Identify Constellations - Revision history

Labmaster at 21:14, 24 August 2022

2022-08-24T21:14:32Z

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	For your laptop, home computer, cell phone, or tablet there are many choices.		For your laptop, home computer, cell phone, or tablet there are many choices.

	[http://www.stellarium.org/ Beautiful Stellarium is free planetarium software for Windows, Mac, or Linux operating systems]. It is also available as a [https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.noctuasoftware.stellarium&hl=en paid application for Android handheld devices].		[http://www.stellarium.org/ Beautiful Stellarium is free planetarium software for Windows, Mac, or Linux operating systems] and online in a browser. It is also available as a [https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.noctuasoftware.stellarium&hl=en paid application for Android handheld devices].

	The free [https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.google.android.stardroid Google Sky Map for Android] works well, and makes use of Android device's navigation to interact with your real sky.		The free [https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.google.android.stardroid Google Sky Map for Android] works well, and makes use of Android device's navigation to interact with your real sky.

WikiSysop at 04:22, 12 August 2017

2017-08-12T04:22:13Z

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	[http://prancer.physics.louisville.edu/classes/108/star_charts/~~SFAStarChartsAll~~.pdf Free star chart for anywhere at any time]		[http://prancer.physics.louisville.edu/classes/108/star_charts/SFAStarChartsPro.pdf Free star chart for anywhere at any time]

	[http://www.skymaps.com/ Sky maps by the month]		[http://www.skymaps.com/ Sky maps by the month]

WikiSysop at 04:16, 12 August 2017

2017-08-12T04:16:15Z

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	[http://www.skymaps.com/ Sky maps by the month]		[http://www.skymaps.com/ Sky maps by the month]

	[~~http~~://~~www.heavens~~-~~above~~.~~com~~/ ~~Tonight~~'s sky ~~including artficial satellites~~]		[https://in-the-sky.org/ What's in the sky tonight?]

	[http://www.skyandtelescope.com/observing/ataglance Weekly guide and news]		[http://www.heavens-above.com/ Tonight's sky including artificial satellites]

			[http://www.skyandtelescope.com/observing/ataglance Weekly sky guide and news]

	For your laptop, home computer, cell phone, or tablet there are many choices.		For your laptop, home computer, cell phone, or tablet there are many choices.

WikiSysop: /* Looking from the South */

2013-09-02T20:35:07Z

Looking from the South

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	``11. What is the magnitude of Canopus? Which is brighter, Sirius or Canopus? (Hint: Right click in Stellarium to see the more about the object. The larger the magnitude, the fainter the star. Your unaided eye can see 6th magnitude.)''		''11. What is the magnitude of Canopus? Which is brighter, Sirius or Canopus? (Hint: Right click in Stellarium to see the more about the object. The larger the magnitude, the fainter the star. Your unaided eye can see 6th magnitude.)''


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	*There are two fuzzy clouds in the center of the field of view now. These are the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Large_Magellanic_Cloud Large] and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Small_Magellanic_Cloud Small] Magellanic Clouds, companion galaxies to our own Milky Way. If you need help in identifying them, the search term "SMC" in Stellarium will center the Small Magellanic Cloud.		*There are two fuzzy clouds in the center of the field of view now. These are the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Large_Magellanic_Cloud Large] and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Small_Magellanic_Cloud Small] Magellanic Clouds, companion galaxies to our own Milky Way. If you need help in identifying them, the search term "SMC" in Stellarium will center the Small Magellanic Cloud.

	``12. What constellation is the SMC in?''		''12. What constellation is the SMC in?''


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	[http://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/47_Tucanae Wikipedia], and you can also Google the term and find out more.		[http://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/47_Tucanae Wikipedia], and you can also Google the term and find out more.

	``13. Which is farther away from us, the cluster 47 Tuc or the small SMC galaxy? (Hint: Search the web for information about both of these.)''		''13. Which is farther away from us, the cluster 47 Tuc or the small SMC galaxy? (Hint: Search the web for information about both of these.)''


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	``14. Find the names of two bright stars in Crux. ''		''14. Find the names of two bright stars in Crux. ''


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	''15. What is the other name for this star? How far is it from the Sun?''		''15. What is the other name for this star? How far is it from the Sun?''



	== Constellations seen from the Northern Hemisphere by Season ==		== Constellations seen from the Northern Hemisphere by Season ==

WikiSysop at 20:16, 2 September 2013

2013-09-02T20:16:18Z

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WikiSysop at 20:14, 2 September 2013

2013-09-02T20:14:26Z

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WikiSysop: /* Finding Stars and Constellations */

2013-09-02T18:23:43Z

Finding Stars and Constellations

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WikiSysop at 18:22, 2 September 2013

2013-09-02T18:22:06Z

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WikiSysop at 18:14, 2 September 2013

2013-09-02T18:14:26Z

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	This lab will use Stellarium to help you learn to identify some of the prominent constellations and bright stars. If you have a Planisphere or one of the other applications on your handheld device or laptop, use it too.		This lab will use Stellarium to help you learn to identify some of the prominent constellations and bright stars. If you have a Planisphere or one of the other applications on your handheld device or laptop, use it too.

