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Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Looking For Astronomy Software

Stumble it!

Astronomy software is something that I have been looking into lately. If you can't afford a nice telescope, then you can at least explore the deepest reaches of space from your laptop, right? well, as it turns out you can! there are a number of great websites that offer free software that in most cases will run on any computer platform.

Some are better than others of course, and there are some paid for programs that aren't too bad either. The one that is probably the most well known is Stellarium, which is open source GL software that can run on Mac, Windows or Linux. It also has addons for expanding the catalogs and getting more star locations.

The only drawback is that apparently although extremely accurate, it doesn't exactly allow you to travel in space and view destinations. Recently, I found this list of astronomy software programs that covers more information, including further details about Stellarium.

However, even though I combed through a lot of websites on my own, many of the programs were only sub par that I could determine. Only a handful were actually space simulators, which in my opinion if you're going to get astronomy software then it might as well allow you to visit the planets, moons, stars, asteroids, etc.

The honest truth though is that I would probably end up using it to create some super-cheesy space travel clips for movies, just like the opening credits of Star Trek: The Next Generation. However, I was thrilled to find out that parents can go on a journey with their little ones and explore the awesome vastness of the galaxy together!

1 comment:

Unknown said...

Google Sky Map is awesome but it's a Smartphone app. It utilizes your phones' gps and internal compass to give you a full, 360 degree view of the sky. So ya, you can be pointing your phone at the floor and see the constellations on the other side of the planet.