BIG buttons and controls. This is sensible if you want to do something while riding on a crowded train or are otherwise disturbed when operating. But if you have only big GUI elements, how do you fine control a star chart? Does the iPhone bring more problems than advantages as an astro app platform? The navigation possibilities are nice, but that's not so important because a star chart looks rather correct even if you know your site only with a precision of 50 kilometers.
Tom
|
Doug D.
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 08/23/05
Posts: 1859
Loc: Virginia
|
|
Good point Tom. I guess the thinking with the iPhone GUI is that it is very easy to expand the size of an area with a simple 2 finger spread. Once magnified it is easier to select the smaller object.
Planetarium with its Alt/Az screen would be fine for the iPhone GUI I think - less so of course for the sky chart. In any event, I must confess to being wholly addicted to the iPhone for its interface and for the apps - after a couple months with the G3 version I'm smitten and it goes with me everywhere but the shower! Granted, it may not be best suited for serious astro use.
--------------------
Hooville
AP 105EDF f/6 Traveler; AP 140 EDF StarFire f/7.5; TV 76 f/6.3 with Solarscope SF70 filter; Solarscope Solarview 50; Coronado CaK 70; Orion XT-10; Baader Mk V & ZAO II's; Half-Hitch Mk II; Astrotrac TT320X, pier & wedge; AP Mach1GTO; PGR Flea 2
|
Astraforce Paul
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 04/05/05
Posts: 1879
|
|
"after a couple months with the G3 version I'm smitten and it goes with me everywhere but the shower! Granted, it may not be best suited for serious astro use." Or for taking into the shower! :-)
We should update this thread! What are people using these days?
I have several astro apps on my iPod Touch. Here are just a few of the highlights, especially focused on the freebies!
I particularly enjoy APOD Viewer Lite for its daily fix of great astro pictures and info. It works better than the alternatives I've tried.
iCSC for the clear sky clock is fine, but it's almost easier, faster, and more useful to save a bookmark on the Home screen to the web site--that launches Safari and you can see the entire night at a glance rather than having to scroll.
iEphemeris Lite is a great way of quickly seeing the Moon's phases and its upcoming phases.
Distant Suns Lite is a simple, but useful app. Alas, it's limited to the current time and always comes up facing North, but its What's Up feature showing you the planets in the sky is something the other astro apps should emulate. Also, Mike Smithwick very kindly turned on DSOs in the lite version and cleverly shows them as colored coded dots that really stand out well against the black sky. Seeing the Virgo galaxy cluster as a collection of yellow fireflies is tres cool! Here, again, the other astro apps could learn something.
StarMap Pro and Sky Voyager occupy special places as full-blown, rich planetaria.
SV has some impressive display options, including magnitude controls of DSOs vs. stars (though I still haven't figured out how it works vs. fov), simple toolbar interface that's easy to use, and wonderful descriptions of DSOs (wish that could be the default info screen). The descriptions almost make you feel as if Sue French or Walter Scott Houston were with you!
SMP has fantastic customization, including great control over the display, quick Telrad overlay, has nifty pop-up mini-pics of many DSOs, and can use the internet for more info (although all I've found that way is more coordinate info).
There are other threads around here on their specific features and using them in the field.
I'm sure there will be many SMP vs. SV threads and comparative comments & reviews on the net in the coming month; in the meantime, let's just say that one or the other, or both, are well worth having on your i-device!
So, what astro apps are *you* using on your i-device these days?
|
peter k
super member
Reged: 02/03/07
Posts: 172
|
|
Quote:
My biggest complaint about all of them is the sparse number deep space objects (which has kept me from buying any of them). Uranus has the most, with 500, which is still a disappointingly small number (especially if you are observing in southern constellations).
Bic, you were correct when you posted. Uranus was the winner six months ago, with 500 DSOs. But as Dan's excellent roundup (thanks, Dan) indicates, Starmap Pro shows 13,200 of them, and Skyvoyager, omitted from Dan's roundup, shows 31,800.
