Mac/iPhone/iPad/Apple TV/Apple Watch - Free (With in-app purchases)
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As a space enthusiast, I've discovered a new favorite iPhone app for stargazing: Night Sky.
I love stargazing. Looking up into the dark night and spotting constellations, planets and satellites fills me with wonder. As the weather improves there's no better time to step outside and catch a glimpse of celestial events, such as a neighboring planet or the International Space Station (ISS) passing overhead.
The Sky Guide iPhone app has been my go-to, and I don’t plan on deleting it anytime soon, but Night Sky has quickly become an indispensable companion for my stargazing adventures, offering information on more than 1.7 billion stars.
Why Night Sky is one of the best stargazing apps
One of my favorite features of Night Sky is its augmented reality (AR) features. By simply holding up my iPhone to the sky, I can overlay images of planets, stars, and constellations onto my real-world view. This feature is also available on the Apple Watch, allowing you to raise your arm to the sky and instantly receive information about celestial bodies, which is useful when you prefer not to use your phone. The Sky Tags feature then lets you mark and save objects in the sky for easy future reference.
Night Sky is highly customizable. You can toggle music and sound effects on/off, visualize orbits and trajectories, display constellation lines, and set notifications for visible meteor showers, satellites, and planets based on their location.
The basic version of Night Sky is free and offers a lot of functionality. But for those who want to explore more deeply, Night Sky+ offers additional features for $39.99/£39.99 per year or $5.99/£5.99 per month, along with a 30-day free trial to see if it’s for you.
If you subscribe to Night Sky+, you can share the subscription with friends or family at no additional cost. The app also supports Connected Stargazing, a feature that lets you start a FaceTime call and sync the app across devices, enabling you to enjoy a real-time stargazing experience with someone remotely.
If you’re passionate about the cosmos, Night Sky is an essential app, combining detailed celestial information with innovative features that enhance the stargazing experience.
