MyStars! 2.7

MyStars!, developed by Relative Data, is a scientifically rigorous, yet fun and educational Windows astronomy program that simulates the sky and helps you visualize and locate the positions of stars, planets, comets, minor planets, and Messier (M) objects from any location on earth and any date/time from BC 2000 to AD 6000. The registered version also shows the moon with phases, solar and lunar eclipses, and the 118,000 Hipparcos Star Catalogue. Striving constantly to balance visual realism, scientific accuracy, and the imagination; we hope you find MyStars! of interest. GENERAL FEATURES

• Planetarium
  
  
  
  • View from any location around the world
    
    
    
    • By Specifying Latitude / Longitude, or
    
    
    • By Clicking on the map of the world, or
    
    
    • By selecting from the database of cities (user xpandable)
    
    
    
    
  
  
  • View on any date from 2000 BC to 6000 AD
    
    
    
    • Supports Daylight, Standard, GMT times
    
    
    • Automatically interprets to Julian / Gregorian Dates
    
    
    
    
  
  
  • View towards various coordinates or items
    
    
    
    • Lock Onto Fixed Altitude/Azimuth
    
    
    • Lock Onto a Right Ascension/Declination (J2000 or `of Date`)
    
    
    • Lock Onto an Ecliptic Longitude/Latitude
    
    
    • FIND & Lock Onto any astronomical object in database
    
    
    
    
  
  
  
  


• Tilting orrery (view the orbits from above the sun, or from the ecliptic)
  
  
  
  • View on any date from 2000 BC to 6000 AD
    
    
    
    • Supports Daylight, Standard, UT times
    
    
    • Automatically interprets to Julian / Gregorian Dates
    
    
    
    
  
  
  
  


• Fast animation mode


• Tooltips on stars, planets, etc.


• Click on any object to find positional info about it


• Dynamic Saved Views


• Save image as GIF


• User definable magnitude limit



View Below horizon feature

• Automatically computes precession



optional Local Effects:



• Parallax Correction


• Extinction


• Refraction


• Scattering


• Scintillation





• Various coordinate grids can be added to display as required



Quick Zoom-In / Zoom-out Feature

• Friendly help system


• Tool-bar and Tooltips


• VCR-style animation controller


• Full screen Display mode option


• Scroll-bar control of view


• Full colour Printing


• High accuracy calculations


• Installation Help in English, French, Spanish, German, Italian, Danish, Dutch, Norwegian, Swedish, Finnish and Portugese

• Shows complete Yale Bright Star Catalogue of over 9000 brightests stars up to Magnitude 6.5


• Registered version shows Hipparcos Star Catalogue of over 118,000 stars up to Magnitude 11


• Brightness of stars on display is adjustable


• Stars can be labeled by name, Bayer / Flamsteed ids, or HR or HIP Catalog numbers


• Constellation labels can be added to display if required


• Constellation stick figures can be added if required


• Constellation boundary lines can be added if required

• Actual NASA images of the planets are included and shown in the display


• Images are shown to correct scale


• Rise/Set times take into account angular size of objects. Accurate sun rise/set times

• User-expandable database allows one to update data as equired


• New datafiles can be downloaded from the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory and used directly

• Complete Messier List of Deep Sky Objects are shown in display


• DSOs can be labelled by name, M number or NGC number


• Positions for DSOs are shown to correct scale


• Rise/Set times take into account angular size of objects.

• Actual image of the moon is shown to correct scale rotated to correct parallactic angle


• Shows correct phase of moon and shows solar/lunar eclipses


• Rise/Set time take into account angular size of objects. Accurate moon rise/set times

• User-expandable database allows one to update data as required


• New datafiles can be downloaded from the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory and used directly