The Night Sky stargazing app is one in every of many stargazing apps common on today’s App Store, however the best stargazing apps are those that find an audience whether or not they’re experienced astronomers or not.
As a relative newcomer to the sector Night Sky captures the wonder of discovery and the sensation of how small we’re on our blue planet nevertheless it also almost entirely removes the obfuscation of the inky sky and plenty of the busywork required.
Night Sky app: Specs
Operating System: iOS, no Android version
Device compatibility: iPad, Mac, and Apple TV (untested)
Tested on: iPhone 13 Pro Max
Price: Free / Paid $5.99 monthly, $39.99 annually
Its predominant appeal is the flexibility to point your device to the heavens (we tested it on an iPhone) to disclose a dizzying array of constellations and galaxies laid out before you. Smart additions, like the flexibility to do the identical indoors with a formidable Augmented Reality (AR) overlay, or set notifications for things like the very best times to search for the ISS, are also welcome.
That is all included within the free version, too, however the premium version is an amazing solution to dig a bit deeper and search a bit further. The service, dubbed Night Sky +, offers a bevy of additional features and removes what appears to be an arbitrary limit on the variety of stars available to watch. That last feature is a shame, but develop iCandi has to make its money in some way, we suppose.
Night Sky app review
Night Sky app: Pricing and Subscription
- $5.99 per 30 days, $39.99 per 12 months
- Many features aren’t essential, albeit impressive
- Some stars only included in Night Sky +
As mentioned above, Night Sky offers a paid subscription service but can also be available free of charge. There is a generous one-month free trial to assist make your mind up, too.
While many apps see their free versions needlessly hamstrung by features being committed to the paid service, generous is the word we would use to explain the bottom offering here, with one caveat.
Without spending a penny, users can open the app and look skyward for data including stars, planets, constellations, and lots more. Even the AR mode, which projects that very same data onto your ceiling, is included.
Most of the additional features are less essential but the massive omission is the complete 1.7 billion star count. Meaning users on the free version won’t get the complete experience, and due to this fact may have gaps of their knowledge if using the app exclusively for educational purposes.
Some features like Sky Tours could be present in the free version though, allowing for curated looks on the cosmos. These tours could be customized by the users and there may be an prolonged library, but again only on the paid version.
Night Sky app: User Interface
- Easy to make use of even for complete novices
- Some AR integration could be finicky
- ‘Plus’ features predominantly separate
The initial setup process for Night Sky is straightforward, because the app calibrates to your location and requests the relevant permissions. The benefit with which it pulls the galaxy to your screen is charming.
Look up and you will see the night sky (the true one), overlaid with an enormous variety of celestial bodies, including constellations with illustrations traced excessive. It’s a bit overwhelming to latest users, nevertheless it’s easy to filter right down to what you are on the lookout for with a handy menu next to the overlay. You may also switch view filters to help with light pollution which can otherwise make it tough to discern what you are looking at.
Portrait and landscape orientations are supported, but you haven’t got to carry your phone up for long periods. That is since the app works in 360 degrees, so pointing downward will show you alternative constellations that may be visible on the opposite side of the planet. That is handy for observers that wish to see what has just dipped below the horizon or will appear later within the night.
One tap on a subject will center it within the frame, and clicking the ‘i’ icon alongside will give a lengthy description of it. Take a look at the Giraffe constellation, Camelopardalis, below.
One in all our favourite parts of Night Sky is the way it lays out its features in a tab at the underside of the screen. Meaning it is simple to see where your local planetarium is or jump right into a saved Sky Tag (Night Sky’s way of tracking a ‘favorite’ item), while premium Night Sky + features are somewhat siloed.
It’s a pleasant solution to ensure you mostly know what you could have available and keep tabs on what it’s possible you’ll be missing out on without convoluted app descriptions.
While much of Night Sky is built on reliable Augmented Reality (AR) functionality, some parts work a bit higher than others. It’s likely that it will get well over time, nevertheless it naturally suffers from objects clipping in if you ask it to do more complex things corresponding to AR Planetary Portals.
