A newer version of Stellarium is available.
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Features
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Popularity:
#5 in Science Software (out of 587 products)
- Editor's Rating:
- Average User Rating:
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Downloads:
52,157
- Requirements:
Windows 2000/XP
- Limitations:
No limitations
- Date Added:
March 18, 2007
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Previous Versions:
Publisher's description of Stellarium 0.8.2
From Stellarium:Stellarium is a free software available for Windows 95/98/2000 and Linux. It renders 3D photo-realistic skies in real time. With stellarium, you really see what you can see with your eyes, binoculars or a small telescope.
Editor's review of Stellarium 0.8.2
4.0 stars
- "Reach for the stars"
Open source and currently in use by planetarium projectors, Stellarium brings astronomer-level features to stargazers of all levels of interest. It's not quite as robust as its competitors, but it's also a much faster program. It doesn't suck away your RAM into a black hole when loading or running. It does run only in full screen mode, making any other programs you're running inaccessible except for the ALT-Tab switcher.
The default catalog includes 600,000 stars, with upgrade modules that can push the count up to 210 million stars. The constellations of 10 different cultures are included, as well as illustrations and asterisms to help you visualize what the ancients saw. There's a full Messier catalog of nebulae, too. The dawn, dusk and atmosphere backgrounds were good, but not great on our monitor. They probably look better on a planetarium dome, which is why it's useful that Stellarium also includes a fish-eye view for curved surfaces. Besides equatorial and azimuthal grids, users also get shooting stars when appropriate, eclipse simulation, and skinnable landscapes. Stellarium incorporates star-views from the Moon.
The controls live in the lower left corner and are transparent--a bit hard to find. The nifty record feature is somewhat hampered by the dark interface. When you run the program for the first time it asks that you set your current location, but the mouse-over map of the world was too small to use easily. Stellarium should appeal both to users who need something more academic and less distracting than Google or Microsoft's offerings, as well as those who have a need for an open-source planetarium. Fortunately, that could be any of us.
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User reviews of Stellarium 0.8.2
- Average user rating: 4.1 stars out of 62 votes
- My rating: 0 stars Write review
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Showing 5 of 35 user reviewsSee all 35 user reviews
This software version | All versions -
Version: Stellarium 0.8.2
"Excellent product - other software companies take note!"
Pros: Nice rendition of the sky with good graphics. The professional astronomers will look down on this program but I like it far more than the extreme technical ones that show all the programmers inaccuracies. It's not the easiest to navigate but that should improve with the next versions. Keep up th good work!
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1 out of 1 people found this review helpful
Version: Stellarium 0.8.2
Pros: It was interesting. Nice options to view just the stars, nubulas or drawing outline of constellation and/or a background figure of the imagined constellation image. Lots of options, takes a bit of time to figure them all out. It was fun to explore. Had fun playing with it and exploring. My 7 year old loved it - thought the artwork was cool.
Cons: Difficult to maneuver. We downloaded an earthquake program similar to this and the maneuverability on that one was much easier and more accurate. Didn't seem to catch on how to get different views from different places (if that' s even possible in this program). Seemed to be set on a view from Paris, but would have liked to see the sky from our point of view. Couldn't find the big dipper either...but probaly spent only an hour exploring. For a free program, if you're not looking for a serious constellation program, this one is nice.
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1 out of 1 people found this review helpful
Version: Stellarium 0.8.2
Pros: Stellarium is free and has loads of features. You can zoom in and out, change your location on earth, and even observe from other planets! You can speed up the time to view observable objects in the future. Loads quickly, and is very fast. You can also change the background landscape or (for advanced users) replace it with one of your own. Stellarium has millions of stars and you can download more. Downloads compatible with macs and linux are also available. I had considered buying a $100 program untill I found Stellarium. Super-realistic sunrises and sunsets.
Notes to potential downloaders:
1. Beware! Extremely addicting!
2. Version 0.8.2 on this site is very old. Go to stellarium.org to download the newest version.
This program is one of the very best freeware programs around. The forum is very helpful and most questions will be answered quickly. One of my favorite features is zooming in on earth from another planet. Photorealistic!
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Version: Stellarium 0.8.2
Pros: Less complicated than Starry Night
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3 out of 3 people found this review helpful
Version: Stellarium 0.8.2
Pros: I have been interested in astronomy for some time but have only recently investigated software
This is a great little program, easy to configure and with plenty of options for viewing the sky at night
In addition the web site is full of useful information for setting the software up including exact long/lat for your own back yard!!
And its free
Well worth a look
Cons: Compared with some software the graphics are poorer but this is a great first step without paying out those hard earned pounds
- See all 35 user reviews Write review
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