Introduction to Astronomy

Astronomy Programs

Celestia

This program uses data from the Hipparcos mission. It displays stars, planetary images, and galaxies using OpenGL. The program is open source and compiled versions are available for Windows, Linux and MacOS.

Celestia Webpage
Celestia Documentation
Celestia Download
Portable Celestia - This is a Windows version that does not change your registry. You can put it on a USB drive.
Celestia Motherload Website - This contains documentation and scripts.

Stellarium

This is an ephemeris program, which displays the night sky for any location on the earth and any time in the past, present and future. This program is open source and compiled versions are available for Windows, Linux and MacOS.

Stellarium Webpage
Stellarium User's Guide
Stellarium Download
Portable Stellarium - This is a Windows version that does not change your registry. You can put it on a USB drive.

Video Clips

Powers of 10 - This video exands out to the extent of the universe and zooms in to the size of a proton. This video is available at YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A2cmlhfdxuY