The stress of my real job and my proclivity for forgetting basic information and tasks requires that I carry a device that will remind me of the mundane meetings and endless tasks that have to be completed throughout the day. Since I have always had an aversion to carrying my cell phone with me except for emergency purposes, I have always used a personal data assistant to keep track of my work and my life. Until a couple of months ago, I used an HP iPaq 110 handheld running Windows Mobile 6. However, I recently joined the twenty first century and transitioned to a third generation Apple iPod Touch with which I immediately fell in love. While the app store has a wide variety of applications that can turn an iPhone or iPod into a powerful astronomical tool, I have found a nice selection of free apps that can get an amateur astronomer working in the field in a matter of minutes. In no particular order, here are the four recommended free astronomy applications from Apple’s Store.

• DISTANT SUNS (LITE) [Full Version $6.99] – The Distant Suns iPhone app is a descendent of the 80s desktop application that is still a favorite of many amateur and professional astronomers. This free app has a database of thousands of stars, 88 constellations, all 9 planets (that’s right…Pluto included), and a realistic portrayal of the Milky Way glow. Each star in the Distant Suns database includes the appropriate right ascension, declination, and magnitude information to find it in the night sky. Quick options on the bottom toolbar allow you to instantly select a planet, constellation, or other target and easily navigate yourself across the sky. I recommend it for someone looking for an app to create a realistic representation of the sky.

 

• ASTROCALC – This app rocks. It is a wonderful little tool that allows you to input each piece of astronomy gear that you own and use it to calculate focal length with different eyepiece or optical tube assembly (OTA) configurations. For example, this screenshot shows viewing data for my Orion AstroView 100mm refractor with an Orion 25mm eyepiece installed.

 

• PLANETS 1.6 – Planets is a cool little app that has options for a two and three dimensional view of the night sky as well as 3D rotational views of each planet in the solar system. It is very comparable to Distant Suns, but is more like a star chart than a realistic representation of the sky. In addition to the two views of the sky, the app includes general information and viewing opportunities for each planet as well as the Sun and the Moon. It makes a great companion application to Distant Suns and the AstroCalc.

 

• MOON GLOBE – Regular readers know that I pretty much worship the Moon. I think that it is an overlooked and underappreciated night (and day) sky target. Even the smallest and worst-quality telescopes can bring out incredible mountain chains, craters, valleys, canals, and other wonders of our nearest celestial neighbor. Moon Globe gives you an unparalleled access to our Moon by allowing you to rotate, flip, or zoom in and around it. Highly recommended for anyone interested in watching the brightest object in our night sky.

nightShifted Astronomy received no compensation for endorsement of these applications. You can download each of these applications from the Apple App Store.