The Night Sky 20°-30° (Large)

Rating:
Summary: Used it for years.
Review: Having used planispheres for over 40 years, I was very interested when I first saw David Chandler's "The Night Sky". I found it to be the easiest to use, easiest to see and most accurate "sky dial" I had ever used. I can recommend this excellent planisphere to beginner, amateur and professional astronomers alike.

Rating:
Summary: Used it for years.
Review: Having used planispheres for over 40 years, I was very interested when I first saw David Chandler's "The Night Sky". I found it to be the easiest to use, easiest to see and most accurate "sky dial" I had ever used. I can recommend this excellent planisphere to beginner, amateur and professional astronomers alike.

Rating:
Summary: Why I designed The Night Sky & how it is different
Review: I first learned the sky when I was about ten years old using a rotating star dial. Much better star maps were available, but the rotating chart remained my favorite because I could go out at any time and know not only what to look for but where to look for it.

One problem I had with my chart was I couldn't recognize the constellations in the southern part of the sky. I never did find Sagittarius, for example, until an experienced amateur astronomer pointed it out to me. It looked nothing like what was shown on the chart.

Years later I looked at the chart again, as an adult, and realized why the constellations in the southern part of the sky were so hard to recognize. The whole sphere of the sky was being stretched out onto one flat map. It is the same map projection that shows the Earth with the North Pole in the middle. The Northern Hemisphere looks pretty good, but Australia is stretched out like a sausage.

I wanted a star map with less distortion that still had the advantage of the rotating dial. I figured out how to put a second map on the back to show the constellations in the south without the excessive distortion. The Night Sky is the result. You use the front side when you are facing north and the back side when you are facing south. One setting of the dial works for both maps. This solution eliminates over 90% of the distortion near the southern horizon!

Reduced distortion is the main design feature that sets The Night Sky apart from other star dials (or "planispheres" as they are called, technically). But this is not the only difference. I opted to plot dark stars on a white background (even though a dark background might look "more natural") because I want the charts to be readable at night! I have been careful to avoid needless clutter, to keep the charts easy to read. And I have included a selection of the best objects to look for with binoculars to take you one step beyond naked-eye observing. In short, I have done everything I can to help you have success in your adventure learning the sky. Enjoy.

David Chandler

Rating:
Summary: I'm enjoying it a lot.
Review: It is very detailed. As it says, it's very similar to the stars you actually see in the sky.

It works as follows: there is an outter dial with the days of the year, and an inner dial with the hours of day. By aligning them, it is easy to see the stars that are on the sky at any day (night) and hour.

One side faces North and the other side faces South. It has the star coordinate system (the one in hours and degrees), so you can find planets, if you have a table that tells you where to look.

I think you should complement this with a book, such as "40 Nights to Knowing the Sky", in order to know what you are seeing.

Rating:
Summary: Affordable, Convenient, Easy to use!
Review: The first and best star chart for viewing the south sky with low distortion! I highly recommend it!

Rating:
Summary: An excellent tool for learning your way around the sky.
Review: The Night Sky for this latitude was useful for me even though I don't live at these locations. In the late 1970's I needed to see how the sky looked from the southern US. This was useful as I was writing articles from their perspective. Since I couldn't travel southward, I used the Night Sky and saw how the sky would look from the southern US. I later learned the Night Sky is very accurate as I received positive responses from my articles.

Rating:
Summary: Not just another planisphere
Review: The Night Sky is not just another planisphere. I think The Night Sky is the finest and easiest to use star finding aid in existence. --Jack Internationally via satellite,the Armed Services Network, NASA C.O.R.E. and USIA WORLDNET