6 Best Free Online Star Map Websites
Here is a list of best free online star map websites. A Star Map is a graphical representation of celestial bodies as they appear in the night sky. Star maps allow users to analyze space and celestial bodies from a specific location on Earth at a given time. Most star maps highlight celestial objects like Stars, Planets, and Star Constellations. Users can easily interact with star maps to change location, orientation, and depth values. Star maps are used for multiple purposes such as Identifying Celestial Objects, Celestial navigation, and Air Navigation. If you also want to observe and locate various celestial bodies over a graphical or virtual night sky, then check out these online star map websites.
Through these websites, users can easily interact with various celestial objects and gather information like name, magnitude, altitude, distance, visibility, etc. In some star maps, users can depict the formation of celestial bodies for a specific date and time. Users can also choose a specific observation point on Earth to observe star constellations and other bodies. Celestial Art, Azimuthal Grid, and Equatorial Grid can also be added to the star map in some star maps. A search tool is also offered by these websites that allows users to locate any celestial body on the star map using their names. There are many handy features that users can find on these star map websites. Go through the list to learn more about them.
My Favorite Online Star Map Website:
stellarium-web.org is my favorite website as it offers a fully interactive star map that helps users observe planets, moons, star constellations, and other celestial objects. Plus, it can show a star map observable from a specific location and time.
You can also check out lists of best free Online Traceroute Test, Online Escape Velocity Calculator, and Online Light Pollution Map websites.
Comparison Table:
Features/Website Names | Shows all important celestial objects | Lets users choose any location on earth for observation | Can show starmap of any date and time |
---|---|---|---|
stellarium-web.org | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
theskylive.com | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
in-the-sky.org | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
stelevision.com | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
skymaponline.net | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
science.nasa.gov | ✓ | x | x |
stellarium-web.org
stellarium-web.org is a free online star map website. Through this website, users can explore the star systems and view the details of various celestial objects like planets, satellites, moons, and stars. It can also be used to find out the planets and star systems that users can view from their location on Earth. Users can also add Equatorial and Azimuth Grid on the start map. It even lets users interact and analyze multiple celestial objects. Now, check out the main features of this star map website.
Main Features:
- Sky Charts: It shows a detailed map of the entire celestial sphere. It also includes constellations, stars, planets, and other celestial objects.
- Starmap Observation and Time: Users can manually specify the location on Earth from where they want to observe the night sky. It also lets users select a date in the past or future to view the stars and planet arrangement on that particular date.
- Deep Sky Objects: It adds multiple known deep sky objects to the star map like Pleiades Star Cluster, Andromeda Galaxy, Orion Nebula, etc.
- Azimuth and Equatorial Grids: It adds Azimuth and Equatorial lines to the sky chart.
- Constellation Art: It adds constellation art over various atar constellations like Aires, Cetus, Pisces, etc.
- Planets Tonight: It shows the names of planes that users can view during nighttime. Plus, the visibility and disappearing timing of each planet is also provided.
- Interact and Analyze: Users can zoom in on various planets and satellites to view their observable look and associated details like magnitude, distance radius, phase, visibility, etc.
- Search: Use it to search and find the location of a celestial body over the star map.
- Satellite Tracking: It shows the current location, direction, and path of various satellites like Starlink, OneWeb, etc.
Final Thoughts:
It is one of the best free online star map websites that helps users find, observe, and analyze constellations, star systems, planets, and satellites.
Pros | Cons |
---|---|
Shows multiple star constellations and constellation art | |
Shows live satellite positions and path | |
Highlights multiple deep sky objects | |
Users can closely observe planets and moons |
theskylive.com
theskylive.com is another free sky map website. This website offers a detailed sky map showing Planets, Galaxies, Constellations, Messier Objects, Meteor Showers, and Constellations. Plus, it lets users watch the night sky on a specific date. It also shows the details associated with selected planets, stars, and constellations. Now, check out its main features.
Main Features:
- Planispheres: It allows users to view the sky map of a specific date and time.
- View ALL or Certain Sky Map Features: Users can choose to view Constellations, Messier Objects, Milkey Way, and Meteor Showers at the same time or one by one.
- Details of Celestial Objects: This website also helps users obtain details related to celestial objects like Magnitude, Sun Distance, Rise Time, Solar Elongation, Altitude, etc.
- Constellation Maps: Maps of multiple star constellations are shown by it.
- Interactivity: Users can interact with the sky map to change orientation and zoom levels.
- Search: Use it to search celestial objects by names and view their details.
Final Thoughts:
It is another good online sky map website that shows a detailed sky map filled with constellations, stars, planets, and other celestial objects.
Pros | Cons |
---|---|
Shows star constellations | |
Fully interactive sky map | |
Can show skymap of any date |
in-the-sky.org
in-the-sky.org is another free online star map website. This website offers an interactive online planetarium tool that can also be used as a star map as it shows the real-time location of stars, planets, and other celestial objects from your current location. It also lets users select and view details of stars and planets. It also lets users choose the type of celestial objects they want to see at a time like Starts, Planets, etc. Plus, users can directly interact with the star map and open up any part of the space. Now, check out its main features.
Main Features:
- Field of View: It helps users determine the exact field of view of the star map they are viewing. Through the mouse wheel, users can increase or decrease the field of view.
- Interactive Map: Users can interact with the map and perform actions like rotating the map to a specific direction, zoom-in on map, zoom-out from map, choose a specific star or a planet, etc.
- Display: Use it to specify what you want to view over the star map like Stars, Deep Sky, Planets, Boundaries, Names of Celestial Objects, etc.
