Exploring the Night Sky from Home: A Guide for Astronomy Enthusiasts

Photo by Greg Rakozy on Unsplash

Astronomy is a fascinating science. Everywhere we are on this planet, the night sky is fascinating for almost every human being. The thought of being alone in the company of stars on a dark night, I am sure is enthralling to a lot of people! Gone are the days when astronomy was limited to a few know-all experts. Now in the era of the all-sky surveys, freely available datasets to download and VR/AR apps on the internet enabled cellphones, anyone can explore the night skies from the comfort of their homes.

In fact, in the past few years, Amateur astronomy has grown by leaps and bounds, and these people have made significant contributions to the world of astronomy. In this article, I will present a few apps and websites that can fascinate people, and let one explore the publicly available astronomical data from the comfort of their homes.

Apps to help you watch the Sky

As all astronomy began with the upward gaze of human beings, the primary tools we can choose for this kind of exercise are meant to make you look upwards. With a smartphone, you can access a map of the entire night sky, and navigate based on your location on the earth. Google sky-map is one of the first such tools, but with time, many apps have been developed with even more advanced facilities. Some of the most popular apps available both on the Android and Apple app stores are as following:

• SkyView: This app allows users to point their devices at the sky and see information about the stars, planets, and other celestial objects in that area. Available for iOS and Android
• Star Chart: This app uses augmented reality to display the night sky, making it easy for users to identify stars, planets, and other celestial objects. Available for iOS and Android.
• Stellarium Mobile: This app offers a realistic 3D simulation of the night sky, complete with stars, constellations, and other celestial objects. Available for both Android and iOS.
• Star walk 2: It is also available for both, iOS and Android. It is afree app that contains in-app purchases.

Besides these apps, there are many more such app with interesting features. The benefit of using these apps is that often most of them provide basic information about any star, planet or galaxy which you point to. But of course, these apps provide limited information about the night sky objects. In order to study further, and be able to analyse the datasets, we need to have a look at the public archives.

From Sky watching to analysing data

Now, as the night sky view becomes clearer, the natural progression would be to get more information about these objects, isn’t it? Thankfully, all-sky surveys such as the SDSS provide publicly available data; and terabytes of data is freely available for use!

To make things simple, I will cover only the major datasets accessible to the public. The focus is not only on the availability, but also on the ease of access that a curious individual not trained in astronomy or astrophysics can find in these datasets. This is very important in my opinion. Let’s have a look at the available datasets.

Databases

Several publicly available astronomy databases provide a wealth of information about celestial objects, including stars, planets, galaxies, and more. Here are a few examples:

• The SIMBAD Astronomical Database: This database, maintained by the Strasbourg astronomical Data Center, provides information on over 9 million objects, including stars, galaxies, and other celestial objects. It allows users to search for and retrieve data on a wide range of astronomical objects, including positions, magnitudes, and other characteristics.
• The NASA/IPAC Extragalactic Database (NED): This database, maintained by the NASA/IPAC Infrared Science Archive, provides information on over 100 million objects, including galaxies, quasars, and other extragalactic objects. It allows users to search for and retrieve data on various extragalactic objects, including positions, redshifts, and other characteristics.
• The VizieR Database: This database, maintained by the Centre de Données astronomiques de Strasbourg, provides access to the catalogues and data from a wide range of astronomical surveys and missions, including the Tycho-2 Catalogue, the 2MASS All-Sky Catalog of Point Sources, and many others.
• The Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS): This database provides detailed information about the properties of over 500 million astronomical objects, including stars, galaxies, and quasars, based on data collected by the Sloan telescope.
• The European Space Agency (ESA) and the European Southern Observatory (ESO) also provide a wealth of data, images, and information about their missions and discoveries.
• The Hubble Legacy Archive: This database, maintained by the Space Telescope Science Institute, provides access to data and images from the Hubble Space Telescope. It includes a wide range of images, from deep field surveys to close-ups of individual celestial objects and data from spectroscopic and photometric observations.
• The Chandra Data Archive: This database, maintained by the Chandra X-ray Center, provides access to data and images from the Chandra X-ray Observatory. It includes a wide range of data, from images and spectra of individual celestial objects to maps of large regions of the sky.
• The WISE All-Sky Data Release: This database, maintained by the Infrared Processing and Analysis Center, provides access to data and images from the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) mission. It includes images of the entire sky at four infrared wavelengths and data on the positions, motions, and other characteristics of over 760 million celestial objects.
• The Astronomy Data Service (ADS): This database, maintained by the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, provides access to a wide range of astronomical literature, including journal articles, conference proceedings, and preprints. It allows users to search for and retrieve articles on a wide range of astronomical topics and provides access to various tools for data analysis and visualization.
• The International Variable Star Index (VSX): This database, maintained by the American Association of Variable Star Observers, provides information on over 600,000 variable stars, including positions, magnitudes, and other characteristics. It allows users to search for and retrieve data on a wide range of variable stars and provides access to various tools for data analysis and visualization.
• The Open Supernova Catalog: This is a catalogue of supernovae, both observed and discovered, and it is a community-driven project; a group of amateur and professional astronomers maintains that. It provides information on over 10,000 supernovae, including positions, magnitudes, and other characteristics.
• The Open Exoplanet Catalogue: This is a catalogue of exoplanets and their host stars, and it is a community-driven project; a group of amateur and professional astronomers maintains that. It provides information on over 4,000 exoplanets, including positions, masses, and other characteristics.
• arXiv: arXiv is a preprint server that hosts a wide range of scientific papers, including papers in the field of astronomy.

All of these databases are publicly available and can be accessed by anyone interested in learning more about the universe and the celestial objects that inhabit it.

Popular astronomy websites:

Astronomy as an observational science fascinates everyone. So, the popular science, or the outreach element is an integral part of any individual or institution doing astronomy. How can we not get wowed by the beautiful images obtained by the Hubble Space Telescope?

Below is a list of a few websites, which contain the articles, images and popular level information about the current developments in astronomy. Some of the institutes have a dedicated webpage for this (such as NASA).

Websites:

• NASA’s Astronomy Picture of the Day: This website features a new, high-resolution astronomy image each day, along with a brief explanation of what’s depicted.
• The Planetary Society: This website features news and articles about space exploration, including information about current and upcoming missions to other planets.
• Astronomy.com: This website features articles, videos, and other resources about a wide range of astronomy topics, from the latest discoveries to the history of space exploration.
• Bad Astronomy : A blog maintained by professional astronomer Phil Plait, who debunks myths, corrects misrepresentations, and educates the public about astronomy and science. You can find interesting and thought-provoking stories about black holes, planets, stars, and more.
• Space (space.com): A website that covers news and features about astronomy, exploration, innovation, and entertainment related to space. You can read articles, watch videos, listen to podcasts, and view galleries about the latest happenings in the cosmos.
• Sky and Telescope (skyandtelescope.com): A website that offers resources and guidance for amateur astronomers of all levels. You can find observing tips, sky charts, equipment reviews, astro-photography tutorials, and more. You can also subscribe to their magazine and newsletter for more content.
• Hubble Site (hubblesite.org): A website that showcases the amazing images and discoveries made by the Hubble Space Telescope. You can explore galaxies, nebulae, stars, planets, and more in stunning detail. You can also learn about the history and science behind the Hubble mission.

In conclusion, astronomy is a fascinating activity that anyone can enjoy from home. With the help of apps and websites, you can explore the night sky, learn about the stars and planets, and even contribute to scientific discoveries. Astronomy can enrich your life with awe and curiosity, and connect you to the vastness of the universe.