The outer edge of the star chart becomes the horizon around you, so the stars overhead will be in the middle of your star chart (the middle of your imaginary bowl!). Now when you’re looking at the star chart (when it’s still above your head) imagine the surface of the chart is the inside of an upside down bowl that stretches down to the horizon.It’s ok, they’re designed to be used like this. You’ll discover that east and west aren’t actually the wrong way around but correct when above your head. To start using the star chart, hold the chart above your head and orientate yourself so the ‘N’ on the chart is facing North and the ‘S’ is facing South.Star charts may seem confusing when you initially get one, but it won’t take you long to become an expert star chaser! Especially if you start with a simple star chart that shows just the constellations, but normally they will also show the locations of prominent stars, galaxies, nebulae and maybe even the planets.The great thing about that though is there’s a whole new sky to explore from the one you’re currently under! Most star charts are designed to be used any time of year for either the Northern Hemisphere (those in the United States, UK, Europe and Asia) or the Southern Hemisphere (those of you in Africa, Australia, New Zealand and South America) as what you can see in the night sky is different.This is because stars rise in the East and set in the West so their position changes from early evening (after sunset) to midnight to before dawn. You will need to set up your chart not just for the month of the year, but also the time of night because as the Earth rotates the positions of the stars above change. If you want to find a particular constellation, star or planet in the night sky you’ll need a star chart which shows the night sky in your location at that particular time of the year (as the stars change depending on the time of the year as the Earth orbits the Sun).All You Need To Know To Understand And Use A Star Chart!
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