Vector Image of the Night Sky?

[NerdyShirts]

I have been looking everywhere and I can't find anything like this...

Does anyone know where I can find an accurate vectorized image of the night sky? Just stars and planets in the appropriate places, so I can actually find the Big Dipper, Orions Belt, etc.

 

[SpeedFreek]

Hi there, welcome to the SDC forums!

When you say vectorised, what do you mean exactly?

 

[Boris_Badenov]

A Star Party with your local Astronomy club is usually the best way to get acquainted with the sky, but here are a few sites a quick Google search brought up.

Your Sky
http://www.fourmilab.ch/yoursky/
Explore the sky with Google Earth
http://earth.google.com/sky/index.html
Interactive Sky Chart
http://www.skyandtelescope.com/observing/skychart/
All Sky Maps
http://www.stargazing.net/David/constel/allskymaps.html

 

[SpeedFreek]

On a hunch, I think nerdyshirts might mean a vector format such as is suitable to be manipulated in a vector drawing program. If that is the case, I have to say I have never come across skymaps in that kind of format and might suggest finding a starmap of the region in bitmapped format and tracing it? Most of the vector drawing programs I know have an autotrace function.

 

[NerdyShirts]

SpeedFreek is correct

I suppose I should just ask, does anyone know where I might find a high resolution image of the nightsky with key points like the Big Dipper and Orion's Belt... I am not very familiar with what the regions are called :-\

 

[SpeedFreek]

Try http://www.heavens-above.com/skychart.aspx

You can change the size of the picture at the bottom, (it retains full resolution until around 2000 pixels but goes much higher) and you can also change it to black on white (I used to make artwork for screenprinters). If it isn't showing the constellations you want, try changing the date!

 

[MeteorWayne]

Yeah, unfortunately your choice of the word "vectorized" is very confusing, since it has no meaning related to what you are asking.

You have link or two to describe the sky above you.

I'd suggest getting an issue of Sky and Telescope or Astronomy magazine as another alternative; they have sky maps for the evening hours.

 

[yevaud]

Another suggestion: THE field guide, the Audubon Field Guide To The Night Sky. Very good publication; I used to use it when working at the BU Observatory.