Find constellations by pointing your phone
What’s That Star draws the lines and names of the constellations over the real sky, so you can see the shapes as you look up. Search for one and an arrow takes you straight to it.
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Good ones to start with
- Orion: three stars in a row make his belt. Best on winter evenings.
- Ursa Major: home of the Big Dipper, high in the north on spring evenings.
- Cassiopeia: a bright W shape on the opposite side of Polaris from the Big Dipper.
- Cygnus: the Northern Cross, overhead on summer and early fall evenings.
- Scorpius: a curving tail low in the south on summer evenings, with red Antares at its heart.
- Crux: the Southern Cross, best seen from the Southern Hemisphere.
Why they change through the year
As Earth goes around the Sun, our night side faces a different direction, so each season brings different constellations in the evening. Through the night they also rise in the east and set in the west, just like the Sun.
88 official constellations
Astronomers divide the whole sky into 88 constellations. Many famous shapes are only part of one: the Big Dipper, for example, is part of Ursa Major.
Questions
Is the Big Dipper a constellation?
Not officially. It’s a pattern within the constellation Ursa Major.
Which constellations can I see tonight?
Open the sky view and point your phone around. Everything above the horizon is labeled, and you can turn constellation lines and names on or off in Settings.
Do I need a dark sky?
Bright constellations like Orion and the Big Dipper show up even from towns. Fainter ones need a darker sky away from lights.