Editing Stellarium (software)

{{Short description|Open-source planetarium}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2021}}
{{More citations needed|date=April 2018}}
{{Infobox software
| name = Stellarium
| logo = File:Stellarium Splash.png
| logo size = 100px
| screenshot =File:Stellarium v24.3.png
| screenshot size = 300px
| caption = Stellarium 24.3 running on [[Windows (operating system)|Windows]]
| author = [[Fabien Chéreau]]
| developer = Alexander Wolf<br/>Georg Zotti<br/>Marcos Cardinot<br/>Guillaume Chéreau<br/>Bogdan Marinov<br/>Timothy Reaves<br/>Florian Schaukowitsch
| released = 2001
| latest release version = 24.4<ref>{{Cite web|last=Wolf|first=Alexander|date=December 22, 2024|title=v24.4|website=[[GitHub]] |url=https://github.com/Stellarium/stellarium/releases/tag/v24.4|access-date=December 25, 2024}}</ref>
| latest release date = {{Start date and age|2024|12|22|br=y|paren=y}}
| programming language = [[C++]] ([[Qt (framework)|Qt]])
| operating system = [[Linux]], [[Microsoft Windows|Windows]], [[macOS]]
| platform = [[Personal computer|PC]], [[SmartPhone|Mobile]]
| size = 345 MB ([[Linux]] [[tar (file format)|tar]]ball)<br/>261 MB ([[Microsoft Windows|Windows]] 32-bit installer)<br/> 398 MB (Windows 64-bit installer)<br/> 243 MB ([[macOS]] package)
| genre = [[Educational software]]
| license = [[GNU GPLv2]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://bazaar.launchpad.net/~stellarium/stellarium/trunk/view/head:/COPYING|title=~stellarium/stellarium/trunk : contents of COPYING at revision 9976|website=bazaar.launchpad.net}}</ref>
}}

'''Stellarium''' is a [[Free and open-source software|free and open-source]] [[planetarium software|planetarium]], licensed under the terms of the [[GNU General Public License]] version 2 or any later version, available for [[Linux]], [[Microsoft Windows|Windows]], and [[macOS]]. A port of Stellarium called Stellarium Mobile is available for [[Android (operating system)|Android]] and [[iOS]]. These have a limited functionality, lacking some features of the desktop version. All versions use [[OpenGL]] to render a realistic projection of the [[night sky]] in [[Real-time computer graphics|real time]].{{citation needed|date=April 2018}}

Stellarium was featured on [[SourceForge]] in May 2006 as ''Project of the Month''.<ref name="sf-potm">{{cite web |date=May 2006 |title=Project of the Month – May 2006 – Stellarium |url=http://sourceforge.net/potm/potm-2006-05.php |access-date=September 25, 2008 |website=[[SourceForge]] |publisher=}}</ref>

== History ==
In 2006, Stellarium 0.7.1 won a gold award in the Education category of the [[Les Trophées du Libre]] [[free software]] competition.<ref>{{cite web |title=The third Free Software Awards placed under the sign of the international |url=http://tropheesdulibre2006.org/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081221013442/http://tropheesdulibre2006.org/ |archive-date=December 21, 2008 |access-date=February 16, 2009 |work=Les Trophées du Libre 2006 website |language=fr}}</ref>

A modified version of Stellarium has been used by the [[MeerKAT]] project as a virtual sky display showing where the antennae of the [[radio telescope]] are pointed.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ska.ac.za/newsletter/issues/12/12.php |title=Virtual sky display in MeerKAT control room |publisher=Ska.ac.za |access-date=June 16, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120423154836/http://www.ska.ac.za/newsletter/issues/12/12.php |archive-date=April 23, 2012 }}</ref>

In December 2011, Stellarium was added as one of the "featured applications" in the [[Ubuntu Software Center]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://developer.ubuntu.com/2011/12/software-centre-app-picks-for-december/ |title=Software Centre app picks for December |website=Ubuntu App Developer |publisher=Developer.ubuntu.com |date=December 14, 2011 |access-date=June 16, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120626201455/http://developer.ubuntu.com/2011/12/software-centre-app-picks-for-december/ |archive-date=June 26, 2012 }}</ref>

