Observatory explores a fixed star map through a virtual telescope. Its automatic camera pans, changes direction, zooms, and rolls. Open the controls to pause the tour, move the view manually, adjust its brightness, or find a star by name or HYG identifier.
The control panel reports right ascension, declination, angular field of view, rotation, and the number of stars in view. Its central coordinates remain visible when the panel is collapsed. Selecting a star locks the annotation; automatic selection returns to a fifteen-second cycle while the tour moves.
Data and implementation
The map uses 25,791 entries from David Nash’s HYG v4.1 catalog through apparent magnitude 7.5. Fixed J2000 coordinates become vectors on a celestial sphere, projected through a perspective camera and drawn with JavaScript and Canvas 2D. The telescope tour is simulated, and brightness and color are illustrative. It is not a live view from an observer’s location.
The visualization supports drag, touch, keyboard, and panel controls. Reduced-motion preferences disable automatic movement while preserving manual exploration. The background version on the rest of the site can be shown or hidden.
Read the launch and implementation note for the geometry and design choices, or see the data and rendering credits.