			== Getting Started ==

			First, there are a few things you need to know about using Stellarium. You might look at the Stellarium [http://www.stellarium.org/wiki/index.php/Interface_Guide#Tour Tour] on their website for an overview and reference to these options:


			'''''Screen mode'''''

			Stellarium starts in full screen mode and will cover everything. You can change this by pressing the F11 key to fit it into a smaller window.



			'''''Menu bars'''''

			There are two bars of menus, one at the bottom of the screen, and one on the left. They are hidden until you run the mouse down to the bottom or over to the left.



			'''''Quitting'''''

			When you or done, you can use the bottom menu bar to exit by selecting the off button.



			'''''Setting your location'''''

			By default you will be in Paris, France. If you press F6 the location menu will pop up and you can select your city or put in longitude and latitude. Once you have done this and saved the configuration, Stellarium will come up at your chosen site. The location menu is also in the left menubar under the compass icon at the top left. When you have selected your location the menu will show a map of Earth with an arrow pointing to your site.



			'''''Setting the time'''''

			Stellarium starts with the sky over your site at this very moment. The date and time will show at the lower right, based on the computer's clock. This time is the local time at your computer. If you change your location, the time shown will still be the time at your computer, not the time at the new site. For example, if you are in Baltimore, Maryland and you set up Stellarium for that site, then the computer is in the Eastern U.S. time zone. When you run Stellarium at 3 PM it will show the afternoon daytime sky with the Sun. Should you use the location menu to change to Rome, Italy, the sky will go dark because it's nighttime there. The clock will still show 3 PM because that's the time where you are. You can change the date and time in two ways. One is with the time menu selected from the left menu bar Clock icon. The other is with the two arrow icons at the right of the bottom menu bar. These speed forward-reverse, real time rate, and now buttons let you speed up the daily motions of the sky, and then slow them down again when you have the events in view you want to see.



			'''''Looking around'''''

			Change the direction you are looking by holding down the left mouse button and dragging your direction of view, or by using the updown leftright arrow keys on the keyboard.



			'''''Identifying planets, stars, and constellations'''''

			The lower menu offers options to add labels. By default the planets will be named, and you can turn this off using the Planets labels icon that looks like Saturn. You can outline the bright stars of the constellations, add constellation names, and even overlay mythological figures to help you see the patterns by clicking on the various buttons in this menu. There are two celestial grids offered too that show the equatorial celestial coordinates of stars (right ascension and declination), and the local sky coordinates (altitude and azimuth). A menu on the left for



			'''''Sky and viewing options'''''

			allows you to change the constellations, names and associated cultural folklore. Click that option, select



			'''''Starlore and Western'''''

			to see the the typical sky labels of American and European culture, or change to one of the others offered to see the diversity of named patterns in the sky. The same menu under



			'''''Markings '''''

			lets you select whether you would also like to see the constellation boundaries as red dotted lines. Sometimes it's helpful to see these in order to identify the constellation in which a particular object is located.



			'''''Identifying an object'''''

			Move the mouse over the object and click with the left button to have its identification displayed. Click with the right button to make this go away. Click with the center button (press down on the
			mouse wheel) to have the display center on this object after you have selected it.



			'''''Zooming in and out '''''


			The Page Up and Page Down
			keys on the keyboard zoom in and out of the sky. You can move around the zoomed in sky with the arrow keys or dragging with the left mouse button. The status display at the bottom of the view tells you the field of view



			'''''FOV'''''


			in degrees among other things. For some objects there is a photo that appears when the sky view is zoomed in close. When an object is selected and centered in the view, after zooming in the view will stay centered on it even as the day progresses. Think of it as a telescope that is pointing at your target, and tracking the target as the Earth rotates.



			'''''Finding Planets'''''

			The Moon and planets will be labeled by default. You can turn these names off with the P or by clicking on the Planet icon on the lower menu bar. If you select a planet with a left mouse click, the sky view will lockto that planet and you can follow it during the night. Planets with satellites like Jupiter will show the satellites as they really would appear in a telescope, and in motion in their orbits around the planet.

			You can find a planet or other objects by using the



			'''''Search window'''''

			The left menu has a Magnifying glass icon that brings up this option. So does F3.

WikiSysop: /* Constellations seen from the Southern Hemisphere by Season */

2013-09-02T18:10:23Z

Constellations seen from the Southern Hemisphere by Season

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	*Aquila (Altair)		*Aquila (Altair)
	*Sagittarius		*Pavo (Peacock)
			*Sagittarius (Center of Milky Way)
	*Scorpius (Antares)		*Scorpius (Antares)