Butterfly in the Sky You Know How I Feel
Accept you ever gazed upwards at the beauty of the night sky and found yourself awestruck over the scale, the incomprehensible expansiveness of it all? Seeing thousands of glimmering pinpricks twinkling against the inky sky is a breathtaking experience to exist sure, but it'southward likewise one that can spark a lifelong interest in astronomy. Whether you lot're looking for an appropriately socially distant activity to relish during the COVID-19 pandemic or you're fascinated with the science of infinite, stargazing is an platonic hobby to accept upward.
Although stargazing is very much what it sounds like — staring upwardly at the night sky using your optics, binoculars or a telescope — in that location are some helpful charts yous'll desire to have on hand to learn more as yous become started. Called sky maps, these charts plot out the placement of celestial bodies to tell y'all what exactly you're looking at up in infinite. Using these helpful guides, you lot'll exist able to identify dissimilar stars, planets and constellations in the nighttime sky.
These days, sky maps are bachelor in a variety of different formats. You can become printed versions online for costless, buy a planisphere to utilize all year round or even download apps to your smartphone that can instantly recognize everything in the heaven to a higher place you. Hither'due south what you need to know well-nigh finding the right sky maps for your needs.
Print Your Own Sky Map for Free
Sky maps are also sometimes known as star charts, and y'all can print one out for costless at a site called skymaps.com. Keep in mind that yous'll want to brand sure to print the heaven map for the hemisphere yous live in. There are also different star charts available for dissimilar latitudes. If you're not certain what latitude y'all're closest to, you can hands bank check on this handy latitude finder.
Additionally, make certain that yous impress out the map for the current month, as your view of the heaven is constantly changing due to the rotation of the earth. On the tiptop side of the map, you'll find the best times to use your chart depending on whether it's earlier or later in the calendar month.
When you await at a sky map, you'll find that it's printed in a round assortment with compass directions around the border. This is to help you position the chart then that information technology aligns correctly with the sky straight over you.
Here'due south an example. Say that you lot're facing due north. You'll rotate the sky map so that the department of the circle labeled "north" is positioned at the lesser of the map. Once you've washed this, the eye of the map (or zenith) should align with the part of the sky that appears directly above you. Information technology might seem a little counterintuitive to take the north label on the map pointing backwards when you're facing north, just there'south a reason for this: You read the map by property it overhead, not out in front of you. So, when you lift and turn your hands so you can read the map while it's above you, the north section of the map volition and then be pointing the same direction you're facing.
The all-time way to go your bearings once you have the map in the correct position is to look for either an easily recognizable constellation or a particularly bright star. The brighter the star is, the bigger the dot that represents information technology on the map volition be. From there, you should be able to follow the map to notice nearby stars, constellations and planets.
Consider a Planisphere for Year-Circular Flexibility
If y'all don't want to print out a new sky map each month, consider investing in a planisphere instead. What makes a planisphere helpful is that it consists of 2 separate dials you can adjust to show what the sky looks like at any time of the yr.
One section is marked with the hours of the solar day, while the other is marked with the days and months of the year. When y'all align the inner rotating dial with the right time and date, the planisphere will evidence you the part of the dark sky that's currently visible to you while blocking off the parts that aren't.
In one case y'all accept your planisphere ready to the right position, information technology works very similarly to a sky map. Just hold information technology up to the dark sky and you'll be able to easily place all kinds of fascinating angelic bodies.
No Paper or Planisphere? Go the Smartphone Road
While there's something fun almost being able to read a traditional star chart, there's also a diverseness of apps these days that tin can human activity as automated sky maps for even easier stargazing. One major perk of apps like these is that they don't demand you lot to know your breadth or the direction you're facing — the positioning systems in your device take care of that piece of work. You only demand to concur your device up to the sky while you're running a sky map app, and it'll utilize your device's GPS to effigy everything out for you.
A star map app chosen Star Chart, which is available for iOS and Android, is amongst the most popular. Once again, you only demand to hold your telephone up to the heaven while running this app, and it'll show y'all exactly what stars and planets are to a higher place you lot. And not only will it bespeak out constellations, but it'll fifty-fifty fill up them in with artwork by Johannes Hevelius, a 17th-century astronomer.
Another helpful perk of Star Chart is that it can prove you what stars are above you even during the daytime. When you point it downwards at the footing, information technology likewise displays what the heaven looks like on the other side of the world.
Tips for Planning a Stargazing Outing
Stargazing has a lot of perks as a hobby, including the fact that it's fun, free and a pandemic-proof, socially distant activity. While stargazing is an activity that you lot tin technically practise anywhere, you'll probably have improve luck if you head to a location that's wide open and miles abroad from the ambient light that busy cities emit into the night heaven — this can make it harder to come across stars.
EarthSky is an astronomy website that's developed a worldwide map y'all can use to identify some of the best places for stargazing virtually you. To find these recommendations, zoom in on your state on the map. You'll see a drove of stars you tin click on in your geographical area, each of which lists a great stargazing location nearby when you click it.
Once y'all're at a stargazing location, and unless yous're using an app for your sky map, attempt to avoid looking at your phone or any lights for about 20 minutes to give your "night vision" a gamble to really kick in. Your eyes will adjust to the express light weather condition, and information technology'll become easier to see the stars.
If you're having a difficult fourth dimension getting started or finding your place on the map, start with the sky instead. Look for a constellation you know, such as the Big Dipper. Once you observe information technology in the sky, it can serve as a sort of guidepost to aid you become your bearings and determine how to orient your sky map.
The more than familiar you go with the sky, the easier it'll become to detect your way around it. Don't feel like you lot have to blitz out and buy a telescope when you first go started. In the beginning, all you need are your eyes and a sky map. If you do want a closer look at a star cluster or planet, a pair of old binoculars will do but fine. Nigh chiefly, recollect to accept fun on this engaging hazard!
Source: https://www.reference.com/science/how-use-sky-maps?utm_content=params%3Ao%3D740005%26ad%3DdirN%26qo%3DserpIndex
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