Find your way around your sky
Imagine the chart above you. Its centre is the point overhead, and its outer edge is the horizon all around you.
An overhead view, with a plain-language key
Sky-source attribution: HYG · CC BY-SA 4.0. Deep sky: NASA/Goddard Scientific Visualization Studio; Gaia DR2: ESA/Gaia/DPAC. Constellation figures: IAU and Sky & Telescope (Roger Sinnott & Rick Fienberg); Alan MacRobert; D3 modifications by Olaf Frohn; CC BY 4.0, modified. Fictional reference artwork.
The reference stars are calculated for Budapest on 21 June 2025 at 22:00 local time. The diagram adds an explanatory grid; your printed design can leave that grid off.
Read the circle from the centre outward
Begin overhead
The centre is the zenith: the direction straight above the observer. It is not north, the pole star or a point on the Earth’s surface. An object near the centre is high in this calculated sky.
Look toward the rim
The circular edge represents the ideal horizon. A position near it is low in the sky. Buildings, mountains, trees and atmospheric refraction can change an actual view, and are not reconstructed by this chart.
Use the compass directions
North is at the top, south at the bottom, east left and west right. Imagine holding the chart above your head with its north aligned to north. This explains why east is reversed from the ground-map convention you may expect.
If you turn the grid on
| Part of the grid | What it describes | How to use it |
|---|---|---|
| Circular rings | Height above the ideal horizon. The example rings mark 22.5°, 45° and 67.5°. | Closer to the centre means higher; the centre is 90° and the horizon 0°. |
| Spokes | Directions around the observer. | Follow a spoke toward the edge to picture the direction along the horizon. |
| The circular frame | The extent of the projected hemisphere. | It separates the map from the poster background; an optional decorative border does not change the calculation. |
The grid is an orientation aid, not a landscape, a weather record or a claim that every star was visible.
What the stars and accents mean
The Celestial points represent catalogue stars above the ideal horizon, with a visual brightness treatment. Selected constellation accents draw attention to up to three familiar figures. Their connections are guides, not official constellation boundaries. Labels can be moved for legibility, and a partly visible figure may be clipped at the edge. A constellation selected in the designer can also be below the chosen horizon.
Reading a Deep sky design
The dense texture is a catalogue-based star-map reconstruction, projected for your moment. The Milky Way’s presence and orientation are part of that view, but the picture is ideal darkness rather than an exposure from your city. Do not use a small texture speck as proof of perfect individual-star alignment with an artistic accent. Celestial offers a simpler way to read the calculated star points.
When a chart looks surprising
Why is east on the left?
Because the chart is an upward view. Hold its imagined north toward north while looking upward: east is then on the left of the printed orientation.
Link to this answer: Why is east on the left?Why does a familiar constellation look different?
Its orientation changes with location and time, and the flat projection changes shapes toward the edge. A figure can be partly or entirely below the ideal horizon. The accent is also an artistic guide, not an official boundary drawing.
Link to this answer: Why does a familiar constellation look different?Can I use the print as a detailed observing chart?
It is a personal artwork. It uses a limited star catalogue and stylised rendering, without local obstructions or atmospheric reconstruction. Use a purpose-built observing chart or planetarium when you need detailed field identification.
Link to this answer: Can I use the print as a detailed observing chart?See the circle change with your moment
Try another place or local time in the free explorer and compare the calculated view.
Explore a sky