Does the night sky always impress you? But then are you like me – and you have no idea where to look for certain constellations and stars? Then check out the Starlight app, free for a limited time on iOS. We explain why you should download the app.
- For a limited time, the Starlight app is available for free on iOS instead of €2.29.
- The app is rated 4.7 stars in the Apple AppStore.
- The Android version is also free but contains ads and in-app purchases.
Like most stargazing applications, the Starlight app uses your phone’s accelerometer and other sensors to display information about planets, stars, and constellations on the screen.
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Why should you download the Starlight app?
According to the developer, Starlight has over 100,000 stars in its database, including illustrated images for the most well-known constellations. In addition, the moon and the planets of our solar system are displayed. During the day it is possible to see the position of celestial objects above and below the horizon.
Aquarius, stop playing with the sun. / © NextPit
You can also use a search function that allows you to filter the results by constellation, star or object in our solar system. The option describes some objects and provides additional information. Unfortunately, it doesn’t show man-made objects like the International Space Station (ISS) or artificial satellites like SpaceX’s Starlink constellation.
Note that the Android version not only contains ads, but hasn’t been updated for more than three years, so there may be compatibility and stability issues.
Does Starlight respect my privacy?
According to the app’s description on the Apple App Store, the developer can collect anonymous data such as location, telemetry, and usage. The privacy policy linked in the store points to a blank webpage, but the (old) Android policy says nothing suspicious from the Florida-based company.
For the Android version, the Exodus privacy tool identified two trackers, both from Google, for advertising and analytics, as well as six permissions, including precise geolocation required to use augmented reality stargazing capabilities.
What are your app recommendations for stargazing? Do you live in a big city with a lot of light pollution and are amazed when you look at the sky in the countryside? Let us know what you think in the comments below!