Astronomy App Choice?

[NoBite]

I am considering getting an astronomy app and it's down to two, both of which have good reviews in the App Store. I would appreciate comments on either app.

1) SkyView

2) Star Walk

Thanks!


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[MattIM]

I am considering getting an astronomy app and it's down to two, both of which have good reviews in the App Store. I would appreciate comments on either app.

1) SkyView

2) Star Walk

Thanks!

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Hello NoBite. I do not have the app SkyView. As you wrote, it is a highly rated app. I do have the Star Walk app. I use it for whenever I find myself far from the city lights and the sky is super clear. It is a remarkable app. Here is a screen shot of one of its numerous pages. I have a 3G iPad which has satellite and a gyroscope. With this app, I can take my iPad and easily identify what I see.

 

[NoBite]

Okay. Is this as simple as holding the iPad up to the sky and the app orients with what you are seeing? Does it use the camera to figure out what you are looking at or do you input some logistics?


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[MattIM]

Okay. Is this as simple as holding the iPad up to the sky and the app orients with what you are seeing? Does it use the camera to figure out what you are looking at or do you input some logistics?

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You point in the direction you are looking. It is practically three dimensional. It does not use the camera. 3G has a compass so it orients itself.

 

[NoBite]

Wow. Couldn't be simpler! Thanks for your comments. Star Walk is the app I was leaning toward. We live out in the country, so not a lot of ambient light.


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[iJamesH]

Wow cool I wonder if down the road we'll be able to take pictures of Jupiters moons with the iPad lol.

 

[LannyC]

I grabbed GoSkyWatch Planetarium when it was free for a day. It uses any iPad's gyro and compass, along with Location Services, to display what you're looking at, no 3G or wifi required. It's the only astronomy app I've kept, out of half a dozen tried. One reason is its minimum-magnitude slider, which allows matching the app to the sky you actually see, very helpful if you're not in the desert or on top a mountain! It also has a red 'night vision' mode, and larger type for labels than most of the others. It's just easier to use IMHO.

I may find a better one some day, but for now this is my favorite.

milliHelen: amount of beauty required to launch one ship.

 

[NoBite]

Thanks, Lanny! I will check that out.


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[Fid]

I, too, use Star Walk on my iPhone and iPad 1. It doesn't need to connect to a network to run. I have used it to check for the visibility of satellites and which one they are, then I go outside a the appropriate time for the viewing. I have done this a couple months in advance to check for interesting sightings during future camping trips.
I especially like the night viewing mode where everything is rendered in red on black so it doesn't hurt your night vision.

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[Spugnut]

I use Star Walk. on a iPad2 Wi Fi Only. The app is great in my opinion and I like the zoom function as well as that additional info on celestyail bodies including satelites. I ditched GoSkywatch as I did not enjoy it. Clould be personal preferance.

 

[scifan57]

I am considering getting an astronomy app and it's down to two, both of which have good reviews in the App Store. I would appreciate comments on either app.

1) SkyView

2) Star Walk

Thanks!

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

I have those two as well as Solar Walk, which I find to be an excellent app.

 

[scifan57]

You point in the direction you are looking. It is practically three dimensional. It does not use the camera. 3G has a compass so it orients itself.

It does use the camera. You line up the camera image with the app image and it synchronizes them.

 

[kdryan]

SkySafari...

 

[MattIM]

It does use the camera. You line up the camera image with the app image and it synchronizes them.

Sorry, scifan57, not disputing you but I have Star Walk on my iPad original. I do not have a camera on this iPad.

 

[scifan57]

Sorry, scifan57, not disputing you but I have Star Walk on my iPad original. I do not have a camera on this iPad.

Here's are some screenshots from the Star Walk app from my iPad 3. In the first photo i'm looking to the west. In the second image, i'm looking to the south, well below the horizon.





As you can see, the app shows it's images superimposed on the camera image. This takes place in whatever direction you aim the iPad,if your iPad has a camera. With the iPad 1 that you have, this feature is disabled.