KStars
KStars is a free, open source planetarium software for Linux and other UNIX-like systems. It allows users to visualize a realistic and accurate night sky, identify celestial objects like stars and planets, track their movement, and control telescopes for observation.
astronomy
stars
planets
telescope-control
KStars: Open Source Planetarium Software for Linux
Free planetarium software for Linux and UNIX-like systems, visualize realistic night sky, identify celestial objects, track movement, control telescopes
What is KStars?
KStars is a powerful open source desktop planetarium software for Linux and other UNIX-like systems. It provides an accurate graphical simulation of the night sky, from any location on Earth, at any date and time. KStars enables users to visualize the positions of stars, planets, comets, supernova remnants and more, while identifying and tracking any celestial bodies.
Some of the key features of KStars include:
- Realistic 3D rendering of the night sky, correctly displaying stars, constellations, deep-sky objects based on stellar databases
- Support to control telescopes and cameras for observations
- Tools for planning observing sessions with detailed information about any celestial object
- Simulation of sky movement in real-time or fast/slow modes
- Variety of coordinate systems and map projections to navigate the sky
- Multi-language user interface
With its user-friendly graphical interface, extensive catalogues and astronomy tools, KStars is a great open source software for learning the night sky, planning observations, controlling equipment and performing real science. It runs smoothly even on low-end systems, making it widely accessible.
KStars Features
Features
- Realistic 3D simulation of the night sky
- Identify and locate celestial objects like stars, planets, comets, etc
- Track movement of celestial objects over time
- Control telescopes for observation
- View constellations and deep sky objects
- Find rising, transiting and setting times of celestial objects
- View sky culture like mythology and folklore of different civilizations
Pricing
- Open Source
Pros
Free and open source
Available for Linux and other Unix-like systems
Accurate simulation of night sky
Lots of features for learning astronomy
Supports multiple languages
Cons
Limited platform support (Linux/Unix only)
Steep learning curve for new users
User interface could be more intuitive
Lacks some advanced features found in commercial planetarium software
Official Links
The Best KStars Alternatives
Top Science & Education and Astronomy and other similar apps like KStars
Here are some alternatives to KStars:
Suggest an alternative ❐
Google Earth
Google Earth is a geobrowser that accesses satellite and aerial imagery, ocean bathymetry, and other geographic data over the internet to represent the Earth as a three-dimensional globe. It was originally developed by Keyhole, Inc., a company acquired by Google in 2004.Google Earth allows users to search for addresses and...
Stellarium
Stellarium is a free, open-source planetarium software that shows a realistic and accurate 3D simulation of the night sky, just like what you can see with the naked eye, binoculars or a small telescope. It is available for Windows, Mac, and Linux operating systems.With Stellarium, you can visualize the actual...
Sky Map
Sky Map is a popular free stargazing app developed by Google. It allows users to easily explore and learn about astronomical objects in the night sky, using augmented reality and phone sensors.To use Sky Map, you simply open the app and hold your phone up to the sky. The app...
SkyView
SkyView is a versatile and user-friendly virtual planetarium software for Windows, Mac, and Linux operating systems. It allows users to explore the cosmos from the comfort of their home or office.With highly detailed and accurate star maps and orbital data, SkyView renders the positions of over 68,000 stars, all 88...
Orrery
Orrery is a free, open-source software application that displays an interactive model of the solar system, planets, moons and other celestial objects. It provides an educational astronomy simulation showing the relative positions and motions of objects in the solar system.Some key features of Orrery include:Interactive 3D display of planets, moons,...
SkEye
SkEye is a feature-rich, open source planetarium software for Windows. Developed by Bachono Khondoker, SkEye allows users to simulate the night sky in real-time and explore celestial objects like stars, planets, moons, asteroids, comets, satellites, constellations, deep sky objects, and more.With an intuitive user interface, SkEye makes it easy to...
Noctua Stellarium Mobile
Noctua Stellarium Mobile is a feature-rich mobile planetarium app that allows users to explore the wonders of the night sky from the convenience of their phone or tablet. With over 600,000 stars, a catalogue of over 88 constellations, and realistic rendering of the Milky Way, it brings an immersive stargazing...