Edited by peter k (07/25/09 01:08 PM)
|
imjeffp
Aluminum Falcon
Reged: 09/30/03
Posts: 4902
Loc: Cedar Park, Texas
|
|
Add IridiumFlares to the list. Uses location from GPS--very nice.
--------------------
|
Brian Gibson
member
Reged: 10/17/07
Posts: 49
Loc: Brampton, Ontario
|
|
Quote:
iCSC for the clear sky clock is fine, but it's almost easier, faster, and more useful to save a bookmark on the Home screen to the web site--that launches Safari and you can see the entire night at a glance rather than having to scroll.
Paul,
You might like to try my free Clear Sky Chart web app for the iPhone (SkyCharts). It is a Safari web app and allows you to monitor three locations. Read my review for more details and screen shots. http://www.cloudynights.com/item.php?item_id=1994
Brian Gibson
|
Astraforce Paul
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 04/05/05
Posts: 1879
|
|
Brian, looks impressive!
I read over the page and even went the web site, but I tried to add a Clear Clock site, it sent me to Google maps. Now, I was trying this in Safari on a MacBook Pro, but...
are there simple 1, 2, 3 steps you could post here on what to do on the i-device?
I assume it's to launch Safari and then go to a particular URL...
Oh, wait. I just figured out one thing, I'm supposed to click the info button not the pin! I think that part of the directions hadn't loaded yet!
In case anyone is interested in pursuing this, here's the URL for SkyCharts
http://www.anythingbinary.com/iphone/csc/
For anyone who has different observing sites, especially that require lots of travel, I can see the convenience of this as it allows you to store 3 clear sky clocks.
|
Brian Gibson
member
Reged: 10/17/07
Posts: 49
Loc: Brampton, Ontario
|
|
Paul,
The simplest way to install the app is to go to my web site home page www.anythingbinary.com using mobile Safari on the iPhone or iPod Touch and tap the large image of the SkyCharts icon (which points to the URL you mentioned above). I suggest reading my article on CloudyNights to get an overview on the apps features. As you discovered the red push-pin icons bring up Google Maps to show where a particular Clear Sky Chart site is located. I used the standard Apple utility web app template so the small information icon in the bottom right corner flips the screen to the setup page. You will also find some useful tips at this thread on the Discussion of CN Articles and Reports Forum.
http://www.cloudynights.com/ubbthreads/showflat.php/Cat/0/Number/3180013/page/0/view/collapsed/sb/5/o/all/fpart/1
Hope this helps,
Brian
|
Astraforce Paul
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 04/05/05
Posts: 1879
|
|
Brian, thanks much for the follow up! That's a big help and will also help others who come across this in the future!
|
jupiterzkool
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 05/08/06
Posts: 1602
Loc: Pasadena, CA
|
|
I love the Pocket Universe app. I makes use of the GPS and compass control to orient the sky. It also has convenient information on objects that are visible. It doesn't cost much either.
--------------------
Scott G. Edgington, Planetary Scientist
Cassini-Huygens: Mission to Saturn & Titan
Yes, Asia, John Wetton Fan
|
ebusinesstutor
sage
Reged: 07/01/09
Posts: 461
Loc: Nanaimo, BC, Canada
|
|
{quote]
You might like to try my free Clear Sky Chart web app for the iPhone (SkyCharts). It is a Safari web app and allows you to monitor three locations. Read my review for more details and screen shots. http://www.cloudynights.com/item.php?item_id=1994
Brian Gibson
Brian, this works excellent! Nice to always have with me on my iPhone so I can see if I will be sleeping or stargazing tonight.
--------------------
Garland Coulson
Orion XT8i Dob & Celestron 80 ED on a Vixen Porta Mount Mini
Baader Hyperion 8-24mm Click Zoom & Siebert Observatory 36mm
Siebert Black Knight Binoviewers
SkyWatcher Observing Chair
Celestron Skymaster 15x70mm binos
|
Previous
Index
Next
Threaded
Edit
Reply
Quote
[Re: 