Night Sky app: Key Features
- Clear display with loads of view options
- AR Planetary Portals are a unbelievable idea
- Tours are an amazing solution to learn
So what about those AR functions? Except for the clear and easy-to-use interface, there’s rather a lot to love in regards to the way Night Sky uses your device cameras to extend immersion.
It does this in a number of ways, aside from the predominant overlay view of the sky. One other is by mapping onto your ceiling, which is admittedly more ideal in larger, squarer rooms than our sample here suggests.
We also love the AR Grand Orrery, which overlays a full solar system map onto the surface of your selecting. It could actually remain static, and you possibly can interact with it, but nothing quite shows you the majesty of the celebrities like setting it to 1000x speed and watching planets rotate, stars move and the cosmos swirl. Though you’ll have to pay for Night Sky + for that.
Perhaps essentially the most novel use of AR in Night Sky, is what the app calls AR Planetary Portals. Again, it is a ‘premium’ feature, nevertheless it’s one which’s value trying out with the free trial.
AR Planetary Portals opens the viewfinder and prompts users to tap and choose a planet or moon inside our solar system. Doing so will allow you to ‘step through’ that portal to view constellation and astronomy data from a brand new perspective.
It’s an amazing idea and while it is not one which works flawlessly (the portal can open anywhere but you will ideally want loads of space to ‘step through’), it’s an amazing way of adding a brand new immersive layer.
The app can even recommend the very best times to stargaze in your location and suggest if you’ll see things just like the ISS fly over.
Night Sky’s ‘Tours’ offer guided views of famous constellations and celestial bodies based on specific selections or your location. You’ll be able to pause them at any time with Night Sky’s ‘editors’ offering curated options for star types, moons and the rest you possibly can consider.
It’s possible to record your individual, although we did run into a wierd bug where a static image was stuck over the tour interface until we closed the app and began it up again.
Among the best features is the inclusion of ‘Connected Stargazing’ sessions, allowing you to share the night sky with a friend or member of the family in real-time.
Night Sky app: Astrophotography Features
- Some User Interface quirks
- Free for all users
- Integrated into iOS camera roll
Astrophotography is included for all users in Night Sky, and it helps you to attach your individual pictures and notes to anything you see through a Sky Tag (you simply get a pair though, then you definately’ll must upgrade).
The Astrophotography feature set is competent enough, with focus, noise reduction, and ISO adjustment included however the interface is kind of cluttered. All the buttons line the underside of the screen, which might make it easy to tap the improper one.
On the positive side, you possibly can ensure settings auto-adjust to your subject but there’s also an option for manually tweaking this. It’s an amazing solution to make the feature worthwhile for each casual and more experienced users.
It is a solid option, but naturally, your mileage will vary depending in your phone. We tested on an iPhone 13 Pro Max and located it to be about as capable as using the stock camera, but without the added need for any astrophotography know-how.
Should I purchase/download the Night Sky app?
When you’re a newcomer trying to get a greater idea of our place within the galaxy, Night Sky is an amazing selection. It’s an incredibly easy-to-use app that has a complete host of features, and while keeping a few of the information behind a paywall is a bit disappointing, it does at the very least offer loads of added value in your money with smart AR features just like the Grand Orrery and Planetary Portals. Its free version, we have found, is more generous than most so latest users should make the most of that, provided they’re on an Apple device.
If Night Sky app is not for you
There are many stargazing apps. When you’re on the lookout for an option that connects to your telescope, Stellarium Plus is likely to be value a glance. Once we reviewed Stellarium Plus we found it had a comprehensive database and simply connected to most telescopes to boost their skywatching experience.
Chances are you’ll also want to ascertain out SkySafari 6 Pro, which offers audio tours and pronunciation guides but these unique additional features also come at quite a value, so it could only interest serious hobbyists and intermediate observers.
Want to try the highest stargazing apps? Take a look at our guide to the Best stargazing apps where we have tested, reviewed and rated the very best quality stargazing apps around.
