Planisphere vs SkyView

Struggling to choose between Planisphere and SkyView? Both products offer unique advantages, making it a tough decision.

Planisphere is a Education & Reference solution with tags like astronomy, stars, sky-map, open-source.

It boasts features such as Generate customizable maps of the night sky, Support for multiple languages, Adjustable field of view and limiting magnitude, Ability to add deep sky objects, Printable star charts, Search for celestial objects and pros including Free and open source, Easy to use interface, Highly customizable star charts, Available on multiple platforms.

On the other hand, SkyView is a Education & Reference product tagged with planetarium, stars, constellations, satellites.

Its standout features include Realistic 3D rendering of the night sky, Accurate positions of over 600,000 stars, Models the solar system with all planets and moons, Shows constellations, deep sky objects, satellites, comets and asteroids, Adjustable time rate from real-time to millions of years per second, Point telescope control for many popular mounts, Video output for dome projection, and it shines with pros like Very realistic and immersive virtual planetarium, Extensive celestial database for realistic sky, Lots of adjustable parameters for customization, Supports many different types of telescopes, Available for Windows, Mac and Linux.

To help you make an informed decision, we've compiled a comprehensive comparison of these two products, delving into their features, pros, cons, pricing, and more. Get ready to explore the nuances that set them apart and determine which one is the perfect fit for your requirements.

Planisphere

Planisphere

Planisphere is a free, open source software for creating interactive star charts. It allows users to customize and generate maps of the night sky for any location and time.

Categories:
astronomy stars sky-map open-source

Planisphere Features

  1. Generate customizable maps of the night sky
  2. Support for multiple languages
  3. Adjustable field of view and limiting magnitude
  4. Ability to add deep sky objects
  5. Printable star charts
  6. Search for celestial objects

Pricing

  • Free
  • Open Source

Pros

Free and open source

Easy to use interface

Highly customizable star charts

Available on multiple platforms

Cons

Limited selection of celestial objects

Basic graphics

Few advanced features compared to paid alternatives


SkyView

SkyView

SkyView is a virtual planetarium software for Windows, Mac, and Linux. It turns your computer into a window into the night sky, showing constellations, stars, planets, and satellites in real-time.

Categories:
planetarium stars constellations satellites

SkyView Features

  1. Realistic 3D rendering of the night sky
  2. Accurate positions of over 600,000 stars
  3. Models the solar system with all planets and moons
  4. Shows constellations, deep sky objects, satellites, comets and asteroids
  5. Adjustable time rate from real-time to millions of years per second
  6. Point telescope control for many popular mounts
  7. Video output for dome projection

Pricing

  • Free limited version
  • One-time purchase for full version

Pros

Very realistic and immersive virtual planetarium

Extensive celestial database for realistic sky

Lots of adjustable parameters for customization

Supports many different types of telescopes

Available for Windows, Mac and Linux

Cons

Can be complex for beginner users

Requires a decent graphics card for best performance

Advanced features require add-on purchases

Limited native mobile support