=== Planetarium dome projection ===
The fisheye and spherical mirror distortion features allow Stellarium to be projected onto domes.  Spherical mirror distortion is used in projection systems that use a digital [[video projector]] and a first surface convex [[spherical mirror]] to project images onto a [[dome]]. Such systems are generally cheaper than traditional [[planetarium projector]]s and [[fish-eye lens]] projectors and for that reason are used in budget and home planetarium setups where projection quality is less important.{{citation needed|date=April 2018}}

Various companies which build and sell digital planetarium systems use Stellarium, such as ''e-Planetarium''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.e-planetarium.com/stellarium.htm|title=Stellarium Planetarium Software|work=E-Planetarium website|access-date=February 15, 2009|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081201071949/http://www.e-planetarium.com/stellarium.htm|archive-date=December 1, 2008}}</ref>{{primary source inline|date=July 2019}}

''Digitalis Education Solutions'', which helped develop Stellarium, created a fork called [[Nightshade (astronomy software)|Nightshade]] which was specifically tailored to planetarium use.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.digitaliseducation.com/products-nightshade.html|title=Nightshade Astronomy Simulation Software|work=Digitalis Education Solutions official website|access-date=January 11, 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nightshadesoftware.org|title=Nightshade Astronomy Simulator|work=Nightshade official website|access-date=January 11, 2010}}</ref>{{primary source inline|date=July 2019}}

=== VirGO ===
VirGO is a Stellarium plugin, a visual browser for the [[European Southern Observatory]] (ESO) Science Archive Facility which allows astronomers to browse professional astronomical data. It is no longer supported or maintained; the last version was 1.4.5, dated January 15, 2010.<ref name="eso-virgo">{{cite web|url=http://archive.eso.org/cms/tools-documentation/visual-archive-browser.html|title=VirGO, The Visual Archive Browser|publisher=ESO Science Archive Facility|access-date=November 21, 2012}}</ref>{{primary source inline|date=July 2019}}

== Stellarium Mobile ==
Stellarium Mobile is a [[Fork (software development)|fork]] of Stellarium, developed by some of the Stellarium team members. It currently targets mobile devices running [[Symbian]], [[Maemo]], [[Android (operating system)|Android]], and [[iOS]]. Some of the mobile optimisations have been integrated into the mainline Stellarium product.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.noctua-software.com/stellarium-mobile |title=Stellarium Mobile |publisher=Noctua Software |access-date=March 14, 2014 |archive-date=March 14, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140314141711/http://www.noctua-software.com/stellarium-mobile |url-status=dead }}</ref>{{primary source inline|date=July 2019}}{{dead link|date=July 2019}}

== Screenshots ==
<gallery>
File:Stellarium 001.jpg|Constellation art in version 0.6.2
File:Stellarium 0.10.1 - Constellation art - English.png|Constellation art in version 0.10.1
File:Stellarium Mars.png|Mars and its moons in Stellarium 0.14
File:Stellarium Grid.png|Equatorial and Azimuthal Grids in Stellarium 0.14
File:Stellarium Night Mode.png|Screenshot of Night Mode in Stellarium 0.14
</gallery>

== Legacy ==
[[Eleanor Catton]], the [[New Zealand]] author who wrote the [[Booker Prize|2013 Booker Prize]] recipient novel ''[[The Luminaries]],''<!-- Ref copied from here; see history for attribution --> stated she used star charts from Stellarium and ''[[Sky & Telescope]]'' while writing the novel to help reconstruct the sky within the timeframe the novel is set in.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Tivnan |first=Tom |date=1 August 2013 |title=Eleanor Catton: Interview |url=https://www.thebookseller.com/profile/eleanor-catton-interview |access-date=2021-02-17 |website=The Bookseller}}</ref>

== See also ==
{{Portal|Free and open-source software|Astronomy}}
{{colbegin|colwidth=20em}}
* [[Space flight simulation game]]
** [[List of space flight simulation games]]
* [[Planetarium software]]
* [[List of observatory software]]
{{colend}}

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
{{Commons|Stellarium}}
* {{Official website}}
* [https://stellarium-web.org/ Stellarium Web Online Planetarium]

{{Astronomy software}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stellarium (Software)}}
[[Category:2001 software]]
[[Category:Cross-platform software]]
[[Category:Free astronomy software]]
[[Category:Free educational software]]
[[Category:Free software programmed in C++]]
[[Category:Planetarium software for Linux]]
[[Category:Portable software]]
[[Category:Science software for macOS]]
[[Category:Science software for Windows]]
[[Category:Software that uses Qt]]