- Show: It helps users add or remove the galactic plane, RA/Dec labels, Scalebar, galaxy, etc., elements from the star map.
- Orientation: It lets users change the orientation pattern (Zenith up, North up, or Free rotation) of the sky map. It also provides a 3D view option to observe the sky map in 3D.
- Search: Use it to look for any planet, star, or constellation by name.
Final Thoughts:
It is another good online star map website that helps users observe the planets, stars, and constellations over an interactive star map.
Pros | Cons |
---|---|
Fully interactive sky map | |
Shows the star constellations | |
Users can specify any observing location | |
Users can view star map of any specific date |
stelevision.com
stelevision.com is another free online star map website. This website offers a simple star map that shows all the main stars, star constellations, and planets over a night sky that appears to be rotating around Polaris (also known as North Star). Plus, it allows users to view the star map and night sky for a specific date and time. However, this star map is not as interactive as other similar sky maps as it doesn’t let users select specific planets and view their details. Although, users can still zoom in on the star map. Now, check out its main features.
Main Features:
- Star Map of any Date: It allows users to enter a specific date and time to observe the night sky of that particular time.
- Animation: Use it to increase or decrease the sky rotation speed around the Polaris.
- Observing Location: Use it to specify any location on Earth from where you want to observe the star map.
- Shows Constellations, Planets, and Stars: This star map shows all the important constellations, planets, and stars that users can observe in the night sky.
Additional Feature:
- This website offers a handy telescope simulator that helps users virtually observe planets, galaxies, and distant stars.
Final Thoughts:
It is another good online star map website that helps users observe the night sky on a specific date and time at a given location.
Pros | Cons |
---|---|
Lets users view the night sky on any date | Doesn’t offer a fully interactive star map |
Users can choose any observation point on earth | Doesn’t show distant galaxies and stars |
Shows all important planets, constellations, and stars |
skymaponline.net
skymaponline.net is another free online star map website. Through this website, users can observe a two-dimensional skymap by specifying their location on the Earth. It also lets users observe the star map of a specific date and time. On this star map, users can observe stars, planets, galaxies, planets, and star constellations. Now, check out its main features.
Main Features:
- Star Map Location: Users can observe the star map from any specific location on Earth.
- Planispheres: It allows users to observe the star map of any given date and time.
- Search Sky Object: Use it to locate any celestial body over the sky map.
- Observable Bodies: On this sky map, users can observe multiple star constellations, galaxies, planets, and stars.
- Interactive Map: This map allows users to interact with celestial bodies and view their information like magnitude, distance, rise time, etc.
Additional Features:
- This website offers multiple tools associated with Horoscopes, constellations, and Astronomy.
Final Thoughts:
It is another good online star map website that helps users observe constellations, stars, and planets from any part of the world.
Pros | Cons |
---|---|
Lets users view the night sky of any date | |
Users can choose any observation point on earth | |
Shows all important planets, constellations, and stars | |
Offers an interactive star map |
science.nasa.gov
science.nasa.gov is yet another free online star map website. On this star map, users can observe many celestial objects explored and analyzed through the Hubble telescope. Not only, it show the stars, galaxies, and nebulas but also provides multiple exotic celestial objects (Quasar, Supernovas, Einstein ring, etc. ) and exoplanets. Now, check out its main features.
Main Features:
- Simple and Interactive Interface: Users can easily move across the star map and zoom in on any part they like.
- Captured Photos: By selecting celestial objects, users can also view their actual photos captured through the Hubble telescope.
- Layers: It allows users to view some or all celestial objects (stars, nebula, galaxies, exotic, and exoplanets) at a time.
- Search: Use it to locate a certain celestial body over the star map.
Additional Features:
- This website offers information, tools, and features associated with the Hubble telescope like Hubble E-Books, Hubble Podcasts, Hubble Videos, Hubble Operations, and more.
Final Thoughts:
It is another good online star map website that helps users observe celestial objects from the eyes of the Hubble telescope.
Pros | Cons |
---|---|
Offers an interactive star map | |
Users can view some or all types of celestial objects at a time | |
Shows actual photos of celestial objects |
Frequently Asked Questions
Use online star map websites or tools to create a custom star map for any location and date/time. Simply enter your desired details, choose what elements you want to include (constellations, grid lines, background, etc.), and customize the colors. You can then download a high-resolution image of your star map for free.
In astronomy, star mapping typically refers to the process of creating detailed charts or maps of the night sky, identifying and locating stars, constellations, and other celestial objects. These maps are often used by astronomers, stargazers, and navigators to understand and navigate the celestial sphere.
Star mapping is crucial in astronomy for understanding the structure and dynamics of the universe. Astronomers create star charts and maps to identify and locate stars, galaxies, and other celestial objects. These maps help astronomers study the distribution of stars, their brightness, and their positions in the sky.
The celestial sphere is an imaginary sphere surrounding the Earth, where all celestial objects appear to be located. In celestial navigation and astronomy, it is common to project the entire sky onto a spherical surface, creating a celestial sphere. Representing this sphere on a flat, two-dimensional surface involves some form of distortion.
Currently, the most comprehensive star map is created by the Gaia spacecraft, launched by the European Space Agency in 2013. As of November 2022, Gaia has accurately mapped the positions, distances, and motions of nearly 1.7 billion stars in our Milky Way galaxy. This represents a tiny fraction of the estimated 100-400 billion stars in our galaxy, but it's the most detailed map we have of any region of space.
Naveen Kushwaha
Passionate about tech and science, always look for new tech solutions that can help me and others.
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