Stars

The settings in this view let you control the display of stars, including the number of stars that will be shown, the size and color of the star symbols, and the labelling of stars with their names or catalog numbers.

Star Display

Show Stars: Sets whether stars are displayed in the sky chart. When turned off, most of the other settings in this view are disabled.

Magnitude Limit: Sets the star magnitude limit. This determines the faintest stars that are visible in the sky chart. The brighter a star, the lower its magnitude. The faintest stars visible to the naked eye are about magnitude 6.5. Very bright stars can have negative magnitudes; the brightest star in the sky, Sirius, is magnitude -1.44.

The magnitude limit will change automatically as you zoom the sky chart in and out. When zoomed in, fainter stars are displayed.

Star Name Display

Show Names: Sets whether star names are displayed next to some stars in the sky chart.

Proper Names: Sets whether proper names are displayed for stars when possible. When turned off, stars' names are displayed using their catalog numbers (e.g. "α CMa") instead of their proper names (e.g. "Sirius").

Greek Symbols: Sets whether greek symbols are displayed for stars which have Bayer letters. When turned off, greek letters are spelled out in English, e.g. "Alpha CMa" instead of "α CMa".

Name Density: Sets the percentage of stars whose names are displayed on the sky chart. At 0%, no stars have names shown; at 100%, all stars have names shown. At 20%, only the brightest 20% of stars have names shown. When the star name density is at 10% or below, only stars with Bayer letters, Flamsteed numbers, or proper names will be labelled.

Double Stars: displays double stars with their component identifiers (A, B, C, D, etc.) as well as their visual separations in arcseconds ("). For binary stars with known orbits, this option also displays the orbital path of the secondary component relative to the primary. Turn this option on, then zoom in on Sirius or Alpha Centauri, and take a look!

Please Note: this feature is only available in SkySafari Plus and Pro.

Star Symbol Options

Symbol Size: Sets the size of the star symbols. Use small, subtle star symbols to give the screen the appearance of the night sky.

Color Intensity: Sets the displayed intensity of the color difference between stars of different spectral types.