APOD Explorer vs Deep Sky Scanner

Every day, NASA publishes a new astronomy picture or video, with an explanation written by a professional astronomer. APOD Explorer brings it to you with an experience built for exploring the universe, not just looking at it. THE FULL ARCHIVE SINCE 1995 Over 11,000 photos and videos, from the very first APOD to today. Full-text search across titles and explanations, curated tag collections (galaxies, nebulae, eclipses, Earth from space, and many more), and an "On This Day" section showing what was published on this date across the years. READINGS TAILORED TO YOU, ON DEVICE With Apple Intelligence, every explanation can be generated at different reading levels: quick, general, for kids, or for experts. NASA's original explanation can also be translated right on your device — nothing is sent to any server. FAVORITES THAT SYNC Save the photos you love and access them from any of your devices through iCloud. No one else can see them. WIDGETS AND LOCK SCREEN Two widgets — "Picture of the Day" and "Today's Sky" — that refresh themselves every morning, on the Lock Screen too. SHARE WHAT YOU DISCOVER Share the photo or, when the day's APOD is a video, a poster generated from it, straight from the detail view or from the widgets extension. NO ACCOUNTS, NO ADS, NO TRACKING APOD Explorer doesn't require sign-up and doesn't show ads. If you enjoy the app, you can leave a voluntary tip from Settings — a gesture of support that never unlocks features. A daily window into the universe, with NASA's complete archive always in your pocket.

Point your phone at the sky and know instantly what’s worth imaging. Deep Sky Scanner turns your device into an aiming tool for the Seestar S50, scanning your field of view and ranking every galaxy, cluster, and nebula by altitude, brightness, and how well it’ll actually fit your frame. No more guessing what’s up, no star-hopping, no wasted setup time on a target that’s too big or too faint for tonight’s sky. FEATURES • Live sky scan — see every object in view as you move your phone, tracked with full 3D orientation for steady accuracy even near the zenith • Ranked target lists — sorted by altitude trajectory, brightness, or best overall fit for your Seestar S50 • Frame-fit scoring — know before you start whether an object will actually fit the frame, not spill past the edges • Ascending/descending badges — see whether a target is climbing toward better altitude or already past its peak • Planning mode — drag the time slider to preview the sky at any hour and plan your session in advance • Per-object imaging notes — integration-time guidance by magnitude, edge-on galaxy detection, and nearby-companion flags • Full OpenNGC catalog with offline fallback — works even without a signal • Additional catalogs are available and can be optionally selected on the settings page • Supports the Seestar family of telescopes Built by a Seestar owner, for Seestar owners.