Free Planetarium Software: Stellarium for Beginners
Introduction
When planning shots, looking at paper charts can be a good method to see when and where in the night sky a target you may want to shoot will be. But what if you could see a virtual representation of the sky, with all objects around it, and the ground where you will be shooting from? In this article, I will provide a general overview of the powerful program, Stellarium.
Since the initial posting of the attached video published in 2021, there are quite a few helpful tips I have figured out to assist with your beginning into Stellarium. Some of these new tips are listed here in the article and will not be in the attached video!
Stellarium and Its Uses
So what is Stellarium? Stellarium is a free planetarium software that allows you to see the sky as it is from where you are, on any date you are planning to visually observe the night sky, or take images. It is available for Windows, Mac, Linux, Web version, and on mobile devices.
The version in the video below is 0.20.4. However, the current version available upon revising this article in September 2025 is 0.25.2. Be aware that the developers may change icons in newer versions but the layout stays pretty much the same.
This guide focuses on the PC, Mac, and Linux versions of Stellarium. The mobile version is very similar however it does not have all of the features of the focus of this guide series.
Starting in Stellarium
When you first open it, you’ll see a default view, and it’ll be open to the time of day on your computer. A few things you’ll want to set. At the bottom, if you click these two arrows it will lock the controls to be visible… I kind of wonder why this isn’t a default setting yet. However, it can be set by opening the configuration window using the wrench icon, or pressing F2 on your keyboard to open the configuration window. From there, on the first screen, click, “Save Settings” to have the the control bars always visible. If you prefer the pop-up style of the control bars, leave it as is without saving.
Location
You can change your location by choosing from the list, searching, or putting in the coordinates of where you are, or where you’ll be shooting from. You can go to latlong.net and click on the map to get coordinates for where you live. Once you have your GPS coordinates, title it and save it. Should you be planning on shooting from multiple locations, add those in as well.
To set the location, you can click on the location window menu option, or press F6 to bring it up. From there, either search to see if your location is already in the database, or add in the coordinates and custom name of the location. Stellarium will usually use location data if it is enabled on your device, however, it is a good idea to save your observing locations just in case one of those locations do not have internet access available. Once you enter the information, click on “Add to List.”
Light Pollution Level
You’ll want to set this so it is more accurate to what you are seeing when you are out there. This can help in planning if you have to manually find your target when visually observing the night sky. You can change this in “Sky and viewing options,” or press F4 on Windows. We will be in this window for the next few steps.
Even after multiple updates, I recommend you manually set it. “Use from locations” doesn’t work very well in my opinion, changing it to best match what you are seeing with your eyes is the better option in my opinion.
To set that, click on the “Sky” tab. In there is a slider you can use to best fit the sky you are seeing.
Catalogs
When searching for specific Deep Sky Objects, you’ll want to enable the major catalogs to see most choices. The three most common are “M” for Messier, “IC” for Index Catalogue, “NGC” for New General Catalog. To enable them go to the “DSO” tab, and check those three boxes. With these three checked you’ll get the majority of popular objects to observe or image. This will keep you busy for quite some time while learning.
There are other catalogs to work with, however, some of them might not be initially visible in Stellarium. An example of this is the Sharpless-2 (SH-2) catalog. If the object is not part of the above three catalogs, there most likely won’t be an image in the sky as most of the popular objects have an associated image as part of the default program. There are ways to see those objects, that will be covered in another guide.
Landscape
Adding in your landscape choice is important, as it helps you identify anything that might obstruct your view. Trees, nearby buildings, large hills, they all play a part in your observing. You can pick one you like, or add your own. We will go over how to create your own in the article linked in the conclusion.
To change the landscape, go into the “Landscape” tab, and select your preferred landscape!
Of course, you can always have fun and see what the view looks like from the Moon or Mars, but it will still show the sky as seen from Earth.
What Can Stellarium Do?
Before continuing, the time and date will need to be set to the night and time of your planned observing or imaging session.
Let’s say we’re looking at Orion, or imaging it. To search for a specific option, click on the magnifying glass icon with a star in it, or press F3 to open the search. This search can be used for Deep Sky Objects, Solar System Objects, and artificial satellites. Double click the object you are looking for and the camera will pan to the object.
After clicking on it you can choose your equipment. To do that, in the top right of the screen by default are four buttons. You can cycle through the camera and lens or telescope based on what you will be using.
To show the difference, here’s a couple of example screenshots. The first image is using a 30mm eyepiece and an 8 Inch Dobsonian Telescope. The second image is with the imaging view, using the ZWO 2600MC Duo and the William Optics Zenithstar ZS61 Telescope.
For visual, keep in mind that Stellarium will show more detail than your eye can see.
If you are taking photos, you can frame the image. You can do that by clicking the degree buttons to frame it how you will based on how you’ll have your camera mounted.
Fun with Stellarium
Of course, you can use Stellarium for entertainment and educational purposes. For example, if you are teaching someone else the night sky, you can change how constellations are shown to illustrate your point. You can toggle constellation lines, constellation names, and constellation art.
It can also be used to predict if a satellite may be visible. An example is checking to see if the International Space Station, otherwise known as the “ISS” and “Zarya,” will be visible in your area. Using the search, you can find most major artificial satellites to see if they will be visible. However, the accuracy is dependent on the database of satellites being up to date, and an internet connection. A reason for this, the ISS frequently adjusts its orbit of Earth based on needs, such as increasing orbit altitude or avoiding another satellite.
Another fun educational ability of Stellarium is just changing when you are looking at the night sky. Turn on constellation lines, and go forward and backward centuries at a time. As star positions changed or will change from our vantage point on Earth, the constellations look different. A neat thing to check out is, rewind time as far as it will go. What time is Sunrise? Also, there is a constellation that hasn’t changed much. Which one is it? Let me know in the comment section below the video to tell me what you found.
Conclusion
There is much more to this program we can do, if you would like to add your backyard to Stellarium, check out my guide about How to Add A Custom Landscape to Stellarium.
If you would like, check out the accompanying video:
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