Top Apps for Star Gazing

Star Walk is a star gazing app like no other. The application feels very natural on the iPhone platform and performs flawlessly. So what can you do with the app? A bunch of things like learning constellations, stars, planets and more. So you think it's just another "google earthish" app! No, Star Walk adds in great features like location awareness, which makes it an awesome stargazing app. On iPhone 3G and later models using the location feature Star Walk can give a clearly labelled night sky letting you easily identify what you're looking at. The app also makes use of the compass feature, if your model of the iPhone supports it, and brings up an exact night sky of your current location. Looking up constellations is just a matter of tapping on the star you want and voilà! Your constellation outline comes up on your iPhone. A feature which colors your whole screen dim red so as to preserve your night vision to gaze at the sky is just a wonderful finishing touch to an app that is a must have for all astro gazers. Selected as one of the best apps of 2009 by Apple, Star Walk is definitely worth the $2.99 it sells for. If you are searching for the best astronomy app for the iPhone, Star Walk may just be the one! Try the complete review of the Star Walk app at Macworld.

There can never be too many stargazing apps and Pocket Universe is a worthy competitor to Star Walk. Pocket Universe works in a very similar manner to Star Walk, once you launch the app the geolocation information is collected and with the iPhone's GPS and compass features the app orients the night sky on your iPhone with all the necessary labels. You can track through the night sky virtually on your iPhone, locate stars and constellations, and obtain information about planetary bodies. The "time travel mode" on the app is pretty cool, it allows you to look at how the night sky will appear on a future date. Pocket Universe also keeps its users informed of any expected meteor showers, lunar phases and similar celestial events so that you can get a first hand view on a telescope at home or at an observatory.The Tonight's Sky report is a great feature which keeps the app's users informed on all the events that will occur on any given day like, planetary visibility, moonphase and several other snippets of useful information. Pocket Universe also incorporates the "night vision mode" (meaning a reddish dimmed display to keep your eyes ready to focus on the night sky). A well thought out and designed app, Pocket Universe is a wonderful alternative to Star Walk and should increase your astronomy skill set considerably.