Messier Finder Charts vs Planet Pointer

These Messier finder charts contain maps for every Messier deep sky object. It's user interface has intentionally been made as simple as possible so you can use this app in the freezing cold while using your telescope in total darkness. The app uses only red on the map to preserve your night vision. This is best used by holding the iPhone or iPad next to your Telrad reflex sight while viewing both the bulls eye in your Telrad and the bulls eye on the map to quickly find targets.

Planet Pointer turns your phone into a pocket sky guide. Pick one target — a planet, a star, a constellation, a satellite or a deep-sky object — and an on-screen arrow, a dashed guide line, or both, lead you until your phone is aimed right at it. Or point the camera at something you don't recognise and let the app tell you what it is. Simple, focused, and accurate. POINT AT THE SKY Choose what you want to find and follow the guide. When you're locked on target, the phone confirms with a gentle vibration. If your target is below the horizon, the app tells you what time it rises. The live camera view helps you line up the guide with the real sky. WHAT'S THAT? IDENTIFY MODE Point the camera at anything in the sky and tap it to identify it. A phone compass is only accurate to about 5°, so the app never hands you a confident answer it cannot back up: you get the most likely object with a match percentage, plus anything else near enough to be a real possibility. Turn on constellation lines if you like them, or keep the stars bare. Ask which star that is and get an honest answer instead of a guess. TONIGHT, FREE See what is actually up right now: the Moon and its phase, which planets are visible and until what time, and the next satellite pass you could genuinely see with your own eyes. No purchase and no setup. WHAT YOU CAN FIND - The Sun, the Moon and all 7 planets - 33 of the brightest named stars - All 88 constellations, drawn as connect-the-dots figures over the live sky - Deep sky: nebulae, galaxies and star clusters — Orion, Andromeda, the Pleiades and more - Live satellites — including the ISS, Hubble, Starlink and more — tracked in real time, with upcoming passes and how easy each one will be to see - Rise, transit and set times for every object, in your location's own time zone ACCURATE & OFFLINE Positions are calculated on your device using a precise astronomy engine, with true-north correction from the World Magnetic Model. No internet needed for the core features. MORE TO EXPLORE - Sky Events: eclipses, meteor showers, equinoxes and solstices, supermoons, planet oppositions and the next visible ISS pass — tap one to jump there. Moon phases are always free, and so are the two nearest events. - A Moon phase view, with the crescent tilted the way it really looks from where you are, and the whole month to scroll through - Time Travel (Pro): shift the sky forward or back in time to see where everything will be - Info cards with facts, figures and mythology for every body and constellation - Favourites, brightness/magnitude data, and a search you can filter to "visible now" SPEAKS YOUR LANGUAGE 13 languages built in, and 66 more available to download with Pro — 79 in all, with translated planet, star and constellation names. BUILT FOR STARGAZING - Night-vision red mode to protect your dark-adapted eyes - Spoken sky: hear your target and aim guidance read aloud - Choose km or miles, set your location manually, and more FREE & PRO Free, forever: the camera pointer, the Sun, the Moon and all 7 planets, the Tonight view, rise and set times, the Moon phase view, and a few famous stars, constellations, deep-sky objects and satellites to try — everything that is free in the lists is free in identify mode too. Planet Pointer Pro is a single one-time purchase — no subscription — that unlocks every star, constellation, deep-sky object and satellite, Time Travel, the full Sky Events list, unlimited favourites, the full night-vision options and every language download. PRIVACY FIRST No account. No ads. No trackers. Your location and camera are used only on your device to point you at the sky — they're never recorded or sent anywhere. Look up. Point. Find it.