Solar Coaster vs Real Solar System
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Solar Coaster
Visualize the precise movements of the Sun and Moon with 3D graphs, eclipse details, and rise/set times. This app offers offline calculations for celestial positions and moon phases, making it ideal for astronomy enthusiasts.
- 3D movement graphs
- Eclipse information and circumstances
- Rise and set times
- Moon phase and illumination
- Offline astronomical data
- Local horizontal coordinate system
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Solar Coaster provides accurate position, time, motion and eclipse information for Earth's nearest star, Sol, our Sun, and nearest celestial body, Luna, our Moon. Information includes 3D movement graphs, upcoming eclipses and their circumstances, rise and set times, positions, distances and velocities, moon phase, illumination and crescent rotation. Solar Coaster automatically updates its state every minute, or you can examine minutes randomly. The simulation uses a local horizontal coordinate system when displaying information, which essentially means that your current position is the center of the Universe and all calculated values are relative to you. Sun and Moon positions are also available in equatorial coordinates. Solar Coaster stores enough onboard astronomical data to keep it running through the year 2100 AD, which means that all calculations can be performed locally without the need of a network connection — useful while in the wild chasing an eclipse. Algorithms are accurate at all longitudes, and latitudes between -61° south and +60° north (roughly speaking, locations outside the Polar regions). Of course, you must have Location Services enabled and allow Solar Coaster to access your position for accurate simulation results, and to properly detect eclipses visible at your location. You can also allow Notification Center to keep you informed when those eclipses will occur. Solar Coaster comes in various flavors: for iOS a native App; and for macOS a native App, Screen Saver and Web App.
Real Solar System
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This solar system simulator reflects actual planetary position information. When the app is launched, the sun is positioned 20 cm in front of the device, based on the device's position. Around it, the eight main planets of the solar system and the celestial body to be observed orbit. The orbits are displayed as if they were trajectories. The position of each planet is calculated based on actual values. # Features - x] Realistic solar system with ARKit - x] Orbits of the 8 planets are displayed. - x] Planets are realistic textures imported from USDZ files. - x] Planet positions are calculated based on real values (using Horizons API) - x] The object to be observed can be changed. - x] Display of the orbit of the object of interest - x] Calculate the position of the target object based on actual values (using the Horizons API). - x] Adjustable speed (minus value for reverse rotation) - x] Zoom function (zoom in/zoom out) - x] Toggle the display of the text information and the coordinate axis (New!) ## How to use 1. when you launch the application, you will be asked for "permission to use camera" at the first startup. If you allow it, an ARKit session will start. 2. 2. a coordinate axis will be placed 20 cm in front of you, based on the device's position. 3. Tap the "Load Planet" button to load the planet model. Just wait a moment. 4. The 8 main planets of the solar system and the object to be observed will orbit around it. 5. Move the device to observe the solar system from various angles. 6. Tap the buttons at the bottom of the screen to adjust the speed and zoom. 7. You can change the object to be observed from the menu in the upper right corner of the screen. 1. Halley's Comet 2. Hayabusa2 & Ryugyu 3. Voyager 1 & 2 4. New Horizons & Pluto 5. Cassini (New!) 6. OSIRIS-REx & Bennu 7. Comparison of Circle and Ellipse 8. Geocentric theory (New!) 8. Toggle the display of the text information and the coordinate axis from the menu in the upper right corner of the screen. (New!)
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: Real Solar System at monthly against Solar Coaster's every 3 months. Solar Coaster's advantage is device support (4 vs 2) and iOS requirement (14.0 vs 17.6). On price, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Solar Coaster ships an update every 3 months, Real Solar System monthly. The most recent releases landed on September 22, 2026 and September 20, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Solar Coaster | Real Solar System |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (2 ratings) — better | — |
| Number of ratings | 2 — better | — |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | Monthly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 14.0 — better | 17.6 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 37 MB | 302 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Steve Lidie | Masaya Nagaoka |
In-app purchases
Solar Coaster
No in-app purchases
Real Solar System
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Solar Coaster free?
Is Real Solar System free?
Do Solar Coaster or Real Solar System have ads?
Which is updated more often, Solar Coaster or Real Solar System?
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