WorldWide Telescope
WorldWide Telescope (WWT) is a free, open-source planetarium software program originally developed by Microsoft Research. It allows users to explore and visualize the universe in 3D using real data and imagery from ground and space-based telescopes.Some key features of WorldWide Telescope include:Interactive 3D views of the night sky from any...
Solar System Scope
Solar System Scope is an interactive 3D simulation of the solar system, planets, dwarf planets, moons, asteroids, comets and spacecraft. It allows users to explore space from any point of view, whether from the surface of planets and moons or out in the depths of space.The software visualizes planetary orbits...
Planetario
Planetario is a feature-rich, open-source astronomy application for Windows, Mac, and Linux. It provides an interactive 3D simulation of the night sky, accurately displaying the positions and movements of stars, planets, moons, constellations, galaxies, and other celestial objects.Key features of Planetario include:Realistic 3D representation of the night sky from any...
SkySafari
SkySafari is a highly-rated astronomical software program used by amateur astronomers, educators and science enthusiasts to explore the night sky. It allows users to identify over 300 million stars, planets, constellations, satellites and deep sky objects that are visible from any location on Earth.Some key features of SkySafari include:Detailed database...
GoSkyWatch Planetarium
GoSkyWatch Planetarium is a feature-rich, open-source desktop planetarium software available for Windows, Mac, and Linux operating systems. Completely free to download and use, it allows astronomy enthusiasts to explore the intricacies of the night sky from the comfort of their homes.Using accurate celestial mechanics algorithms, GoSkyWatch Planetarium accurately displays the...
Sky Guide
Sky Guide is an augmented reality stargazing app developed by Fifth Star Labs. It allows users to identify stars, planets, constellations, and satellites visible in the night sky by simply pointing their phone camera at the sky.Some key features of Sky Guide include:Augmented reality overlay showing names and information about...
StarCalc
StarCalc is a free and open-source spreadsheet application for Windows, macOS, and Linux. It provides many of the advanced features found in proprietary commercial spreadsheets like Excel, making it an excellent free alternative.Some of the key features of StarCalc include:Support for formulas and functions, including statistical, logical, financial, date/time, lookup,...
SkyMap
SkyMap is a popular, free stargazing application for Android and iOS devices. It allows users to explore the night sky in real-time and identify stars, constellations, planets, satellites, and other celestial objects visible above them.When opened, SkyMap uses the device's orientation sensors and GPS to display an augmented reality view...
Star Walk (series)
Star Walk is a series of augmented reality astronomy apps developed by Vito Technology for iOS and Android devices. First launched in 2008, the apps allow users to explore the night sky by holding up their phone and seeing stars, constellations, planets, satellites, and other celestial objects overlaid in their...
TOPCAT
TOPCAT is an interactive graphical tool for manipulation and analysis of tabular data, such as astronomical catalogs or spreadsheet tables. It was developed specifically for use in astronomical research to handle the ever larger catalogs produced by current and next generation sky surveys.TOPCAT provides a wide range of functionality for...
Earth View from Google Earth
Earth View from Google Earth is a free browser extension available for Chrome, Firefox, and Edge that changes your new tab page to showcase gorgeous satellite photos of places around the world sourced from Google Earth. When you open a new tab, you'll be greeted with a breathtaking high resolution...
Star Chart
Star Chart is an interactive astronomy map software used by amateur astronomers, students, and enthusiasts to map and catalog celestial objects like stars, planets, galaxies, nebulae, etc. It contains detailed catalogs with millions of deep sky objects. Users can pan around and use it as a planetarium-style star map to...
Luminos
Luminos is a cloud-based software that helps users organize, edit and share their photos. It provides an intuitive interface and powerful tools to manage ever-growing photo libraries.With Luminos, users can upload an unlimited number of photos from any device - desktop, mobile or external drives. Uploaded photos are automatically tagged...
Cosmic-Watch
Cosmic-Watch is an open-source alternative to commercial website and application monitoring services. It allows users to monitor the uptime, performance, and visual changes of their websites.Some key features of Cosmic-Watch include:Uptime monitoring - Get notified if your site goes down.Page speed checks - Monitor site performance from global locations.Visual testing...
