Giordano Observatory · free tools
Astronomy weather
Previsione per astrofili ora per ora: nuvole basse, medie e alte, nebbia, rugiada, vento, buio e Luna, con satellite Meteosat e radar della pioggia. Gratis.
Tools for amateur astronomers are on their way
Free tools for anyone who observes and photographs the sky, designed by our observatory: we're testing them with a small group of amateur astronomers before opening them to everyone.
- Which telescope is right for you5 questions and the 3 right telescopes, with the reasons why
- Field of viewYour telescope with any camera, on a real photo of the sky
- What to image tonightThe best objects from your location, with the Moon, comets and meteor showers
- Astronomy weatherClouds, humidity, dew and wind, hour by hour, with satellite and radar
- Sky chart and MoonTonight's sky, the Moon's phases and sky events for your calendar
- Camera databaseAstronomy cameras, DSLRs and mirrorless cameras compared
- 21 calculatorsMagnification, exposure times, backfocus, mounts and more
- Your observing logThe objects you've seen and imaged, with the 110-object Messier challenge
We'll let you know as soon as they're ready
A weather forecast designed for stargazers
For each hour you get a simple green, yellow or red rating and the data that really matter: low, medium and high cloud, fog, rain, humidity, the gap between temperature and dew point (condensation on the optics) and wind. Darkness and the Moon are calculated for your location, and there is a summary of the next seven nights.
Satellite and radar
The infrared image from the Meteosat satellite shows clouds even at night; the radar of Italy's Civil Protection Department shows rain across Italy. The forecasts come from the Norwegian Meteorological Institute (MET Norway).
Data: object catalogue from Stellarium (SIMBAD/VizieR, CDS Strasbourg); Digitized Sky Survey sky photos (STScI/NASA) via hips2fits (CDS); sky map by Giordano Astronomia with ESA's Hipparcos and Tycho-2 star catalogues; places: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0); sky darkness from the NASA Black Marble 2016 night lights (VIIRS, NASA Earth Observatory / GIBS); ephemerides computed with J. Meeus's algorithms and JPL orbital elements. Camera data from the manufacturers' official spec sheets.
✦ Tools designed and developed by Mattia Toto for Giordano Astronomia · @toto.astrophoto