Star Charts and Sky Events

Planetarium"Those who do not remember history are doomed to repeat it!"

Planisphere

Download the two files. The cut out the disk with the stars on it, and the disk with the horizon and directions on it. Next, cut out the ellipse with the viewing window from the inside of the horizon mask. Tape a piece of transparency or clear plastic over the hole in the horizon mask. Finally, take a pin or paperclip and punch it through the plastic and star wheel while lining up the edge of the horizon mask with the inner edge of the star wheel. Use a piece of tape of cork to hold the two together. The horizon mask should spin around the stars.

To use the planisphere, match the date you are observing with the time you are observing. So if you are watching the Lyrid meteors at 1AM, match the time 1AM to April 22. THe inside of the wheel now shows a star chart for that time. The center of the chart is straight up, and the edge of the chart is the horizon. So an object half way from the center to the edge of the chart is half way up in the sky. These stars are courtesy Dr. Mel Blake. Good luck. Feedback is welcome.