SkyORB
SkyORB is a free, open-source media player and web browser for Windows. Developed by SkyORB Technologies, it aims to provide a lightweight yet versatile option for playing media files and accessing the web.As a media player, SkyORB supports common audio and video codecs out-of-the-box, allowing you to play MP3, WMA,...
WinStars
WinStars is a feature-rich desktop customization program for Windows that gives users full control over customizing the look and feel of their desktop. It comes packed with thousands of free themes, icon packs, wallpapers, screensavers, cursors, fonts, and visual styles to completely transform the aesthetic of your Windows desktop.With WinStars,...
Gaia Sky
Gaia Sky is an interactive 3D software program that models the Milky Way galaxy in striking detail. It uses scientific data from the European Space Agency's Gaia mission and other astronomical surveys to recreate the positions, movements, and details of over 1.5 billion stars in our galaxy. Users can zoom...
The Night Sky
The Night Sky is an award-winning stargazing app that allows users to explore the night sky in an interactive and immersive 3D star map. The app utilizes augmented reality technology to identify stars, planets, constellations, satellites, and other celestial objects by simply pointing your phone at the sky.Key features of...
Aciqra
Aciqra is a software platform designed for business intelligence and data analytics. It provides organizations with tools to collect, store, analyze, and visualize data from multiple sources in order to gain important insights and help inform decision-making.Some key features of Aciqra include:Data integration - Connect to a wide variety of...
Starmap
Starmap is a versatile mind mapping and brainstorming application for organizing ideas and information. With an intuitive drag-and-drop interface, users can create node-based maps that connect related concepts, notes, files, links, and more.Some key features of Starmap include:Real-time collaboration - Multiple users can work on the same mind map simultaneously...
StarMap 3D
StarMap 3D is a feature-rich interactive 3D star mapping program designed to map realistic views of the night sky from any location on Earth. With over 120,000 stars, all planets and their moons, famous constellations, nebulae, galaxies, and other celestial objects, StarMap 3D provides an immersive way to explore the...
Asynx Planetarium
Asynx Planetarium is a free, open-source planetarium software application for Windows. It allows users to visualize the night sky from any location on Earth, on any date and time. The software can display stars, constellations, planets, galaxies, nebulae, and other deep sky objects.Some key features of Asynx Planetarium include:Realistic and...
Sky Map of Constellations
Sky Map of Constellations is a popular free mobile app developed by Google that allows users to easily identify celestial objects in the night sky, including stars, constellations, planets, and even satellites. It utilizes augmented reality, GPS, and compass sensors in phones to display overlays with names and information about...
Solar Model
Solar Model is a comprehensive software tool used for the design and simulation of solar photovoltaic systems. It enables engineers, designers, and installers to model the performance of solar panels under various conditions to help optimize system design and predict energy production.Key features of Solar Model include:Detailed PV system modeling...
Star Rover
Star Rover is a habit tracking and goal setting app available on web and mobile devices. It allows users to choose habits and goals they want to track, set reminders and cues, log progress daily, and view insightful analytics on their progress over time.Key features of Star Rover include:Customizable dashboard...
Planisphere
Planisphere is a free, open source application that allows users to create customized, interactive maps of the night sky from any location on Earth. Developed by Stellarium, Planisphere generates detailed star charts, highlighting constellations, planets, galaxies, nebulae and more based on the user's defined location, date, and time.Key features of...
Vortex Planetarium
Vortex Planetarium is a feature-rich, open-source desktop planetarium software available for Windows, Mac, and Linux operating systems. Completely free for personal and educational use, it allows users to visualize and explore the intricate beauty of the night sky from any location on Earth.With high-precision visualization, Vortex Planetarium accurately displays and...
Star Tracker
Star Tracker is an astronomy application designed specifically for controlling computerized or GoTo telescopes. It provides an intuitive user interface that makes it easy to point your telescope accurately at thousands of stars, planets, nebulae, galaxies, and other celestial objects.With just a few clicks, Star Tracker can automatically move your...
