Lunar Observer vs Astar Star Map Night Sky Guide
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Lunar Observer
Track the moon's phases, illumination, and rise/set times with precise astronomical calculations. View upcoming solar and lunar eclipses, and access a Hijri calendar. Get optional notifications for celestial events and enjoy an authentic Arabic interface.
- Precise moon phase and illumination tracking
- Sunrise, sunset, moonrise, moonset times
- Upcoming solar and lunar eclipse coverage
- Hijri calendar with moon phase markers
- Customizable notifications for celestial events
- Choice of NASA imagery or 3D terrain model
- Full Arabic localization
Read full descriptionHide full description
Track the Moon in breathtaking detail. Lunar Observer puts professional-grade astronomical calculations in your pocket — from moonrise and moonset times, illumination percentage, and solar and lunar eclipses, all the way to the Hijri calendar. Everything is computed with absolute precision based on your exact geographic location. PRECISE MOON DATA • Current moon phase with a live readout of illumination percentage and libration. • Sunrise, sunset, moonrise, and moonset times accurate to the second. • Celestial coordinates: altitude, azimuth, and elongation from the Sun. • Distance from Earth, angular diameter, and moon age. 24-HOUR TIMELINE Scrub through the hours with the slider to see exactly where the Moon sits above your horizon at any moment — from the instant it rises to the moment it sets. CHOOSE YOUR MOON Pick between real NASA imagery (per-date photographs from NASA's Scientific Visualization Studio, covering 2022–2026 and updated each new year) — or use a live 3D model built from the actual LRO (Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter) terrain data, with real libration and earthshine on the dark side (recommended for years not covered by NASA's photos). ECLIPSES Comprehensive coverage of every upcoming solar and lunar eclipse, with local circumstances computed for your coordinates. See whether each event is visible from where you are, along with timings from start to finish, eclipse magnitude, and the Moon's altitude at maximum. HIJRI CALENDAR A monthly view of the Hijri calendar with moon-phase markers, anchored to your local timezone so the Hijri date rolls over correctly no matter where you are in the world. NOTIFICATIONS Optional alerts for tonight's moonrise and moonset, the full moon, the supermoon, solar and lunar eclipses visible from your location, the day-29 Hijri crescent watch, and a daily moon brief at the time you choose. All local on your device, with no notification servers. AUTHENTIC ARABIC INTERFACE Full right-to-left Arabic localization, with an option for Arabic-Indic numerals (٠١٢٣…) or a switch to Western digits, and authentic astronomical terminology — محاق, هلال, بدر, كسوف, خسوف — free from clunky machine translation. Arabic day and month names appear throughout the app. GET STARTED GUIDE A short, friendly walkthrough on first launch that shows you how to navigate the timeline, set your location, explore the Hijri month, and turn on notifications. You can re-open it anytime from the "?" mark in Settings. PRIVACY FIRST Your location data never leaves your device. No tracking, no analytics, no account required. Technical note: the app's calculations are powered by NASA's JPL DE440 ephemeris — the same high-precision model used by NASA Horizons and spacecraft navigation — with the VSOP87 and ELP/MPP02 algorithms as a fallback. Sub-arc-second accuracy, with coverage from 1549 to 2650.
Astar Star Map Night Sky Guide
Explore the night sky with a live 3D star map that identifies constellations and celestial bodies. Leave and discover notes attached to stars, creating a shared or private celestial journal. Optionally name stars or extend note visibility with one-time purchases.
- Live 3D star map
- Constellation identification
- User-generated notes on stars
- Public Explore feed
- Private Journal
- Symbolic star naming
- Capture mode for aiming
Read full descriptionHide full description
Astar turns the real night sky above you into a place for memory. Point your phone at the sky, or explore freely with a swipe, and see a live 3D star map of roughly 1 million real stars plus the Moon and planets, rendered from real astronomical data and tilted to match your exact location. Tap any star to read the notes left there, or leave your own. Some notes are public and appear in the Explore feed; others stay private in your personal Journal. WHAT YOU CAN DO - See the real night sky in 3D, oriented to where you're standing - Find constellations overhead, drawn with constellation lines and 3D figure art - Tap a star to leave a short note, text only - Browse Explore, a public feed of notes other stargazers have left under real stars - Like and favorite notes that resonate with you - Keep a private Journal of your own notes and favorites, with a private star map just for you - Give an unclaimed star a name: a symbolic, community-given dedication shown to everyone in Astar's sky, a personal way to mark an anniversary, a memorial, or a birthday. This name lives within Astar's own community catalog only. It is not an official astronomical designation and is not recognized by the International Astronomical Union or any scientific body. A plain language disclaimer is shown before every naming purchase. - Aim your phone at the sky in Capture mode to line up on the nearest bright star FREE TO USE Astar's core experience is free, with no time limit: view the live sky, browse Explore and your Journal, and post one public note and one private note every day. ASTAR PREMIUM (optional, auto-renewing subscription) Astar Premium removes the daily note limit, unlocks your full Journal history with no 30-day window, and gives 25% off every Star Naming package. - Monthly: $7.99 / month - Yearly: $49.99 / year Payment is charged to your Apple ID account at confirmation of purchase. Subscriptions renew automatically unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Your account is charged for renewal within 24 hours before the end of the current period. Manage or cancel any time in your Apple ID account settings after purchase. STAR NAMING & NOTE EXTENSIONS Naming a star, and extending how long a public note stays visible, are optional one-time purchases open to every user, free or Premium - no subscription required. Pricing and details are shown before you buy. SUPPORT & LEGAL Privacy Policy: https://mottods.com/astar/privacy-policy.html Terms of Use: https://mottods.com/astar/terms-of-service.html Questions: support@mottods.com
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Lunar Observer at none against Astar Star Map Night Sky Guide's 6. Lunar Observer also leads on ratings volume (4 vs 1). On price, rating, ads and device support 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. Astar Star Map Night Sky Guide sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $7.99 per month. Lunar Observer asks for nothing beyond the download.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for Lunar Observer against 5.0 for Astar Star Map Night Sky Guide. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 4 and 1 respectively.
| Parameter | Lunar Observer | Astar Star Map Night Sky Guide |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (4 ratings) | 5.0 (1 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 4 — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Monthly | — |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 — better | 18.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 331 MB | 529 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Humoud Salmeen | Motto Software & Design |
Customer experience
Lunar Observer
Astar Star Map Night Sky Guide
In-app purchases
Lunar Observer
No in-app purchases
Astar Star Map Night Sky Guide
- Astar Premium$7.991 Month
- Astar Premium$49.991 Year
- Extend Note +3 Days$0.99
- Extend Note +7 Days$1.99
- Name a Star (1 Month)$14.99
Show 1 moreShow fewer
- Name a Star (1 Month)$19.99



